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A little luck goes a long way

“Nice hand” partner, declarer said on surveying dummy. What he was probably thinking was “could you not have given me the HQ as well?” but what he had was surely good enough to make your reasonable slam contract.

So you bid to 6 with the East-West cards below.

West                             East

 AJ874                         5

 J9754                         AK

 KQT                            A9743

-                                 AKQ93

You bid something like:

                                      1

1                                 3 (game forcing)

3                                4NT

5                                 6

Pass

You might have gone even higher but probably looking at dummy were glad you did not.

Others drifted to 6NT where they avoided a spade lead but got a neutral club. A couple of pairs even reached 6, not the best slam by a long way.

What’s your plan? Well, in 6, you could ruff one club without any discomfort though there was still something to be done with the other club. That could be your only loser though one of those nasty 4-1 trump breaks might arise. (We do not deal in 5-0 breaks!)

So, there’s always the heart suit which could provide a parking place for that club. Therefore, at trick 2, cash a high heart. You may as well if you are in 6. You really cannot afford more than one trump loser even if diamonds did break.

And 6NT? After the club lead, you try a couple of high diamonds and do not like what you see with South holding an original J862. You would like it even less if you were in grand. With only 7 minor tricks, you need something special to happen in hearts. So, now, like those in other small slams, you cash both high hearts.

 

 

The only thing that can beat you now is if your eyes are shut and you fail to watch South’s two heart cards. They turned them over pretty smartly!

In 6, the declarers could play 4 rounds of trumps and claim. In 6, cross to a high diamond, draw trumps and lose just a spade at trick 13. 6NT was equally all plain-sailing.

We always say bridge is a game of skill but you cannot eliminate the luck factor. Somehow, the datum and results on the board would have been rather different had South had the queen and a small heart with North having 10863. Alas, there was no saving those in grand slam who could hardly have played a diamond to the 10 on the first round of trumps. Had they done so, they would have scored 13 tricks on a non- spade lead.  

There was no chance either for the pair in 7NT who received a cunning 10 lead. Three clubs, two diamonds and five hearts would leave South knowing what they had to do….throw that 10 baring your king as you know the diamond position..and partner would be there for you with the Q, as all decent partners would.

All the South players would have been just as keen for their partners to hold the J. Not today! "Sorry, partner".

Richard Solomon

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