Unlucky Louie plays in my club’s penny game — and is in a hole more than a gravedigger. Rose has taken on Louie as a project, insisting that he isn’t as bad as his losses indicate.

“I can’t get him to slow down,” Rose told me.

After East opened one heart, Louie played at four spades. He ruffed the second heart and hurriedly cashed the K-A of trumps. He next took four clubs — East refused to ruff — and next led a diamond from dummy to his queen. East won the next diamond with the ace and cashed his high trump, and Louie lost another diamond. Down one.

“If I lead a diamond before taking the high trumps,” Louie shrugged, “East leads a third heart, and I lose a second trump trick.”

Rose patiently explained the best play. At Trick Five, dummy leads a low diamond. East must play low, and Louie’s queen wins. Louie then gets to dummy with high clubs to ruff two hearts in his hand. He continues with club winners, and East gets only his high trump and diamond ace.

Daily question >> You hold: ?K 6 5 4 2 ? 7 ? Q 8 7 ? A Q J 5. Your partner opens one diamond, you bid one spade and he raises to three spades. What do you say?

Answer >> Partner’s hand is worth about 17 points in support of spades. If he has a maximum such as AJ93,A65,AK1065,4, 12 tricks will be all but certain and 13 likely. Cue-bid four clubs. If partner returns the interest with a four-diamond cue bid, you can reasonably take control with Blackwood.

East dealer

Both sides vulnerable

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