BRIDGE
BRIDGE
North-South vulnerable, North deals
NORTH
xK 10
u10 5 4
vA J 10 4
wA 9 8 3
WEST EAST
xQ 8 6 x7 5 4 2
uJ 8 7 3 uK Q 9 6 2
vQ 9 8 5 v6 3
wK J w6 2
SOUTH
xA J 9 3
uA
vK 7 2
wQ 10 7 5 4
The bidding:
NORTH EAST SOUTH WEST
1v 2u Dbl- 4u
Pass Pass 5w Pass
6w All pass
-Negative, values with no clear bid
Opening lead: Three of u
Today’s deal is from a world championship ladies competition between teams from Germany and Austria. South was Austria’s Terry Weigkricht. East took advantage of the vulnerability and threw in a sporting pre-empt.
Most players, we think, would have bid three clubs first and then doubled later, assuming all the other players made the same bids. Weigkricht chose to do it the other way around, putting her partner on the spot. North had a minimum opener with great cards for slam. She raised bravely to six clubs, probably expecting Weigkricht to have a better club suit.
South won the opening heart lead with her ace perforce and led the queen of clubs. West covered with the king and dummy’s ace took the trick. The pedestrian play from this point would be to knock out the jack of clubs and then make some play for the queen of diamonds, perhaps cashing the ace and king of spades first to see if the queen would drop. Weigkricht was no pedestrian! She cashed the king and ace of spades and then ruffed a spade, felling the queen. She crossed back to her hand with a heart ruff and led the jack of spades.
There was nothing West could do. West chose to discard a diamond, but Weigkricht discarded dummy’s last heart and put West on play with a trump. West had to yield a ruff-sluff or lead from her queen of diamonds -- 12 tricks either way. Well done!
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