FRANK STEWART BRIDGE

TANGLED WEBB

In the club lounge, Tom Webb plopped down at my table and produced today’s deal. Tom is known as “Tangle”; he encounters more blocked suits and entry woes than anyone in my club.

“I got tangled up again,” he said. “I played at four spades, and West led high hearts. I ruffed the third heart, as East threw clubs, and cashed the A-K of trumps. East threw another club. I drew all the trumps and took dummy’s three high clubs, but I couldn’t get my fourth club trick and went down.” “What did dummy discard on the fourth trump?” I asked.

“A heart,” Tangle replied. “What did it matter?”

Could you get untangled and make four spades?

Fourth Trump

On the fourth trump, South must discard dummy’s ace of diamonds. He takes the A-K-Q of clubs and leads a diamond. East wins and returns a diamond, and declarer wins the last two tricks.

The winning line offers South’s only chance. East probably has the king of diamonds; West might have opened the bidding if he had it. Daily Question

You hold: ♠ 542 ♥ 87653 ♦ A4 ♣ A K Q. Your partner opens one diamond, you bid one heart and he rebids two diamonds. What do you say?

Answer:

This is no easy problem. If, reasonably enough, you judge to commit to game, you might blast into 3NT, daring the opening leader to find the killing lead (if one exists). If you want to go slow, bid three clubs to hear more from your partner. To raise to three diamonds, inviting game, is overly conservative.

West dealer N-S vulnerable