Contract Bridge

The most interesting hands for declarer are the ones where the contract is neither assured nor hopeless. These are the hands that test his mettle as he seeks the best path in an uncertain situation.

Take this deal where South reaches five clubs. As soon as dummy is tabled, he can see that the outcome is in doubt and that there is work to be done.

His initial assessment discloses that he has a diamond loser and possibly two heart losers, depending on the location of the heart ace. However, since West is very likely to hold the heart ace for his vulnerable overcall at the twolevel, the loss of two heart tricks is a strong probability.

Declarer’s next step is to formulate a plan that might enable him to avoid losing two heart tricks. There is an excellent chance to set up dummy’s diamonds for discards, but East is apt to gain the lead with a diamond while this is being done, and his heart return will then sink the contract.At about this point in his deliberations, it should occur to South that he might be able to establish the diamonds without allowing East to obtain the lead. Accordingly, he allows West’s king of spades to hold the first trick!

This unusual play achieves the desired goal, as it enables declarer to develop the diamond suit without interference from East. And it does so without the loss of an extra trick, since it merely exchanges a diamond loser for a spade loser.

Let’s say West leads another spade. South discards a diamond on the ace, cashes the ace of diamonds and ruffs a diamond. A trump lead to dummy and another diamond ruff then establishes three tricks in the suit. The last trump is drawn, ending in dummy, and three hearts are discarded on the good diamonds to make the contract with an overtrick.

West can stop the extra trick by cashing the heart ace at trick two, but cannot defeat the contract after South’s inspired duck at trick one.