Winning with losers

Plan your play as declarer in 6S, on the auction and lead shown:

Contract: 6S by South. Lead: D3.

NORTH
♠ A8765
♥ K7
♦ Q4
♣ Q876                                   

SOUTH
♠ QT9432
♥ AQJ
♦ A6
♣ AT

WEST  NORTH  EAST   SOUTH
                    1S
Pass  2NT^*   Pass   3S
Pass  4S     Pass   4NT
Pass  5D     Dble   6S

^*Jacoby 2NT, showing a 4+fit and game points

With 19 points including shortage, you pushed to slam after North showed a good hand with Jacoby. East’s double of the 5D response to Blackwood asked partner to lead a diamond, following the general principle that double of an artificial bid shows that suit. When you call for the queen from dummy on the diamond lead, East covers with the DK as expected.

What next?

With only two spades out, the odds are slightly better than 50% that there will be one in each defender’s hand, so you play a spade to the ace with some hope – hope that is dashed when West shows out while East plays the SJ. Clearly you will have to lose a trick to the SK so you can’t afford any other losers. What can you do with the loser in each minor?

One thing you can do is cash three rounds of hearts, discarding the diamond loser from dummy. But that still leaves a club loser, a loser you can’t afford. Do you have a finesse available to try to avoid a loser there?

No, if you lead a club towards the queen, whichever opponent has the CK will be able to hop up with it to take the trick. You might set up a trick for yourself but only after losing the loser you couldn’t afford. Not a good plan.

Some players would instead lead the CQ from dummy, hoping East had the CK, but that shouldn’t work either – East should know to “cover an honour with an honour”, causing you to lose your CQ and CA on one trick and still have a loser at the end of it all.

If East does indeed have the CK, you need not rely on misdefence. You must try to make East lead a club. The way to do that is by stripping the other suits (except for trumps) that you do not want East to lead. Accordingly, you should now lead your last diamond, and trump it. Having stripped yourself of red suits, you play a spade to throw East in on lead.

This will be the situation:

          NORTH
          ♠ 876
          ♥ —
          ♦ —
          ♣ Q876
WEST               EAST                          
♠ —                ♠ K                  
♥ 8                ♥ T
♦ 87               ♦ JT
♣ 9543             ♣ KJ2
          SOUTH
          ♠ QT943
          ♥ —
          ♦ —
          ♣ AT

East wins the SK and is stuck. Leading a club will allow dummy’s queen to win. True, East is not obliged to lead a club and could instead lead a red suit but that is just as bad, allowing declarer to ruff and slough, throwing the club loser from hand while ruffing in dummy. Either way, 12 tricks are made.

Here is the full hand:

          NORTH
          ♠ A8765
          ♥ K7
          ♦ Q4
          ♣ Q876
WEST               EAST                          
♠ —                ♠ KJ                
♥ 8532             ♥ T964
♦ 87532            ♦ KJT9
♣ 9543             ♣ KJ2
          SOUTH
          ♠ QT9432
          ♥ AQJ
          ♦ A6
          ♣ AT