Careful, Now

	5
	A K Q 8
	7 5 4 2
	A Q J 8
K J 10 3		9 8 7 6 2
J 2		7
Q 10 8 6		K J 9
10 9 2		K 7 6 3
	A Q 4
	10 9 6 5 4 3
	A 3
	5 4

No, you can't make 6 hearts on a diamond opening lead, and that's just the luck of the draw as to whether that's what you get or not. But wait a minute! Here's a declarer who didn't get a diamond opening lead and still went down. How did that happen? Trump are splitting 2-1, where a 3-0 split would bring some problem. You can ruff two spades in dummy at your leisure, and throw a club on a diamond honor after losing a finesse. So what's the problem? Well, here it is.

Opening lead of the deuce of hearts taken with the 8. Taken with the 8! Yes, that's the play that was made. With the top three trump he chances losing to the J first round? It didn't hurt declarer, of course, but like many another very foolish play that didn't cost, it seemed to foreshadow a later foolish play that did cost. That is to say, it seems to indicate a declarer who isn't well focussed on dangers and opportunities, on the likeliest way to avoid the former and bring the contract home. Declarer now took another round of trump, came to the ace of spades and took the club hook -- which held!

Ah! "Do I see an overtrick coming?" the declarer evidently thought. With this valuable contract at his fingertips, he now came to the closed hand with the ace of diamonds his only entry, and took another club hook, and --- well, you know the rest, no? Down came the king of clubs followed by the king of diamonds and the hand was over.