FRANK STEWART BRIDGE

CY’S STATISTICAL PLAY

Cy the Cynic says that if at first you don’t succeed, try a few more times so your failure will be statistically significant. But when Cy was today’s declarer, he had only one chance to fail.

At four spades, Cy won the trump opening lead with the ace and led a diamond to dummy’s king. East took the ace and returned a trump, and when West won the next diamond, he led a third trump. Cy pitched a heart on dummy’s ace of clubs, but he had two more losing diamonds. Down one.

Inferior

Cy’s play was statistically inferior. He gets an extra chance by unblocking his king of clubs at Trick Two, then leading a diamond to the king. When East wins and returns a trump, the Cynic wins in dummy, takes the ace of clubs, ruffs a club and concedes a diamond. If defense leads another trump, Cy wins in dummy and ruffs a club. He can lead a heart to dummy and pitch a loser on the good fifth club. If clubs broke badly, Cy would have an outside chance for a diamond ruff in dummy.

Daily Question

You hold: ♠ Q92 ♥ A 4 2 ♦ K5 ♣ A 10 8 6 3. You open one club, your partner responds one heart, you bid 1NT and he tries two spades. What do you say? Answer: Show your heart support. (To raise to two hearts at your second turn would have been defensible.) Since partner has suggested a shapely hand, that is what he wants to hear. Bid three hearts. With stronger support — if you had Q 9 2, A K 2, A 2, J 10 8 6 3 — you would jump to four hearts.

South dealer

N-S vulnerable