MPs
Dealer: North
Vulnerable: Both

AUCTION
NORTH	EAST	SOUTH	WEST
1(1)	Pass	2(2)	Pass
2(3)	Pass	4(4)	Pass
5(5)	Pass	6N	Pass
Pass	Pass

(1) Precision: 11-15, could be as few as 2 diamonds
(2) Inverted raise: 5+ diamonds (usually), at least invitational values
(3) Stopper, typically 11-13 balanced
(4) RKC Blackwood for diamonds
(5) 2 keycards plus the Q

The opening lead is the 8. Plan the play.

Solution

If diamonds break 3-2, you will have 12 tricks by simply establishing a second heart trick. Obviously, diamonds aren't 3-2 or this problem wouldn't be here.

The question is, what can you do when diamonds are 4-1 or 5-0. Well, if both major suit kings are on side and diamonds are 4-1, you can come to 12 tricks by taking both finesses, and when they work, you can give up a diamond to establish the 13th diamond as your 12th trick.

So, you win in hand with the K - for entry considerations that you'll see in a moment. Cross to the K, and lead the Q first. This avoids a multiple trick set when everything goes wrong, and sets up a second heart trick regardless.

Naturally, this loses to the K, and a second club is returned. Now you are reduced to a D-S squeeze if the diamonds don't break. Win in dummy with the J, and cash the Q. If the suit splits, claim... if not, take the spade finesse, which must win for you to have any chance (well, ok, we admit that there is an extremely remote case where playing a spade to the ace is the only thing that works). Cash the A and A, and cross back to dummy with a club. Cash the 4th club pitching a spade to reach this ending:

You cash the Q, discarding a diamond... if the hand with 4 diamonds started with 5 spades, he has no answer on this play.

The full deal:

A couple of notes...

Note 1: While there are, from West's perspective, deals where he should duck the Q, this does not help on the actual deal. Declarer can switch to the spade finesse and, when it works, give up a diamond for 12 tricks.

Note 2 (the key to the hand, technique-wise): More importantly, as a point of technique, on the actual deal, there are several ways to play the squeeze (since East guards diamonds). One of them may seem more "normal", i.e. testing diamonds at tricks 2 and 3 by playing the king and queen.

However, had the actual deal been:

this play would be fatal. The problem is that after two rounds of diamonds and a losing heart finesse, west can play the J and destroy the communication for the squeeze... The four card ending (north to lead):

When the Q is cashed, south has no good play. Because the entry in diamonds is gone, the spade threat must now be the small spade in the SOUTH hand; the result is that there is no threat in the "upper" hand (the hand that plays after the hand with the the outstanding menaces), and the slam fails.

The bottom line: Don't rush to test a suit to see if it breaks when (1) you can claim later if it does break, and (2) you will need the suit for communication purposes if it doesn't break.

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