“I’ve learned some things from being married 33 years,” a club player told me. “Tip #5: When your wife is mowing the lawn is not the best time to ask when dinner will be ready.”
I grinned.
“And when you play bridge with your wife,” he said, “take finesses that win, not ones that lose.”
My friend was declarer at today’s six hearts. West led a trump.
“I drew trumps,” declarer said, “and let dummy’s queen of spades ride. West won and returned a spade. I had 11 tricks and thought I needed a winning finesse in diamonds or clubs. I finessed in diamonds and went down, and my wife was unhappy. This morning at breakfast, she burned my toast.”
HIGH SPADE
South could do better. After he takes the ace of spades, he leads a trump to dummy, discards a diamond on the high spade, takes the K-A of diamonds and ruffs a diamond.
When East’s queen falls, dummy’s jack is high for the 12th trick. If nothing good happened in diamonds, South could finesse in clubs as a final chance.
DAILY QUESTION
You hold: S Q J 10 H K 10 9 2 D A J 9 4 C 8 4. The dealer, at your left, opens three clubs. Your partner doubles, and the next player passes. What do you say?
ANSWER: You should have a game. To oblige you to act at the three level, your partner promises a hand worth at least 17 points. He will usually have support for all the unbid suits (but may have a strong hand with his own suit). Cue-bid four clubs to let him pick the trump suit.
South dealer
N-S vulnerable
NORTH
S Q J 10
H K 10 9 2
D A J 9 4
C 8 4
WEST
S K 7 5
H 8 7
D 8 7 2
C J 9 7 6 5
EAST
S 9 8 4 3 2
H 4
D Q 10 5
C K 10 3 2
SOUTH
S A 6
H A Q J 6 5 3
D K 6 3
C A Q
South West North East
1 H Pass 3 H Pass
6 H All Pass
Opening lead — H 8
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