BRIDGE

BRIDGE

Both vulnerable, South deals.

NORTH

xA 9 8 7

uA 6

vA 7 4

wJ 10 8 3

WEST EAST

xJ 10 6 xK 5 4

uJ 8 7 5 2uQ 10 3

v9 6 2 vK 8 5 3

w5 2 wA 6 4

SOUTH

xQ 3 2

uK 9 4

vQ J 10

wK Q 9 7

The bidding:

SOUTH WEST NORTH EAST

1w Pass 1x Pass

1NT Pass 3NT All pass

Opening lead: Five of u

Sometimes the simplest of plays can be the most elegant. Today’s deal offers a seemingly routine contract of three no trump. What could possibly happen to make this deal interesting?

South allowed East’s queen of hearts to hold the opening lead. East continued hearts to dummy’s ace, and declarer led a club, unblocking his king when East rose with his ace. East led a third round of hearts, clearing the suit. South led a low club to dummy’s jack and a club back to his queen.

At this point, declarer took the diamond finesse. From his point of view, West might have the king of diamonds and he would have his nine tricks right there. Even if the diamond finesse lost, there was still plenty of time to cross to dummy and lead a spade toward his queen. What could go wrong?

What went wrong for South was that Lorenzo Lauria, long a mainstay on the top Italian team, was sitting East. Lauria ducked his king of diamonds as if he didn’t have a care in the world. This seduced South into repeating the diamond finesse. Lauria won the second diamond and continued the suit, setting up his own long diamond. When he eventually won his king of spades, he had the 13th diamond for the setting trick.

Had South smelled a rat when West didn’t cover the second diamond, he could have succeeded by rising with the ace, cashing his last club, and exiting with his last diamond. Lauria would have scored his long diamond, but would then have had to lead away from his king of spades. Lauria’s smooth duck, however, had convinced declarer that West held the king.

2016 Tribune Content Agency