DAILY BRIDGE CLUB

Maybe it’s silly to be superstitious. Still, it costs nothing to avoid walking under a ladder.

Some defensive falsecards are cost-free — indeed, “obligatory.” If you don’t falsecard, declarer has no chance to go wrong.

Today’s North might have avoided using Stayman with his flat pattern. As it was, North-South found their spade fit, and South played at four spades.

West led the queen, jack and a third club. South ruffed, led a diamond to dummy and returned a trump: five, king, six. South then shrugged and led his nine: ten, three, ace. He won East’s heart return, took the queen of trumps to draw West’s jack and claimed.

West missed a mandatory falsecard. When declarer leads a trump to his king, West must follow with the jack or ten.

Then South has the option of continuing with the queen, hoping West held the J-10 doubleton, and the defense can win a second trump trick. When West played the six on the first trump. South had no alternative to the winning play. DAILY QUESTION You hold: S A 5 H 10 9 7 D 10 8 5 2 C A 10 7 4. Your partner opens one heart, you raise to two hearts and he bids two spades. What do you say?

ANSWER: Your partner has bid a new suit to try for game. He wants you to cooperate if you have a sound single raise or even a fair raise that contains help for his second suit. If you have a fit in two suits, you may make game with fewer than 26 points. Here, your aces are adequate for a jump to four hearts.