ACES ON BRIDGE

At several tables in the 2019 Gold Coast Congress, NorthSouth reached an apparently hopeless heart game, but a friendly spade lead allowed them to discard two club losers. At one table, declarer next called for the heart jack. When it held, he had no further problems. He played a second trump, and East could score no more than his three remaining trumps one way or another. However, all East had to do was win the first heart and force declarer in clubs. When declarer ruffs, he has the choice of playing a second trump (in which case the hand falls to pieces since he is tapped out) or trying a cross-ruff.

But now, the absence of decent heart intermediates in dummy means the heart five will lose out to the heart six at some point. If the defenders had found this play, declarer would have been kicking himself, since his critical error was that he did not lead a low trump from dummy at trick three!

If the heart five is played at trick three, East wins and forces declarer. But then South simply plays three top diamonds and ruffs two diamond winners in dummy with intermediate trumps. Declarer ends up with five plain winners and scores five of his six remaining trumps separately. However, you could sell me on the idea that you are supposed to go after diamonds at trick three. If West has shown long spades, that line is not likely to lose. If West ruffs in, declarer can overruff. Now the remaining trump spots are good enough to ensure 10 tricks.