Counting Winners with a Twist

	7
	3 2
	A 9 7 3
	A K J 9 8 7
	A K Q 8 5 3
	K 10 6
	K J 10
	6	Opening lead: 5 of clubs

This hand, in 6 no, offered an opportunity to bring home an ambitious contract by a count, with a slight twist. How likely are you to bring home the contract on two club winners? Well, let's see. You're going to need six spade tricks and either four diamonds or 3 diamonds and a heart. Picking up three diamonds and a heart require such luck as not only finding the ace of hearts right, but guessing the queen of diamonds, not to mention the potential for going down two or three tricks if the ace of hearts is wrong, so we might well forget about that.

As for picking up four diamonds, that isn't a whole lot more attractive, for it's not near so simple as guessing who has the queen. It's the lack of outside entries along with the possibility that the suit will block that makes picking up four diamond winners not so easy. You can't do it if West has the queen unless it's stiff, and you can't do it if East has the queen if it's guarded with three or more kickers! All of which makes picking up 4 diamonds winners unlikely. And the hand would still require a 3-3 spade split!

All of which is pretty much to say, without the ability to run clubs, fuhgeddaboutit! No one likes to go down at trick two on a slam. But there's an old saw in bridge that holds that your play should be consistent with your bidding. That is to say, if you bid it, then play as if the cards are right for you to make it. To be sure, there are times when it's mathematically impossible to make your bid and you indeed must knock out an ace representing the setting trick just to go down one. These should not be overlooked, when down one might not be too bad, might indeed not even be a bad board if your bidding has been sound and you have a lot of company.

This was not such a hand, however. The bidding has been aggressive, and you're far from mathematically out of the running. And when a simple count makes slam without the clubs a pipe dream, then you've got to play for the clubs to be right. Here was the whole hand:

	7
	3 2
	A 9 7 3
	A K J 9 8 7
J 9 2		10 6 4
J 9		A Q 8 7 5 4
Q 8 6 5		4 2
Q 5 3 2		10 4
	A K Q 8 5 3
	K 10 6
	K J 10
	6	Opening lead: 5 of clubs

So it was there, a lucky make on 28 hcp's, but there, not by hindsight, but by the only way declarer had more than a ghost of a chance. You might note, incidentally, that you can't pick up 4 diamond winners even if you look at the cards. West must either cover the first of equal honors, or not cover at all.