This month's hand is from a regional pairs event at the Spring Nationals recently held in Vancouver, BC. You are sitting against a decent pair, when the following deal arises:

Dealer: South
Vulnerable: E-W

West leads the 2. Plan the play.

There are several points to this hand. The first is this: many beginner and intermediate players fail to draw inferences that are available from bidding and leads. Sometimes, taking such inferences is dangerous. Other times, the inferences are just possibilities, and not known facts. Still, you should be thinking about three key conclusions that are PROBABLY true from the lead and bidding:

1) The trumps are probably breaking 3-2. How do you draw this inference? Well, for starters, it is usually dangerous to lead a singleton trump for fear of losing partner's trump trick (imagine how foolish West would feel if he led a singleton trump and dummy had Ax and declarer had K Q T x x x). Similarly, when West has four or 5 trumps, it is frequently right for him make an attacking lead in his own suit (spades) in an effort to seize trump control.

2) West probably does not have the KQ or QJ. Why? Because he did not lead one.

3) Since West has uninteresting shape and has made an overcall Red v. White with KJxxx(x), it seems likely that he has both minor-suit kings.

Again, these inferences are not ironclad, but they can frequently help you out.

Anyway, the trump lead is annoying, as it removes the possibility of a diamond ruff in the dummy (don't even bother trying this, since you suspect 3-2 trumps and you know that West will play another when he gets in). Your first move should be to win the trump in hand, cross back to the A (both following, as you suspected) and play a club to the ten. Suppose this is won by West's K, and he exits with his third trump, and East pitches the 3 (!!). Now what?

Solution to Play Problem, Part B