Bridge: Oct. 22, 2023

“I know the heart is an involuntary organ,” a club player said to me. “It works without conscious direction from the brain. I didn’t know the tongue was that way until I acquired my current partner. Except he’s now my former partner.”

“Partners do tend to speak without thinking,” I sighed.

My friend was today’s North.

“My first four bids had shown nothing,” he said, “so when my partner cue-bid five diamonds, I thought my king was enough to bid slam. West led the ten of diamonds, and partner won with the jack, accepting the free finesse. He drew trumps, took the A-K of clubs and the ace of diamonds, and led a low heart.

“East won with the eight and led a club. South ruffed and led the ace and low heart. He went down two.

“My partner savaged me. He strained his voice, and not because he was talking through a colander. He said my slam bid was nutty. I mentioned that, as he played the hand, five spades would have been too high. That was the end of our partnership.”

North needed a new partner. South’s comments were, let us say, extemperroneous. Six spades was a poor spot, but South could succeed. He wins the first diamond with the ace and leads a low heart. East wins and returns a trump, and South takes the A-K, goes to the king of diamonds, returns a heart to his queen and leads the ace.

When East, with the missing trump, also has four hearts, South ruffs his last heart in dummy and wins the rest.

South dealer

N-S vulnerable

NORTH

S 7 6 3

H 6 4 2

D K 5 2

C 9 7 5 2

WEST

S 8 2

H 9 7

D Q 10 9 8 4

C Q 10 6 3

EAST

S 10 5 4

H K J 10 8

D 7 6 3

C J 8 4

SOUTH

S A K Q J 9

H A Q 5 3

D A J

C A K

South West North East
2 C Pass 2 D Pass
2 S Pass 2 NT Pass
3 H Pass 3 S Pass
4 C Pass 4 S Pass
5 D Pass 6 S All Pass
Opening lead — D 10

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