bridge

bridge

North-South vulnerable. West deals.

NORTH

xQ 9

uA K 10 2

vA 9 2

wA Q 9 2

WEST EAST

x10 8 6 4 xK J 7 5 3

uQ 7 5 4 uJ 9 3

v8 7 v4

w6 4 3 wK J 8 7

SOUTH

xA 2

u8 6

vK Q J 10 6 5 3

w10 5

The bidding:

WEST NORTH EAST SOUTH

Pass 1w 1x 2v

Pass 2u Pass 3v

Pass 5v Pass 6v

Pass Pass Pass

Opening lead: Four of x

South’s three diamonds was something of an underbid so, when North raised to game, South compensated by proceeding to slam.

Declarer covered the opening lead with the nine, East inserted the jack and declarer won with the ace. The ace and king of trumps were cashed, followed by the ace and king of hearts. Next, a heart was ruffed in the closed hand, fetching the knave from East. Now declarer exited with a spade to the queen and king, trapping East in an endplay. If the defender returned a club, dummy’s queen would become the fulfilling trick. If instead East returned a spade, South would discard the five of clubs and ruff on the table with dummy’s last trump for the fulfilling trick.

East suggested he should have doubled the final contract to get a club lead. Would that have changed the result?

Not at all. Declarer wins with the table’s ace, draws trumps and cashes the ace and king of hearts. Now the trumps are run, declarer coming down to the ten of clubs and ace deuce of spades while dummy holds the queen-nine of spades and queen of clubs. East must come down to king-jack of spades and king of clubs. Declarer endplays East by exiting with a club to the king, forcing a spade return into the combined ace-queen tenace.

2012 Tribune Media Services