DAILY BRIDGE CLUB

I found Cy the Cynic in the club lounge writing his monthly alimony check: like putting gas in a wrecked car, he says.

“Alimony,” Cy told me, “is when two people make a mistake, but only one of them winds up paying for it.”

A partnership at bridge is a bit different: If one player errs, both pay. In today’s deal, West led the queen of hearts against four spades. East signaled with the three, but West led another heart.

East won and led a third heart, but South ruffed high and drew trumps. East discarded a heart. Declarer then took three diamond tricks, ending in dummy, and led the 10 of hearts. When East covered, South discarded a club, and East had to lead a club to dummy’s A-Q. Making four.

If you don’t respect your partner’s signals, you deserve to see losing games succeed. East’s three of hearts begged for a shift — surely to a club through dummy’s holding. If West leads the 10 of clubs at Trick Two, he wrecks the contract. South has no chance.

Daily question

You hold: ♠ AQ876 ♥ 87 ♦ AK4 ♣ 8 7 2. Your partner opens one diamond, you bid one spade and he rebids two diamonds. What do you say?

Answer: This problem lacks a good solution. You have enough strength for game, but maybe not for the 11-trick diamond game, and you can’t bid 3NT when you have no stopper in either unbid suit. A raise to three diamonds would only invite game. Jump to four diamonds, forcing, or bid five diamonds and hope for the best.

East dealer

Both sides vulnerable