Bridge: July 21, 2024

Cy the Cynic is not an early riser.

“When I roused this morning,” Cy told me in the club lounge, “my alarm clock was laughing at me. It was saying ‘LOL.'”

“I didn’t know alarm clocks have a sense of humor.”

“Actually, my clock had gotten turned upside down,” Cy admitted. “The time was 7:07.”

Like many players, Cy could use an alarm that sounds when he is about to misplay, especially at the first trick. When Cy was today’s South in a penny game, North’s raise to four diamonds was preemptive. Cy thought he had enough to bid game.

West led the deuce of hearts — a trump would have been my choice — and Cy surveyed the situation for his usual three seconds and ruffed in dummy. He led a club to his ace, ruffed a heart and got back with high trumps to ruff two more hearts. It was all quite impressive, but the Cynic had two spades and a club to lose — and lost them. Down one.

Cy should have known better than to play without thinking. Instead of ruffing at Trick One, he must discard a spade from dummy, letting East’s ace win. If East shifts to spades, Cy takes the ace, leads a trump to his hand and returns the queen of hearts, ruffing in dummy when West’s king covers.

Cy can then draw trumps and pitch dummy’s last spade on the jack of hearts. He takes the ace of clubs, loses a club and ruffs dummy’s last two clubs in his hand. Cy has 11 tricks: six trumps in dummy, two club ruffs and the black aces, plus a heart.

Declarers need a built-in alarm. Plan your play before you

touch the first card.

South dealer

Both sides vulnerable

NORTH

S A 9 8

H None

D Q 10 8 7 6 4

C 9 8 7 6

WEST

S K 5 4

H K 10 3 2

D 9 2

C K J 3 2

EAST

S Q J 3 2

H A 9 8 6 4

D 5

C Q 10 5

SOUTH

S 10 7 6

H Q J 7 5

D A K J 3

C A 4

South West North East
1 D Pass 4 D Pass
5 D All Pass
Opening lead — H 2

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