NABC Site Bulletins Results
March 11th
Opening lead: A.
Bidding commentary: Straightforward. South shows a hand worth at least 9 support points for spades (likely with a five-card suit). North should not count anything for the Q J, but the hand is still strong enough to jump to game in spades.
Defensive commentary: West cashes the A and continues with the K.
Defensive commentary #2: East should ruff partner’s K at trick two and lead a club! No, he hasn’t gone mad. You do see those diamonds in dummy, don’t you? It is vital to take club tricks before they go off on diamonds. Basically you have to hope partner has the A Q. This is your last chance to do something meaningful, so don’t blow it!
Switch to a club at trick three before the mice can get at partner’s club tricks. When the dummy has an imposing side suit with a strong trump fit, it is usually right for the defense to play an attacking game. This may mean ruffing partner’s trick with a worthless trump to lead a suit through declarer that partner cannot lead safely. Do it!
[box]East should make the following opening lead inferences: When dummy hits and the A-K of any side suit is not visible, assume that partner does not have both honors. The same inference, to a lesser extent, is available when the K-Q of a side suit is not visible.[/box]