The feeling was wrong

There are certain plays that bridge experts make because they “feel” right. It is called experience.

Take, for example, today’s deal, which I spotted in a magazine. According to the author, many declarers at a tournament missed the best play. Unfortunately, so did the author!

In the modern tournament game, North could rebid a forcing two spades. However, if your two-over-one response may be made with only 10 or 11 points, you must jump to three spades on the second round to force to game.

If the defenders begin with one heart and two club tricks (in any order), followed by a third club from East, South has a nasty guess. Why, though, should West lead a club (or the heart king)?

Many Wests led a trump, which ran to South’s seven. Apparently, the unsuccessful declarers immediately played off four rounds of diamonds, discarding three hearts and ruffing the last in the dummy. They cashed the spade ace and led a heart off the dummy. However, East won with the ace, gave his partner a diamond overruff and collected two club tricks to defeat the contract.

The writer recommends ruffing the diamond six at trick two. Then he cashes dummy’s last top trump and leads a heart. However, if East has the nerve to play low, West can win with the king and switch to clubs. The third round of clubs promotes West’s spade jack as the fourth defensive trick.

Attacking clubs immediately works, but an expert would almost subconsciously lead the heart queen from hand at trick two, opening communications. Given the initial spade lead, now no defense can cause problems.

— OCTOBER 30, 2023