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The Aces On Bridge by Bobby Wolff

Opening Lead: ♣Q

Today's deal shows that expert players can make just as many amusing mistakes as their less talented colleagues. In one room the Australian East-West pair had found an excellent vulnerable save in five hearts over four spades, down 200 on a top spade lead.

In the other room it looks as if four spades should be relatively straightforward to make. West led a top club, and now instead of playing on trumps, South made the “expert” play of a heart at trick two to cut the defenders’ communications. West won this and shifted to the diamond queen. Oops… Now declarer could not prevent East from ruffing a diamond and West from ruffing a club for down one.

In the Netherlands-China match South played four spades on the lead of the diamond queen. Declarer won in dummy and led a spade to his hand, Huub Bertens as East ducking because he could see that the ruff would gain his side only one trick, and that this would not be enough.

Now declarer played a heart. The defenders took their diamond ruff and led a club, won in North. At this point when a second trump was played, Bertens took his spade ace and played a second heart, forcing dummy to ruff and locking the lead in the North hand. Dummy had four diamonds and two clubs left while East was out of both minors and still had a trump, so declarer was forced to concede a second ruff.

Bid with the aces

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

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