frs1016@centurylink.net
When I watched today’s deal in a penny game, South was Wendy, my club’s feminist, and North was Cy the Cynic, a shameless chauvinist. The two are adversaries even when they cut as partners.
| Dlr: South | ♠ A 9 4 | |||||||||
| Vul: E-W | ♥ 4 2 | |||||||||
| ♦ A 8 5 3 | ||||||||||
| ♣ J 6 3 2 | ||||||||||
| ♠ K 10 6 3 | ♠ Q J 8 5 | |||||||||
| ♥ K 7 3 | ♥ 5 | |||||||||
| ♦ K 10 9 6 | ♦ Q J 4 | |||||||||
| ♣ 7 4 | ♣ K Q 9 8 5 | |||||||||
| ♠ 7 2 | ||||||||||
| ♥ A Q J 1 0 9 8 6 | ||||||||||
| ♦ 7 2 | ||||||||||
| ♣ A 10 | ||||||||||
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Opening lead — ♣7
Wendy opened 4♥ as dealer. I might have opened 1♥, but Wendy asserts that bidding intelligently with Cy is impossible and she may as well guess at a contract.
All passed, and West led the ♣7: deuce, queen, ace. Wendy could see 10 tricks — at least six trumps, a spade, a diamond and two clubs. She cashed the ace of trumps at Trick Two and continued with the queen. West took his king and shifted to the ♦10.
Wendy took dummy’s ace but had no entry to her hand to draw the missing trump. When she led a club from dummy, East rose with his king and defended accurately: He cashed the ♦Q and led the ♠Q. Wendy took dummy’s ace and discarded her losing spade on the high ♣J, but West ruffed for down one.
“You needed some communication with your hand,” Cy observed.
“I know about communication,” Wendy growled. “To a woman, it’s the honest sharing of thoughts and feelings. To a man, it’s leaving a note when he takes off for a fishing weekend with the boys.”
I suspect that Wendy was upset with herself for going down. At Trick Two she can lead a middle trump. If West wins and shifts to a diamond, Wendy takes the ace, draws trumps and leads the ♣10 to East’s king. She gets rid of her spade loser on the ♣J.