Each Way Bet

16th May – Board 9: East/West Vul. Dealer North.

Possibly the most exciting hand last Thursday was the following when South was forced into making a difficult decision.

	North: S J 10 H 4 D A K J 10 9 7 6 C J 5 2
West: S K Q 8 7 4 2 H A D 3 C K 10 8 7 3		East: S 9 5 3 H 9 6 2 D Q 8 5 4 2 C 9 4
	South: S A 6 H K Q J 10 8 7 5 3 D none C A Q 6

West	North	East	South
	3D	No	4H
4S	No	No	5H/Dbl?
End

North is on the strong side for a preempt perhaps but those jacks don’t look very appealing and trying to keep the opposition out of the auction is always a good idea. South has an obvious 4H bid but West should really not be silenced and 4S looks a good each way bet when it might easily make opposite very little or prove to be a cheap sacrifice against a vulnerable game the other way. To my mind the most difficult decision is South’s but it is hard to criticise bidding one more for the road. West will lead the king of spades but must not panic when in with the ace of hearts. Although in a different layout it might be right to switch to clubs here that would be fatal and West should cash his spade winner and play a third round. With declarer unable to reach dummy the king of clubs will prove to be the setting trick.