DAILY BRIDGE CLUB

A reader is fascinated with various types of squeezes and asked why I seldom focus on squeeze play in my columns. The answer is that understanding the way many squeezes operate requires a second hand diagram — difficult in a newspaper column with limited space.

We’ll try to get by with one diagram in today’s deal. North-South bid intelligently to six spades, and West leads the queen of diamonds. If trumps broke 2-2, South could draw trumps, ruff two low diamonds in dummy and lose one club, making six. But since East has only two diamonds and J-x-x in trumps, South can’t get two ruffs.

Say South wins the first diamond with the ace and draws trumps. He next lets the jack of clubs ride to East’s king. At that point, East could beat the slam with a diamond return, but suppose he leads a heart.

South takes the ace and cashes the Q-A of clubs. With five tricks to go, dummy has a trump, Q-8-6 of hearts and the king of diamonds, and declarer has two trumps and three low diamonds.

If West keeps two hearts and three diamonds, declarer ruffs a heart, leads to the king of diamonds and ruffs a heart. Dummy is left with a trump and the high queen of hearts. If instead West saves two diamonds and three hearts, South cashes the king of diamonds, ruffs a heart and ruffs a diamond. He wins the last two tricks with a trump and the good diamond. It’s a “trump squeeze.”

Many good books treat squeezes and other mysteries of card play exhaustively.