Personality profile

“DO you think bridge players have Type-A personalities?” Rose asked me in the lounge.

“I’m dating a woman from Taiwan,” Cy the Cynic offered. “She has a Taipei personality.”

I know that a primary factor in becoming a winning player is desire. Many players have a drive to succeed; they study the game diligently.

At today’s 6NT, South takes the king of hearts and needs three club tricks plus good luck in diamonds. Say he leads the eight of clubs, planning to try two finesses, but the eight wins. West wins the third club with the king and leads another heart. How should South play the diamonds?

TEXTBOOK

This is a textbook card combination, and good players study the textbooks. Since South needs four diamond tricks, he should lead low toward dummy’s jack. He hopes for a 3-2 break and the queen with West.

Since the only 4-1 break South can handle is the singleton queen with West, South must not cash his ace first. If he did that here, he would lose a lucky slam.

DAILY QUESTION: You hold: KJ8

A6 KJ52 A 7 6 3. The dealer, at your right, opens one heart. You double, the next player raises to two hearts and your partner bids two spades. What do you say?

ANSWER: Your partner may have stuck out his neck to compete for the partscore. He promises only seven or so points and, with both opponents bidding, he probably has no more than that. Pass. You have little extra strength. Don’t punish your partner for his initiative.