North-South vulnerable. North deals.

North-South vulnerable. North deals.

NORTH

x8 7 5

u7 4

vQ J 8

wQ 10 8 7 2

WEST EAST

xJ 10 6 3 2 xA Q 9 4

uK 10 2 uJ 9 5 3

vK 9 v10 6 2

wA J 4 w9 3

SOUTH

xK

uA Q 8 6

xA 7 5 4 3

wK 6 5

The bidding:

NORTH EAST SOUTH WEST

Pass Pass 1NT Pass

Pass Pass

Opening lead: Three of x

The ranks of those who are prepared to open one no trump with a hand that includes a singleton high honor in a suit continues to grow. Years of experience have failed to convince us that this is a profitable pastime. This deal is from the recent Senior World Championships held in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

With a perfectly sound one-diamond opening bid, we see no reason to open the South hand with one no trump, especially since that could easily result in missing a heart game.

West led the three of spades, correct from most five-card suit holdings having only two honors. East rose with the ace and dropped the king. On the continuation of the queen of spades West dropped the ten to signal for a heart shift, East obliged by shifting to the nine and the upshot was a four-trick, vulnerable set — slightly embarrassing when your side holds more than half the points in the deck.

At the other table East-West ended in a normal two-spade contract after South opened one diamond. North led the queen of diamonds, taken by the king. When declarer continued with a spade to the ace, felling the king, East-West scored 10 tricks to reduce the loss to 230 points, or 6 imps.

2009 Tribune Media Services