Bridge: April 20, 2023

I’ve heard an optimist defined as someone who finds his basement flooded and goes in search of a fishing pole. In some deals, declarer must be optimistic and assume the missing cards lie favorably.

Today’s North-South push to four spades after West’s weak jump-overcall. West leads the queen of clubs, and South takes the ace, leads a trump to his queen and cashes the ace.

West discards, so South has two trump losers, a diamond and a club. He has a two-way guess for the queen of hearts. Is his play really a guess?

CLUB LOSER

South must run the hearts to discard dummy’s club loser and ruff his last club in dummy. He must find East with four hearts; even if South locates the queen, a 3-3 break won’t help him since East will ruff the fourth heart and cash a high trump.

So South should assume East’s hearts are Q-x-x-x. South leads to the ace and lets the ten ride. He leads a heart to his jack, throws dummy’s last club on the king and ruffs a club in dummy, making his game.

DAILY QUESTION

You hold: S A Q 4 3 2 H K J 7 2 D A 5 C 6 3. Your partner opens one club, you respond one spade and he next bids two hearts. What do you say?

ANSWER: Your partner has “reversed” and promises substantial extra values — in some styles, enough to force to game opposite a minimum response. A hand such as 5,AQ93,K43,AKQ104 will offer a play for 13 tricks at hearts. Raise to three hearts (forcing) to set the trump suit. You will cue-bid your aces later.

South dealer

N-S vulnerable

NORTH

S J 7 5

H A 10 9

D J 9 8 7 4

C A 5

WEST

S 10

H 6 5

D K 10 6 3

C Q J 10 8 4 2

EAST

S K 9 8 6

H Q 8 4 3

D Q 2

C K 9 7

SOUTH

S A Q 4 3 2

H K J 7 2

D A 5

C 6 3

South West North East
1 S 3 C 3 S Pass
4 S All Pass
Opening lead — C Q

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