The Aces on Bridge: Saturday, August 23rd, 2014
by Bobby Wolff on
September 6th, 2014
Hope is a good breakfast, but it is a bad supper.
Francis Bacon
| West | North |
|---|---|
| East-West | ♠ J 9 5 ♥ A K 6 ♦ 10 9 8 ♣ Q 7 4 2 |
| West | East |
|---|---|
| ♠ Q 10 6 ♥ 10 9 ♦ K Q 5 ♣ K J 10 9 3 |
♠ 8 ♥ Q 8 7 5 2 ♦ J 7 6 ♣ A 8 6 5 |
| South |
|---|
| ♠ A K 7 4 3 2 ♥ J 4 3 ♦ A 4 3 2 ♣ — |
| South | West | North | East |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1♣ | Pass | 1♥ | |
| 1♠ | Pass | 2♥ | 3♣ |
| 4♠ | All pass |
♥10
Despite having your values in the suits other than partner's, you should give preference to three diamonds now, and not repeat no-trump. Notwithstanding your decent club and heart values, you may find your stoppers are unsatisfactory if you have to give up the lead a couple of times. Let partner advance beyond three diamonds with extras.
BID WITH THE ACES
| ♠ J 9 5 ♥ A K 6 ♦ 10 9 8 ♣ Q 7 4 2 |
| South | West | North | East |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pass | 1♣ | 1♦ | Pass |
| 1 NT | Pass | 2♠ | Pass |
| ? |
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Bridge-related
The final of the 1999 world junior championships saw Italy take an early lead against the US and hold on comfortably. Even the best US results got lost in the shuffle — as here, when Eric Greco found one of the best plays of the tournament, simply to hold his losses on the deal.
After the opening lead of the heart 10 against four spades, Greco rose with the king and ran the diamond 10. He won the heart return in dummy, and, after a lot of thought, passed the diamond nine.. The point of this play is that he was trying to set up the diamonds without letting East in. That approach would work well if hearts were 5-2, but very dangerous if hearts broke 4-3, since there might be a trump promotion on the 13th heart.
All was well, since Greco had read the cards correctly, and West had no heart to lead when he took the second diamond. West exited with a club, and declarer ruffed, cashed the top spades, then led the fourth diamond to pitch dummy’s heart loser and make his contract.
Alas for the US, four spades doubled was allowed to make in the Closed Room. The first three tricks started the same way, but declarer then came to hand with a top spade to lead the diamond ace. West forgot to unblock his other top diamond on this trick, so East could not get in to cash the hearts. Now the play reverted back to Greco’s line.