ACES ON BRIDGE

“I had rather believe all the fables in the Legend and the Talmud and the Alcoran than that this universal frame is without a mind.”

— Francis Bacon

When the three little pigs were faced with a declarer-play problem in three no-trump on a low diamond lead, the differences in their temperaments emerged in their approaches.

The first little pig won his diamond queen and optimistically played three top spades, expecting that suit to break for him. When it did not (East pitching a diamond), he led a heart to the 10, which West won and drew the inference that his partner had to have good clubs. He shifted to that suit for down two.

The second little pig won the diamond queen and played on clubs, not expecting to set up the suit so much as hoping the defenders might shift to hearts for him. Not a bad idea, but today the cards did not cooperate, and East cashed out at once to set the hand.

The third little pig saw that either hearts or spades might produce the extra trick for him, but he decided that he could make life harder for West if he made him guess early. That way, he might be able to combine all his chances together.

The defenders would surely go after clubs if South played on hearts after showing that he had spade and diamond strength. But when he won the diamond ace, concealing his queen, then played a heart to the 10, losing that trick to West, West would have had to be very suspicious to shift to clubs.

When West failed to find the killing club shift, continuing instead with diamonds, South could test both spades and hearts, and the 3-3 break in hearts let him make his game.

ANSWER: The two-diamond call is a one-round force, asking you to bid your suits up the line. There is no reason not to bid two hearts. You know you have the suit, and sometimes your left-hand opponent doesn’t have as many as he should. In any event, partner will bid a new suit if he doesn’t fit them, so no harm will be done.