BRIDGE

Neither vulnerable. North deals.
NORTH
xA K J 4 3
uA K Q 2
v6 5
w K 7
WEST EAST
x10 9 6 xQ 8 7
u10 9 5 3 u8 7
vK Q 10 2 vA 7 4
w 6 5 w Q J 8 3 2
SOUTH
x5 2
uJ 6 4
vJ 9 8 3
w A 10 9 4
The bidding:
NORTH EAST SOUTH WEST
1x Pass 1NT Pass
3u Pass 3NT Pass
Pass Pass
Opening lead: King of v
When you have a difficult discard to make, don't squirm and show you are in trouble -- you might as well tell everyone what you are holding. Plan in advance and then discard in tempo, as if you don't have a care in the world.
North's 20 near-prime high-card points fully justified a jump shift at his second turn. Reverse South's major-suit holdings and a correction to three spades would have been in order. As it is, with at least one club stopper and a partial stopper in diamonds with length in the suit, South's three no trump cannot be challenged.
West led the king of diamonds and, in response to partner's encouraging seven, continued with a diamond to the ace. East's diamond continuation allowed West to take two more diamond tricks, dummy parting with two spades. At this point East must not only make a discard, but can see that he probably needs to make two more on hearts. He should plan those discards now!
The defender can spare two clubs, but to part with a third almost certainly will set up TWO CLUBS for South, who surely started with four clubs headed by the ace. While blanking the queen of spades is not a happy circumstance, there is no alternative.
On the fourth diamond East smoothly discarded the seven of spades! Declarer won West's heart exit in hand and cashed three more heart tricks as East sluffed two clubs. After cashing the ace of spades, declarer tried the king and ace of clubs, but nothing good happened. With nothing to guide him, South now took the spade finesse -- down two.
XThis column is written by Tannah Hirsch and Omar Sharif. For information about Charles Goren's newsletter for bridge players, call (800) 788-1225 or write Goren Bridge Letter, P.O. Box 4410, Chicago, Ill. 60680.
& copy; 2004, Tribune Media Services