Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
ACES ON BRIDGE
Today’s deal from the World Mixed Pairs in Verona demonstrates how sometimes all that is needed to make a seemingly impossible game is a little clear thinking.
Cover up the East and West hands before reading on. At many tables South reached four hearts after East had stretched to open one diamond. West led the club queen. How would you tackle the play?
If West has club length, then East must have all the outstanding honors outside clubs. Accordingly, you must aim to play off all your cards in spades and diamonds before throwing East in with a trump. So, win the club ace and play the diamond queen. If East ducks this, continue with a second diamond. Say East wins and plays a spade. Win in hand, cash the heart ace, then take your spade and diamond winners, ending in the dummy. There is an outside chance that East holds a second club, so lead a club toward your king. East cannot profitably ruff, so your king wins, and only now do you play a second trump. East can make two trump tricks, but must then give you a ruff-and-discard for your contract.
At one table, where declarer set about the hand in this way, he made an overtrick! In desperation, East unblocked the heart king under the ace, then ducked when declarer led a trump away from dummy, hoping that his partner had started with the doubleton jack. No luck! East still got endplayed, this time for the overtrick.
ANSWER: Opening in third seat requires you to have either a decent hand or a suit you want partner to lead. Here you have neither, so you risk either getting too high or getting partner off to the wrong lead. Pass rather than misrepresent your hand. If you would like to contact Bobby Wolff, email him at
bobbywolff@mindspring.com