Deal 18	♠ ? ♥ ? ♦ ? ♣ ?		WEST   NORTH   EAST   SOUTH 1♦  BID      You are South and it is your bid. Decide what you would say, then click on BID .
	♠ 3 ♥ A K Q J 8 3 ♦ 8 6 3 ♣ 9 6 3

 

Deal 18	♠ A Q J 2 ♥ 10 7 4 2 ♦ 10 9 ♣ A Q 4		WEST   NORTH   EAST   SOUTH 1♦ 1♥ pass 4♥ pass pass pass With 12 points and an excellent suit you overcall 1♥. Partner raises to 4♥ and everyone passes. South plays 4♥. West leads the ♦A and the defense wins two high ♦s then switches to a trump. Make a Plan, then click NEXT .
	♠ 3 ♥ A K Q J 8 3 ♦ 8 6 3 ♣ 9 6 3

 

Deal 18	♠ A Q J 2 ♥ 10 7 4 2 ♦ 10 9 ♣ A Q 4		South plays 4♥. West leads the ♦A and the defense wins two high ♦s then switches to a trump. Losers: ♠ 0 : ♥ 0 : ♦ 2 : ♣ 2 : Total = 4 The two ♦ losers are already lost, so you must eliminate a ♣ loser. If West has the ♣K then a simple finesse will win the day. That would be a 50% chance, right? WRONG! That would be a 0% chance. You and partner hold 23 HCP. West has already produced 4 HCP with the ♦A, and if he had 3 more that would mean East opened with only 10 points. Very doubtful. So face it, East has the ♣K. However, dummy has some nice ♠ cards. So you pull the last trump, play your ♠3 to dummy's ♠A, then lead the ♠Q. If East puts on his ♠K (which you know he must have) you ruff it. Then enter dummy with a ♦ ruff and discard the small ♣ on the good ♠J. If East doesn't play his ♠K you discard your ♣ loser immediately. Click NEXT for the full deal.
	♠ 3 ♥ A K Q J 8 3 ♦ 8 6 3 ♣ 9 6 3

 

Deal 18	♠ A Q J 2 ♥ 10 7 4 2 ♦ 10 9 ♣ A Q 4		If you separate the bidding from the play in your mind you will too often miss clues that should be telling you that certain plans will or won't work. This was a perfect example. After the opening lead it was easy to deduce that all the rest of the high cards had to be in the East hand.  Deal 19
♠ 10 9 7 4 ♥ 6 5 ♦ A 7 5 2 ♣ 8 5 2		♠ K 8 6 5 ♥ 9 ♦ K Q J 4 ♣ K J 10 7
	♠ 3 ♥ A K Q J 8 3 ♦ 8 6 3 ♣ 9 6 3