Bridge: “What does little birdie say In her nest at peep of day?” – Tennyson

The recommendation from both author and publishers is that “Bridge Cardplay Made Easy” by David Bird (Finesse Bridge Publications) be used as a textbook by bridge teachers. It is indeed ideal for that purpose, but it is even more useful as a tool for beginners who wish to progress at their own pace.

Today’s deal is from the “Finessing into the Safe Hand” chapter. West leads the club six against three no-trump. South, who can count eight certain tricks, holds off his ace until the third round.

The only suit from which the ninth trick can come is diamonds. And the percentage play with eight cards between two hands, missing the queen, is to finesse.

But other considerations come into the reckoning here.

From the play to the first three tricks, West is known to have started with five clubs, as East showed out on the third round.

Therefore finessing into West, the danger hand, is fraught with peril.

If West started life with the guarded diamond queen, the contract is doomed anyway.

What needs to be avoided is losing to the doubleton diamond queen in West.

As it happens, playing the ace, then king, of diamonds brings forth the queen – and 10 tricks.

And if East had held queen-fourth of diamonds all along?

With the lead in dummy, a low diamond toward the jack on the third round of the suit still produces the required nine tricks without danger of any return harming the contract.

Bid with the aces

South holds:

Answer: Rebid two no-trump.

In the old days using two no-trump as a second negative on this auction was very popular.

These days I’d advocate using the lower minor (in this case three clubs over a bid of two of a major by partner, but three diamonds over a three-club rebid) to show fewer than five high-card points.

Two no-trump here lets partner describe his hand economically while promising bits and pieces here and there.