BRIDGE
If only plus counts, maximise the odds
Albert Einstein said ,“If A is success in life, I should say the formula is A equals X plus Y plus Z, X being work and Y being play. Z is keeping your mouth shut .” He wasn’ t keeping his mouth shut! He was being interviewed forapiecein TheNewYork TimesMagazine.
When you are playing social bridge or in a teams event, you should try to ma xi mi se your chances of making the contract. Only when in a duplicate pairs event should you take a favour able bet to try forovertricks. Today’ s deal is an example. How should South play in five diamonds after West leads the heartjack? To be honest, most pairs would reach three no-trump, especially in a duplicate, and could lose the first five tricks. However, using journalistic license, here is an auction to the best contract .( Perhaps you think five diamonds by North is best, to protect you from an immediate club lead through the ace-queen. But with this layout, it works badly. East takes his top spades, then exit sin a red suit and a waits the setting trick inclubs.) If just making five diamonds is what matters, declarer should draw trumps, cash his other heart winners and lead a spade. Here, he gets lucky. East wins two tricks in the suit, but is then end played. If he leads a club, it is away from the king. Or, if he plays a major, Souths luffs a club from his han dandruffs on the board. In a pairs event, though, if the club fines se is working, declarer can win at least 12 tricks, and the chance that East has all three black-suit honour sis very low.So, South should take that finesse.