Denying Entries
Q 2
4 3
Q 9 7 5 4 2
8 6 2
J 8 5 3
10 6 5
A 3
9 7 4 3
A 10 7 6 4
K 8 7
10 8 6
10 5
K 9
A Q J 9 2
K J
A K Q J
Hearts
Diamonds
If South declares
5 ♦, West leads a spade. If
North plays the
♠ Q, East wins the ace and exits a
spade. Declarer still has to lose the
♦ A, so he can't afford
to play the clubs or hearts from her hand, so she must attack diamonds. West wins the first diamond, and returns a diamond, reaching this position:
South is stuck in his hand, and East must score another trick.
If North is declaring, East can't lead spades and keep North from winning
the
♠ Q to take the heart finesse. So say East leads a diamond to West's ace, and West continues a diamond.
South plays two rounds of clubs followed by the
♠ K. East must duck to avoid giving North an entry. Then South plays a low spade to the queen, and East wins his ace, leading to:
With East on lead, he must yield an entry to the North, or let South finesse hearts, take the heart ace, and ruff a heart to draw trumps and claim. Either way, declare ends up with 11 tricks.