bridge

bridge

North-South vulnerable. North deals.

NORTH

xQ 10 7 6 5

uA 6 3

vA 8

w8 5 4

WEST EAST

x9 4 xK

u8 7 4 uK Q 9 2

vK 9 7 5 vJ 10 6 4 3 2

wK J 10 6 w7 3

SOUTH

xA J 8 3 2

uJ 10 5

vQ

wA Q 9 2

The bidding:

NORTH EAST SOUTH WEST

Pass Pass 1x Pass

4x Pass Pass Pass

Opening lead: Four of x

On some hands you must find the one line to assure your contract. On others there are various ways to get home. Still there is always some satisfaction to be gained from uncovering a method to guarantee your contract no matter how the opposing cards are divided.

Regardless of your bidding methods, all roads lead to four spades. Your mission is to find the sure-trick line to 10 tricks after West leads a trump.

The only danger is that all the club and heart honors lie badly, as in the diagram. After capturing East’s king of trumps with the ace, cash the ace of clubs and then eliminate the diamonds by cashing the ace and ruffing dummy’s remaining diamond. Draw the remaining trump with dummy’s queen, on which East discards a diamond. Now lead a club from dummy and just cover any card East produces.

West captures your nine with the ten and switches to a heart. Play low from the table. East wins and, if the defender is able to return a club, put up the queen and claim. Either the lady will be your fulfilling trick, or your long club will take care of the table’s heart loser. As the cards lie, East is out of clubs and, no matter which red suit East returns, your second heart loser vanishes.

If you found this line, congratulations. No declarer in a major national championship managed that task!

2011 Tribune Media Services