Woodberry Bridge Club: 11.08.15Board 20I thought it was about time we r...

Woodberry Bridge Club: 11.08.15
Board 20
I thought it was about time we r...: 11.08.15 Board 20 I thought it was about time we revived this blog. This was an interesting board. North ♠ K   7   6 ♥ K ..



I can comment on this in disinterested fashion as I didn't play the board!

Andy is right that on a putative low Diamond lead if you take the Heart finesse (after testing the Club position) you can not make twelve tricks any more. This however is not so much because a Diamond return breaks up the squeeze as because you need to be able to cash Dummy's ♥ K and get back to hand without taking out your last entry for the squeeze to operate. You can make slam if you take the illogical line of taking the Heart finesse without touching Clubs!

If declarer is in slam however I suspect a passive top Club lead is more likely and now none of Declarer's options are compromised. You can even make the slam by throwing East in at the end to lead into Dummy's ♥ KJ!

On a low Diamond lead from West however no squeeze play is necessary as you can generate you twelfth trick by force in Diamonds as long as he has one of the remaining honours in the suit.

Interestingly this position is echoed by the Spade suit on board 30 where South was generally in 3NT

                                   North AK76

West T853                                                      East J2

                                   South Q94

If the declarer has to open up the suit they can only make three tricks in it but after a 4th highest Spade lead from West to East's J and declarer's Queen. running  South's 9 picks up the suit without loss and would do so even if East's second Spade were the 8.