The Bridge Corner
By Gary Mitchell



The bidding explained: South has about a 19-point hand, so the jump to game is justified. The question is, what about the play?

The play: You win the opening Club lead somewhere and play your top two Spades. Now you try to play on Diamonds, but since you lack the entries to set the suit up, in the fullness of time, guess what? Yep, down one! 

You can see a possible loser in each suit. You must save your entries to dummy and go after that Diamond suit quickly. Win the opening lead in hand and play the Spade Ace. Now play the Ace and 10 of Diamonds. West wins and leads another Club. You win in dummy and lead the Diamond Jack, discarding a Club. Now, whatever they return, you win and play a Spade to the King. Play the Diamond nine, which is good by the way, and discard your losing Heart. The defenders get two Diamond tricks and a Spade. 

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