High enough
Andrew Robson
THE PRE-EMPTIVE trump raise gets more and more popular, especially in response to an overcall. North's jump to 3 on this week's deal prevented East-West from even mentioning 4s, the suit in which they could make game. Further, brilliant card reading from declarer (and uninspired defence) resulted in 3, making.
Dealer East East-West Vulnerable 4 Q 7 5
✓ A 6 4 3 • 6 5 4 3 + 75
4 J 6 3 2
• J 7 2
• 7 4 A Q J 3 2 4 K 10 9 4 • 5 • A K Q 1098
+ 94 WE # A 8 ✓ K 01098 • J 2 # K 10 8 6
The Bidding South West 1, 24 pass pass North East 1.
3V pass West led 47 to East's 4Q, but when South smoothly dropped •J East con- vinced himself that West had led from • 72. East switched to +9. Declarer cov- ered with 410 and West won with 4J, cashed +A and led 42.
Declarer realised that West must have started with a singleton • — •7 was the lowest outstanding • so it could not be top from a doubleton; so East started with six • s. He also inferred that the eight missing 4s must be 4-4 because neither opponent had seen fit to bid the suit. With East hav- ing followed to two rounds of +s, there was room for just a singleton trump in his hand. With an even-money chance that it was the V5 or V2, declarer trumped 4J with V6. East discarded so declarer had overcome the most major hurdle. He drew trumps and cashed 4K followed by all his remaining trumps. His last three cards were 4A8 and •2. East was forced to come down to 4K10 and •A. Declarer simply exited with •2 to East's •A and waited for the 4 return away from 4K — which he ran to dummy's 4Q and won the last trick with his 4A.
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