ACES ON BRIDGE

“A fine is a tax for doing something wrong. A tax is a fine for doing something right.”

— Anonymous On his visit to Henry VII’s nobles, Cardinal Morton went after taxes, asserting that if someone entertained him well, they must have excess funds to pay taxes. Conversely, those who skimped on hospitality must be saving their money, and therefore had some to spare for taxes. Either way, English citizens were caught in Morton’s fork.

Today’s deal is a complex variant of the theme. South declares six spades after enthusiastic opposition bidding. On the heart queen lead, declarer can place the king on his right; therefore, both minor-suit honors must lie with West. A squeeze cannot function, because if declarer plays a diamond to the king early, West will win and return the suit to cut the link with dummy, while if declarer runs all the trumps first, West can hold off the first diamond, win the second and return a club, leaving the slow diamond tricks stranded on the table. South must look to a Morton’s Fork

Coup instead.

He ruffs the heart lead in hand, draws a couple of trumps and then plays the diamond four toward dummy. West cannot afford to step in without establishing a third discard for South’s clubs, but when he plays low, declarer can jettison the diamond king on the heart ace and subsequently lose only one trick to the club king.

The natural play of winning the heart ace at the first trick would cost the contract because the discard would be of no use at that stage. Declarer must sneak a diamond through first.

ANSWER: You would not usually have a five-card major for a takeout double of a one-level opening, but you have the values for no more than one action. A double, which brings all three of your suits into play, is better than two hearts, which only suggests length in one of the three suits you possess.

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