One of the cool things about bridge is we can play against world-class players, no matter our skill level. I don’t know of any other game where this is possible. Some years ago, the world champion, Dallas Aces, formed and captained by Ira Corn, played an exhibition match against a very good St. Louis team, which included our own Jacque Sincoff. See if you can match Jacque’s skill on the following hand.

 The Bidding: S W N E
 1N  pass  2C  pass
 2D  pass  3N  pass
 pass  pass

Opening lead: Five

Cover the East/West hands and see if you can make the contract.

NORTH
8 2
A K 8 5
7 6 5 3
K Q 8

WEST
K J 6 5 4
Q 10 9
J 10 8
9 2

EAST
Q 10 7
J 7 4
Q 2
10 6 5 4 3

SOUTH
A 9 3
6 3 2
A K 9 4
A J 7

West led their fourth-best . Declarer ducked two rounds winning the third.

Nine tricks are available: one , two or three , two or three , three .

Three tricks in either or will make the contract.

To make three tricks in either suit, a trick must be lost in the respective suit without West gaining the lead.

Jacque found the winning line:
1. She led a at trick two. When West played the nine, she was forced to play the King.
2. She led a to the King.
3. A club was led to the dummy.
4. When a second was led, the Queen appeared from East.
5. Jacque ducked! West could not overtake and East did not have a to return to West.
6. The return was won and declarer had her nine tricks (1s, 2h, 3d, 3c). Excellent!

[tip of the day]

Q. Kenny, my partner and I would like to play against some better players. Is there any restrictions as to skill level of the players?
A. I think you mean at the club level. The open games have no restrictions. It is a good idea to play against better players to improve your game. At the clubs, the directors are more than happy to introduce you to the higher-level games.

Photo by Collin Miller of Strauss Peyton