Bridge - The Scotsman 01/09/2012

Some hands look more difficult than they actually are. A simple auction, but when you see dummy you may wish there had been a way to reach 3NT with this mirror distribution. North leads the jack of hearts. How would you plan the play?

You would like to lead all the other suits from dummy, but there are very few entries. It would help a lot if South held the king of spades, so you may as well win the ace of hearts in dummy and run the queen of spades – at least if it loses you can get back to dummy with the jack. But the queen wins, so you follow by leading low to the ten, then cashing the ace. South started with Kxx in spades, and North discards a heart on the third round. What now?

You have nine winners, but four potential losers in the minor suits. The jack of spades is your only entry to dummy, and there is little point in voiding yourself in trumps to take one club finesse: the defenders would simply exit in hearts, leaving you to lead away from your aces. A much better plan involves elimination. Cash your two top hearts so that when the defenders gain the lead they cannot lead that suit without giving a ruff and discard. Then exit with a diamond. If North wins he cannot play clubs without giving you a second club trick for sure, so he must exit with a diamond. Win the ace and play your third diamond. South may win and play a club, but you duck that to North and he is endplayed, forced to return a club or give a ruff and discard.

If South wins the first diamond he 
can play a club through, and North can exit with a diamond. But your contract will fail only if South has two of the missing high diamonds, and North has both king and queen of clubs. That would be really unlucky.