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Posted on Wed, Jun 6, 2012 : 5 a.m.

Bridge column, June 6: The tricks were squashed together

By Phillip Alder

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Actress Cameron Diaz said, "I can spend hours in a grocery store. I get so excited when I see food; I go crazy. I spend hours arranging my baskets so that everything fits in and nothing gets squashed."

That's weird! At the bridge table, though, sometimes tricks get squashed. In this deal, for example, South, in four hearts, seemed destined to lose two hearts, one diamond and two clubs. But bridge can be strange at times. How did South get home after West led the diamond king?

West used the Unusual No-trump to show his minor two-suiter. (After a strength-showing two-over-one response by South, it would have been illogical for West's overcall to show a strong balanced hand, because East would then have had a Yarborough and two no-trump doubled would have gone down several tricks.) Then West was right to pass, especially given the unfavorable vulnerability. Here, five diamonds (and five clubs) doubled can be defeated by three tricks, costing 800.

South won trick one with his diamond ace and cashed the ace and king of hearts.

With the 4-1 break revealed, it was time to score tricks with declarer's low trumps. South cashed dummy's top spades, ruffed a spade, and led a diamond. West took his queen and could not do better than lead another diamond. Declarer ruffed on the board, trumped another spade, played a club to the ace, and ruffed the last spade. South had taken two spades, two hearts, one diamond, one club, three ruffs in his hand and one ruff on the board for 10 tricks.

For the last two tricks West's winning clubs and East's trumps were squashed together.

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