Neither vulnerable. South deals.

Neither vulnerable. South deals.

NORTH

xA 7 4 3

u2

vQ 5 3 2

w7 6 4 3

WEST EAST

xK J 8 6 xQ 10 9 2

uA 6 3 uJ 10

vJ 9 8 4 vK 10 7

wQ 5 wJ 10 9 2

SOUTH

x5

uK Q 9 8 7 5 4

vA 6

wA K 8

The bidding:

SOUTH WEST NORTH EAST

1u Pass 1x Pass

4u Pass Pass Pass

Opening lead: Four of v

Whether you are declaring or defending a hand, try to play your cards so that you conceal a crucial holding from your opponents. Consider this case.

There is nothing to the auction. Once North could scrape up a response to South’s one-heart opening bid, there was no way South was not going to get to game, and he chose the shortest path.

West led the four of diamonds, covered by the queen and king and taken with the ace. Declarer crossed to the ace of spades and led a heart to the jack, queen and ace. West cashed the jack of diamonds and continued the suit. Declarer ruffed, banged down the king of hearts and, when the ten dropped, declarer drew the last trump and conceded a club, claiming 10 tricks.

West made life easy for declarer — he should have refused to win the first heart trick. Now declarer would have to guess whether to continue with a low trump, playing for a defender to have started with a doubleton ace, or the queen, trying to pin the ten.

For an average declarer, it would be a guess. A good technician would apply the Rule of Restricted Choice: If a defender had started with J 10 in the key suit, he would have a choice of which card to play on the first lead; if he started with ace-jack, he would have had just one way to defend. The more accomplished declarer, on winning the king, would have continued with a low heart — down one.

2008 Tribune Media Services