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The Aces On Bridge by Bobby Wolff
Opening Lead: ♦K
Against four spades West begins with the diamond king, then shifts to the heart five. Is there any chance of making 10 tricks?
The first question that you should ask is “Why didn’t West shift to a trump at trick two?” and the obvious answer is that he doesn’t have one. You have to suppose the full deal is similar to the diagramed one.
You should win the heart ace and lead the diamond 10. If East plays low, throw your remaining heart in an attempt to cut the defenders’ communications. West will win the trick and, with no trump to lead, can do no better than play the heart queen. After ruffing this, you will play off the club ace and crossruff the hand. The best that East can do is to overruff the fourth round of clubs at trick 10 and return a trump, which you will win for your eighth trick. You will then make the last two tricks on a high crossruff to give you your contract.
If at trick three East covers the diamond 10 with the queen, you will ruff this, then cash the club ace and ruff a club, so that you can lead the diamond nine from the board. When East follows with the eight, you will discard your heart nine. The play then develops along the same lines as described above, and you will make the same 10 tricks.
Bid with the aces
Answer: 1♠
Just because East promises four spades doesn't mean you should be afraid of introducing a suit of this quality. Your plan will be to bid your clubs over a call of one no-trump (whoever bids it!) or to raise hearts at your next turn. This may be a slight overbid, but if they have a fit, your side does too.
This Hand of the Day was originally published on aces.bridgeblogging.com.
You can now play the hand of the day on BBO+ and compare how you get on with the players in the article.
