Unheard melody

By Barnet Shenkin

This deal is one of those might-have-been efforts in the exciting Bermuda Bowl final between USA1 and Italy.

Board 14. Dealer East. None Vul.
	♠ 7 5 4 ♥ K 8 5 ♦ 7 5 3 ♣ A K J 3
♠ A Q 9 ♥ 7 6 ♦ A K J 8 ♣ 7 6 4 2		♠ K J 8 6 3 2 ♥ 9 4 2 ♦ 4 ♣ 10 8 5
	♠ 10 ♥ A Q J 10 3 ♦ Q 10 9 6 2 ♣ Q 9

On vugraph, USA1 made 3♠ on the opening lead of the ♦10. This was the bidding in the closed room.

West	North	East	South
Nunes	Hamman	Fantoni	Soloway
			1♥
Dble	2♦	3♠	All Pass

North's 2♦ bid was a good heart raise. West paused before passing 3♠. Paul Soloway led the ♦10, and declarer took the same nine tricks. It was suggested by the commentators that Fulvio Fantoni would also make 4♠ on a diamond lead by finessing the ♦J and later taking a heart ruff in dummy. Bob Hamman, North, would certainly double 4♠, and now South could reasonably lead the ♥A, setting the contract by two tricks.

One of the spectators suggested a trump lead would also prevail for the defense by repeated trump leads, stopping the heart ruff. On a trump lead, declarer wins in hand, finesses diamonds and pitches two club losers on the ♦A and ♦K. If declarer plays a heart from dummy, South must win this, lead a club to North, who plays a second spade. Now North can win the second heart lead with the king and clear trumps. So declarer leads the ♦8, pitching his last club - a scissors coup. South has no trump and forces declarer to ruff a club. Now East has to play hearts from his hand. He starts with the ♥9. South must carefully play the ♥10, keeping the ♥3 in order for his partner to overtake and play a second trump. Now when declarer leads a second heart, South can play his 3, and North can win with the ♥8 .A third trump will leave the declarer one trick short. That would have been a well-played contract on both sides. Unfortunately, we did not get to hear the melody.