bridge

August 6, 2010 at 12:00a.m.

bridge

Both vulnerable. South deals.

NORTH

xJ 9 5

uJ 10 7 2

wA Q 6 5 4

WEST EAST

xK Q 3 xA 7 6 4

u9 3 uQ 8 6

vJ 9 7 5 3 v10 8 2

wK 10 2 w9 7 3

SOUTH

x10 8 2

uA K 5 4

vK Q 6 4

wJ 8

The bidding:

SOUTH WEST NORTH EAST

1v Pass 2w Pass

2u Pass 4u Pass

Pass Pass

Opening lead: King of x

The auction has several points of interest. First, North-South were playing that a two-over-one response was game-forcing. Thus, South’s two-heart rebid was not a high reverse; it simply showed a two-suited hand. North’s jump to game, the Principle of Fast Arrival, denied extra values.

West led the king of spades and the defenders took their three tricks in the suit. It was not difficult for East to realize that, since the bidding and play marked South with at least eight cards in the red suits and he had already shown up with three spades, he held at most two clubs — and since, if needed, the club finesse was sure to succeed, the only hope was to promote a trump trick.

West continued with the 13th spade, declarer discarded a club and West cooperated by ruffing with the nine. Declarer overruffed with the table’s ten, but no matter how declarer played the trumps from there, East had to collect a trump trick with either the eight or the queen — down one. A somewhat unusual uppercut situation.

2010 Tribune Media Services