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The Aces On Bridge by Bobby Wolff

Opening Lead: ♠K

North has an awkward bid after the one-spade overcall, but two diamonds seems as good a bid as any. When South raises to three diamonds (a splinter jump to three spades would also be a sensible option), North is still on the spot, with a constructive but not forcing call of three hearts looking like the least of evils. An alternative would be to probe with three spades, after which reaching four hearts with confidence might be harder.

At pairs four hearts looks the best spot, while at teams five diamonds might have extra chances. But after two rounds of spades South has to tread very carefully, since the risk of getting forced is a real one.

With five heart and three club tricks, South needs only two diamond tricks to make his game. To guard against a 4-2 trump break with the diamond king offside, declarer should discard a diamond (or a club) on the second spade lead. When West leads a third round of spades, South trumps, draws four rounds of hearts (using a club as a re-entry to hand), then finesses the diamond into East. Since that player has no more spades, he must lead back a club or a diamond. If East began with the diamond king and four spades, the contract could never be made against a 4-2 trump split. But as the cards lie, discarding on the second spade is critical to retaining control of the hand.

Bid with the aces

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

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