FRANK STEWART BRIDGE

A club player complained to me about his demanding wife.

“Look at a text exchange we had,” he said. “Wife: Where r u? Me: In the kitchen.” “Wife: Feed the cat: Me: I mean the garage.”

“Wife: Bring in the laundry. Me: I’m really in the bathroom.”

“Wife: Clean the toilet. Me: I’m in Idaho.” “Wife: Buy potatoes.”

“On top of that,” my friend said, “she expects flawless defense from me.” Against four hearts, my friend’s wife led the ace of clubs and shifted to a diamond. He took the ace and returned a diamond, and West won and led a low diamond. Spade Ruff

“South ruffed with dummy’s queen, and I threw a spade,” East said. “He drew trumps, took the A-K of spades and ruffed a spade to drop my queen. The jack won his 10th trick.

“My wife was irate. She said I had to ‘discard’ a trump on the third diamond. That was too tough for me.”

West was right, but I wouldn’t have been criticizing East. Almost any defense except the one West chose beats four hearts. Daily Question

You hold: ♠ Q 10 7 4 ♥ 8 7 6 ♦ A 2 ♣ Q 10 9 5. Your partner opens one diamond, and the next player overcalls one heart. What do you say?

Answer: This is a position where negative doubles help. By agreement, a double would show enough strength to respond and four cards in spades. (It would also imply length in clubs or diamond support.) A response of one spade would promise five or more spades. Discuss negative doubles with your regular partner. South dealer

N-S vulnerable