BRIDGE

Both vulnerable. South deals.
NORTH
x A Q 3
u A 8 3
v Q 10 5 2
w Q 10 4
WEST EAST
x J 9 5 2 x K 8 7 4
u J 10 9 7 u K Q 5 4 2
v A J 9 v 7
w 8 3 w 9 7 6
SOUTH
x 10 6
u 6
v K 8 6 4 3
w A K J 5 2
The bidding:
SOUTH WEST NORTH EAST
1v Pass 2NT Pass
3w Pass 3NT Pass
5w Pass 5v Pass
Pass Pass
Opening lead: Jack of u
Here's an opportunity to test your skill. Cover the East-West hands and decide how you would play five diamonds after the lead of the jack of hearts.
You have bid well to reach your optimum spot. With your distributional hand, you decided, correctly, that a minor-suit game would be safer than three no trump. In this sequence your jump to five clubs is weaker than a bid of four clubs. The latter carries slam suggestions while your choice simply asks partner to select the best game.
Against your five diamonds West leads the jack of hearts, which you win with the ace. Suppose you lead a diamond to the king, losing to West's ace. The defender shifts to a spade. You spurn the finesse to win with the ace. The fate of your game now depends on how you play trumps. If you cash the queen, you will go down; if you come to hand with a heart ruff and finesse the ten of diamonds, you make an overtrick. Congratulations if you are a good guesser.
You should not have put yourself in a position where you need to guess to make your contract. After winning the ace of hearts at trick one, you can virtually assure your contract by coming to hand with a heart ruff and leading a diamond to the ten. If that loses to the jack, East cannot attack spades profitably, and you have time to force out the ace of trumps, draw any outstanding trump and then run clubs, discarding two spades from dummy. You can then ruff your spade loser on the table. If the ten of diamonds wins, lead a high trump and, by eschewing the spade finesse, you come to an overtrick by running clubs and trumping your spade loser on the board.
& copy; 2004, Tribune Media Services