Contract Bridge

A declarer who plunges blindly ahead on the assumption that the key suits will break normally is sure to experience bitter disappointment from time to time. Consider this deal where South took for granted at the outset that he would make three notrump and soon found himself headed for down one.

He won the heart queen with the ace and, observing that nine tricks could not be made without establishing his clubs, played the queen. East took the ace and returned a heart to South’s king.

When declarer next cashed the jack of clubs and West showed out, the contract suddenly lost its glamour. He could cash his club and diamond winners to bring him to eight tricks but could not then avoid losing three hearts and the spade ace to finish down one.

Since South was sure to succeed if the clubs were divided 3-2, he should first have stopped to ask himself if there was anything he could do to overcome a possible 4-1 club break. Had he done that, he would surely have seen the wisdom of approaching that suit in an entirely different way.

The best line of play is to cross to dummy with a diamond at trick two and lead a low club toward the closed hand. East cannot afford to go up with the ace — if he does, South immediately has nine tricks — so declarer wins the club with the queen. Dummy is then entered with a second diamond, and another low club is led. Again East has to play low, and South’s jack wins the trick as West shows out.

Since South has now scored two clubs to add to the two hearts and four diamonds he started with, he simply abandons clubs and leads a spade to acquire his ninth trick.

Note that if West, rather than East, started with four clubs, South can eventually finesse dummy’s club nine to bring in nine tricks.