A Subtle Pinch
A K 6 2
A J 6
Q J 4 2
9 2
10 9 7 4
K Q 10 3
6
K J 10 8
J 8
9 7 4 2
K 9 3
A 7 4 3
Q 5 3
8 5
A 10 8 7 5
Q 6 5
| South |
West |
North |
East |
| Pass |
Pass |
1 ♦ |
Pass |
| 1 NT |
All Pass |
|
West led an unfortunate
♥ Q, which declarer won in dummy.
Declarer then finessed in diamonds, and ran diamonds. West had to find
four pitches. The first three were two hearts and a club. But on the
last diamond, West is stuck:
West cannot part with a spade, or the
♥ Q, so he must
part with another club. Declarer can now lead a heart towards the
jack, and East/West can only take two club tricks before conceding the
rest.
Of course, this line fails when the spades were 3-3, but then West
might pitch a spade. When West pitches the
♣ 10
or
♣ J, declarer might figure the hand out.