DAILY BRIDGE CLUB

Here’s another deal from my monthly game in Birmingham with old friends. Yesterday I reported a deal in which they mangled me. Today’s deal gave me a chance to recover.

Cover the West/South cards and see if you defend as I did. Against three spades, West led the seven of diamonds: eight, jack from me, nine. How should I continue?

I placed South with seven spades and clearly the 10-9 of diamonds. Moreover, my partner would have led a singleton heart, so South had one or two. I assumed that South had 7-2-2-2 pattern and West something in trumps.

If I led the ace and a third diamond, South would pitch his club loser. So at Trick Two I shifted to the king of clubs.

South took dummy’s ace and (at double dummy) could have gone down one by attacking the hearts. Instead, he led the ten of spades. I won, led a club to West, won the diamond return with the queen and led the ace. South ruffed with the jack, but West discarded, and his Q-8-4 were worth two tricks. Down two.

Daily question

You hold: ♠ A ♥ 98754

♦ AQJ42 ♣ K 6. You are the dealer. When I held this hand in today’s deal, I opened one heart. Do you agree?

Answer: The textbook advice with two five-card suits is to open in the higher-ranking suit regardless of quality. To open one diamond would risk losing a trump fit in hearts. In third seat, or in an extreme case such asA4,3,76543,AKQJ3,you might make an exception and treat the weaker suit as a four-carder. East dealer

Both sides vulnerable