In King Nebuchadnezzar's dream, Daniel (Daniel 2:31-33), he sees a statue with a head of gold, chest and arms of silver, belly and thighs of bronze, legs of iron, and feet partly of iron and partly of clay. The image describes human flaws and these play a big part in bridge. Such was the case on a hand this week.
6NT by South was the popular contract, and three declarers, Liz Clery, Mike Bull and Martin Lerner, made the overtrick. At all of these tables, West discarded a club, not realising that he had a stop. So the declarer was not tested. On a spade lead, you have six diamonds, two spades and one heart and will, perforce, make three club tricks. It is normal to test the clubs first and when you play the ace and another towards the king, East drops the queen. Most defenders with feet of clay will not have Qxx but it does not matter if they do. You cash the ace of hearts, a Vienna Coup, and then the eight pointed-suit winners. West is now squeezed in the rounded suits. If you don't cash the ace of hearts first, then Declarer gets squeezed on the last diamond. If a clever East started with Qxx in clubs, you will still make.
The Vienna Coup predates bridge and was first published by James Clay in the mid nineteenth century after observing it being executed in the days of whist by "the greatest player in Vienna". Nobody know who that was, so the coup might have instead been called The Feat of Clay.
