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Cy the Cynic struggles with his weight, especially during the Christmas holidays; he needs a seasonally-adjusted bathroom scale.
“I’ve been attending too many parties,” Cy told me in the club lounge. “I’m playing like a goat because I’m preoccupied with my weight.”
“`Desserts’ spelled backward is `stressed.’” I remarked.
Cy was today’s South in a matchpoint duplicate event and, like every North-South in the game, his partnership got to four hearts. West led the jack of spades, and Cy won with the king and took the A-K of trumps. When West discarded, Cy tried the A-K and a third diamond. Alas for him, East won and cashed his jack of trumps — and another diamond.
HIGH TRUMP
Cy made his contract, but his matchpoint score was abysmal. Cy can cash one high trump but must next lead a low diamond. He wins East’s spade return and cashes his other high trump.
West discards, but Cy can take the A-K of diamonds and ruff his last diamond in dummy, making a useful overtrick.
DAILY QUESTION
You hold: S K 5 4 H 6 5 4 D 5 4 3 C A 7 6 5. Your partner deals and opens one spade. The next player bids two hearts. What do you say?
ANSWER: Go ahead and bid two spades. A “free bid” of a new suit would in some circumstances suggest a sound hand, but a “free raise” has no such implication. Even though your hand is a minimum for a single raise, don’t suppress a fit for your partner. If you don’t raise now, you may never get another chance.
South dealer
Neither side vulnerable
NORTH
S K 5 4
H 6 5 4
D 5 4 3
C A 7 6 5
WEST
S J 10 9 7 3
H Q
D J 6
C Q 10 9 8 2
EAST
S Q 8 2
H J 10 3
D Q 10 9 8
C K J 4
SOUTH
S A 6
H A K 9 8 7 2
D A K 7 2
C 3
South West North East
1 H Pass 2 H Pass
4 H All Pass
Opening lead — S J
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