Strange Play

Pages: Page 4 of 5

Dealer: South
Vuln: Game All
Scoring: IMPs
  1. spadeK 9 5
  2. heartK J 10 5 4
  3. diamondK 8 5 4 3
  4. club—
  1. spadeA 3 2
  2. heartQ 7
  3. diamond7 6 2
  4. clubA Q J 10 5
club diamond heart spade NT
N - 2 3 6 1
S - 2 3 6 1
E 2 - - - -
W 2 - - - -
Green square in centre
  1. spade4
  2. heart9 8 6 2
  3. diamondQ J 10 9
  4. clubK 8 6 3

Contract: 6spade
Declarer: South
Lead: spade2
  1. spadeQ J 10 8 7 6
  2. heartA 3
  3. diamondA
  4. club9 7 4 2
Double dummy analyser: makeable contracts
West North East South
1spade
2club 2heart 3club 3spade
Pass 5club* Pass 5NT~
Pass 6spade End

* exclusion Blackwood
~ two aces

If you lead anything other than a spade declarer makes twelve tricks simply by playing on cross-ruff lines. Five trumps, four top red suit winners and three club ruffs bring home the slam.
If you led ace and another spade, I suspect declarer would be forced into getting the decisions right. He wins in hand, ruffs a club, crosses back to diamondA, draws trumps and eventually gets the hearts right - as even I might.

No, your best chance would be to lead a low spade at trick one. Only if declarer decides to play the hearts for five tricks and plays another trump will he succeed. You win spadeA and force dummy with a club, but he still should get home. However, look what happened to the current World Junior Pairs Champions.
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