AThe Bridge Corner
By Gary Mitchell

Dealer: South

Opening Lead: Diamond Ace



The bidding explained: South would probably be better to have bid three Hearts, inviting game. This is because the Diamond Queen rates to be a useless card in this auction.

The play: West starts by playing three top Diamonds, and you trump the third. You still seem to have a Spade loser and a Club loser. So, you try for an end play. You pull trump, trump dummy’s last Diamond, and then play three rounds of Spades. If the opponent who wins the third Spade has the Club King, you are safely home. However, in this case East wins the Spade and leads a Club. West has the Club King so you go down one. Nice try!

This one is strictly a matter of odds. With the two Diamond overcall by West, which opponent is more likely to have the Club King? That would be West. So, after trumping the third Diamond, run all your Hearts. West has to come down to five cards. He has to keep a high Diamond because the nine is still in dummy. He has to keep Kx of Clubs, which means he can keep only two Spades. Now play your two top Spades ending in dummy. Lead the Diamond nine and discard your Spade from your hand. West is on lead and has to lead away from the Club King. Nice declarer play!

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