Contract Bridge

Assume you’re in three notrump and West leads the queen of spades. You count your winners and find you have eight of them — two spades, a heart, two diamonds and three clubs.

Your chance of scoring a ninth trick is excellent, since the opposing clubs might be divided 3- 3, or a heart or diamond finesse might succeed. But even though your prospects are very promising, you’re not trying hard enough if you let your thinking stop there. You should also be thinking that this might be your unlucky day, and that relying on any or all of these possibilities could lead you to ruin.

There is one additional possibility to consider, and that involves playing your cards so that even if it is your unlucky day, you’ll still make the contract. You therefore duck the queen of spades and win the jack continuation with the king as East discards a diamond.

You then cash the three top clubs to see where you stand in that department. This produces some good news and some bad news. The bad news is that the clubs are divided 4-2; the good news is that you’re now certain to make the contract regardless of where the king of hearts or queen of diamonds is located.

Eschewing any notion of attempting a heart or diamond finesse, you cash the ace of spades and then exit with the seven.

This allows West to score his 10- 8 of spades as you discard your club loser, but West is then in a pickle whatever he does.

He is forced either to lead a heart from his K- 6 or a diamond from his Q-10-7, and whichever he does hands you your ninth trick on a silver platter.