The ice-cream treat that everyone likes

Today's deal would be easy for an experienced player who has seen the theme before. But it proved too tough for robots at Bridge Base Online. Eight robots received the heart-jack lead. All of them took the trick, played a club to dummy's ace and drifted down one. How should the contract have been played?

Several Wests understandably did not make that dangerous heart lead, preferring the spade nine. With the pressure off, each declarer just took the club finesse, not caring what happened.

South starts with seven top tricks: three spades, one heart, two diamonds and one club. Even though spades are splitting 3-3, the contract can be made if either minor-suit finesse is working. In this situation, cash the top tricks in the suit with the greater number; here, diamonds. Then, when the queen does not drop, take the club finesse. That produces two overtricks in this layout.

In Evanston, Illinois, late in the 19th century, the Methodist town fathers, resenting the dissipating influence of the soda fountain, passed an ordinance forbidding the sale of ice cream sodas on Sunday. This spurred the imaginative to find a way around the law. Some confectioners served ice cream with syrup but no soda. This sodaless soda was the Sunday soda. It became so popular that orders for “Sundays” occurred every day of the week. When there were complaints about naming the dish after the Sabbath, the spelling was changed to sundae!