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The Aces On Bridge by Bobby Wolff

Opening Lead: ♥A

This column attempts to comb the civilized world for bridge deals to titillate the readers. Today's comes from a South American championships, where Diego Brenner (a Brazilian now living in Spain) and Agustin Madala (an Argentinean living in Italy) were playing together. Truly a cosmopolitan line-up!

Agustin and Diego are not a regular partnership but they are both inspired card-players, and Madala –who is still a junior — may well become the strongest player in the world in the next decade. As witness today’s deal – where declarer was none other than Marcelo Branco (the only player ever to win two world pairs titles with different partners).

Against four spades the lead was the heart ace. When this card held the trick, Madala switched to a club; dummy played the 10 and Diego won the second trick with his king. Now Brenner returned a heart, and declarer, Marcelo Branco, ruffed with the spade eight. On this trick Madala followed unhesitatingly with the heart king!

Now, please sit in Branco’s chair… If he took the trump finesse and lost the lead to East, the danger hand, that player would be able to return a heart to give his partner a ruff with the missing trump honor. So Branco played what was the best percentage line – in abstract – in the trump suit. He cashed the spade ace, and now could no longer avoid losing two trump tricks, for one down.

Bid with the aces

This Hand of the Day was originally published on aces.bridgeblogging.com.

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