Bridge Corner
By Gary Mitchell (May 12, 2006)

The bidding

After a basic Stayman inquiry, you land in 3NT. 

The play

At trick one, East plays the Spade 10, and you win with the Queen. You cannot afford to let East in, so the Club finesse must be taken so that East does not get the lead. What is your plan?

The problem is this: If you play a Club to the King and take the Club finesse through East, and West wins the Queen, what will you do when West now returns a Diamond? Are you taking the finesse or not? Do you need one Diamond trick or two? You have one Spade trick, three Hearts, one Diamond and three Club tricks, for a total of eight. Look at the Heart suit. If the Hearts are 3-3, you have four Heart tricks and do not need the Diamond finesse. If the Hearts are 4-2, you do need the Diamond finesse. So, the key is to test the Hearts before taking the Club finesse. Then you know what to do if West wins and returns a Diamond.

Questions: email me at gary@smabridge.com
Lessons: Call 152-6351.