An experienced declarer will always look for ways to avoid a
finesse. This hand shows that some of these opportunities can be
difficult to see.
Scoring: Matchpoints (Pairs)
Hand #53
Dlr
E
Vul
N/S
AJ96
Q3
K943
763
102
AK62
10875
K82
74
J985
QJ2
J1095
KQ853
1074
A6
AQ4
West
North
East
South
Pass
1
Pass
3
Pass
4
All Pass
BIDDING: South had just
enough to continue on to game over his partner's limit (10-12 pts.)
raise.
PLAY: West led the ace of hearts and then shifted to a
spade. Declarer counted two heart losers and two possible club
losers. Rather than rely on the club king being on-side, declarer
looked for another way to make the hand. South returned a heart
at trick three and West exited with his last trump. Next,
declarer played ace, king, and a third diamond ruffing in his
hand. He then ruffed his last heart in dummy and led the last
diamond. When East showed out, declarer pitched a low club from
his hand. Poor West won the diamond but now had to lead a club
into declarer's AQ or give a ruff/sluff. If East had held the
last diamond, South would ruff and fall back on the club finesse.
You can see there was nothing difficult about this hand. Declarer
merely needed to look at all of his options and select the one with the
best chance of success. Here he found one that was 100%.
