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The Aces On Bridge by Bobby Wolff

Opening Lead: ♠Q

As South you open one heart, and when your partner raises to two hearts (the hand is not close to a limit raise, though North should plan to compete to three hearts if necessary), you resist the temptation to go directly to game but advance with two no-trump, promising 17-18 points. That is enough for your partner to jump to four hearts, against which West leads the spade queen.

If you win the first spade, draw trump and, trying to avoid a lead through the diamond king, take a losing club finesse, West will win and play a spade to East’s king. Then a diamond cooks your goose.

Is there any reason for you to guess clubs right — other than the old wives’ tale that the queen lies over (or under) the jack? No, there isn’t, but if you make the right preparations, you can follow a line where you will succeed regardless of the location of the club queen.

The trick is to duck the opening lead. You win the next spade, draw trump, and take the losing club finesse. Now West has no entry to his partner’s hand. His best chance is to exit passively with a club, hoping you have four clubs and thus no discard coming on the clubs, since the auction has told West that you must hold the diamond king. But that does not work; you can discard a diamond on the clubs, give up a diamond, and ruff a spade in dummy for the 10th trick.

Lead with the aces

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

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