Daily Bridge Club

Simple Saturday

“Simple Saturday” columns are meant to help aspiring players improve technique and develop logical thinking.

Anyone can take tricks with aces and kings. An enlightened declarer knows how to manipulate the low cards.

You’re declarer at four hearts. When West leads the ten of diamonds, you take the king. The contract looks easy, but when you cash the ace of trumps, West discards a spade. How do you continue?

CLUB TRICKS

You can draw trumps and lead a spade to dummy’s king, but if East takes the ace and exits with a diamond, you must try to reach dummy with the king of clubs. If the clubs lie badly, you may lose three club tricks.

Lead a spade at Trick Three. East wins and leads another diamond, and you win and lead the deuce of trumps to dummy’s seven! You lose an unnecessary trump, but the trick will come back with interest. You ruff the next diamond, lead your five of trumps to the eight, and discard two clubs on the high spades. You lose a club, a spade and a trump.

DAILY QUESTION

You hold: K Q J4 873 J 5 2 K 6 5. Your partner opens one heart. The next player passes. What do you say?

ANSWER: This is a close call. If you judge the hand too heavy for a single raise, temporize with a response of one spade. But the lack of aces, poor heart support and flat distribution would tell me that the hand is not worth its point count. I would settle for a raise to two hearts. Nothing is wrong with having a little extra on occasion. South dealer Both sides vulnerable