DAILY BRIDGE CLUB

“I can’t understand groceries,” Cy the Cynic grumbled to me in the club lounge. “It’s fine if you’re in the produce section and eat one test grape. But if you go to the deli and take one bite of a rotisserie chicken, they throw you out of the store.”

Cy was declarer at today’s six diamonds in a penny game — trying to make grocery money, I guess. After he started with a strong jump- shift to two diamonds and rebid the suit, a cue- bidding sequence got him to slam.

West led a trump. Cy won in his hand, cashed his ace of hearts, led a trump to dummy and discarded his spade loser on the king of hearts. The Cynic next ruffed a heart, hoping the queen would fall. When East- West played low, Cy tried a club to dummy’s 10. East won, and Cy later lost a second club to West.

Cy blamed the result on an unfriendly lie of the cards, but his play wasn’t best. Cy can get two bites of the apple — or the deli chicken — by combining all his chances. At Trick Three, he should lead a club to dummy’s 10.

East takes the queen and shifts to the jack of spades: queen, king, ace. Cy then cashes the ace of clubs. When both defenders play low, Cy discards his jack of clubs on the king of hearts and ruffs a club. When clubs split 3- 3, Cy can return a trump to dummy and pitch his spade loser on the good club.

If the clubs broke 4- 2, Cy would still have a chance. He could lead a trump to dummy and ruff a heart, making the slam if the queen fell. North dealer

N- S vulnerable