Contract bridge: Vertiginous slam requires careful play to succeed

Only a few pairs reached the optimum contract of 6H on this deal, and then some failed in the play. Test your declarer play by imagining that you are South.

Bidding
Dealer: South
E/W Game

Should North make a slam try? It’s very close. South has shown a game-going hand with six diamonds and five hearts, so North’s K♥ is clearly huge. In the auction above, North decided to bid 5H, inviting South to bid 6H if he didn’t have two losers in clubs. 

On 10♣ lead from West, how should you play the slam?

East will win A♣ and probably return 2♣. As so often, the secret will be not to draw trumps until your side-suit is established. Declarer should ruff the club return and lead a low diamond to trump in dummy. He returns to hand with A♠ and leads a second low diamond and ruffs again.

Next, he cashes K♥ before returning to hand with a spade ruff. He lays down ♥AQ, which draws all the trumps, and now he plays his diamonds from the top and watches East’s J♦ fall on the fifth round, making declarer’s 10♦ a winner, and bringing home the slam.

Notice that to play any top diamond early on increases the risk of an over-ruff and failure.