ACES ON BRIDGE

“I’ve described my usual writing process as scrambling from peak to peak on inspiration through foggy valleys of despised logic. Inspiration is better — when you can get it.”

— Lois McMaster Bujold

As West, what would you lead against three no-trump after partner’s weak twospade opening? Both Wests in a London league match chose their fourth-highest diamond, trying to set up their own suit instead of partner’s. Even if the spades could be established in one fell swoop, East would have no entry to reach them.

Where Peter Taylor was declarer, he let dummy’s diamond nine hold on the table. Then he led a club to his king. West ducked that in tempo, hoping that declarer would place the club ace with East and finesse into the jack on the next round, allowing East to return a diamond and clear the suit while West retained a club entry. However, declarer led a club to the queen on the next round and soon wrapped up two overtricks.

How did Taylor pick the clubs rather than taking what looked like an obligatory finesse?

Some East players would consider ace-jack-sixth and an ace too much for a non-vulnerable weak-two opening, and West might not have led a diamond if he had no side-entry.

Also, East might have considered rising with the club ace from ace-doubleton to preserve an entry to his partner’s hand in case West had the club king to go with his honor-fifth in diamonds.

Taylor had also observed that if West had ace-jack-fourth of clubs, it would be sufficient to pocket a second club trick with the queen and then work on spades, leading the spade queen from the table to allow for a lone jack in the West hand.

ANSWER: It is very unlikely that you can make a game, and you might not be able to make anything at all if your partner has overcalled light. A one-no-trump advance is unlikely to get you anywhere and may attract a penalty, so passing seems right overall. You could persuade me to act with any queen in addition to my current values.