There is no time to lose

Henry S. Haskins, who was a stockbroker and a man of letters, said, “The time to stop talking is when the other person nods his head affirmatively but says nothing.”

The time for a bridge columnist to stop writing is when the reader nods his head affirmatively and moves to the comics.

In today’s deal, how should South play in four spades after West leads the heart queen?

North responded with a splinter bid, which promised game values, four or more spades and a singleton (or void) in clubs. South’s hand had gotten worse, so he signed off in game.

South has four potential losers: one in each suit. If he plays a trump at trick two, he should lose those tricks, East winning with his ace and returning a heart.

Instead, declarer must do something about that potential heart loser now. He can discard dummy’s third heart on his second club, but he must watch his entries.

South takes the first trick in the dummy with the heart king, then calls for its club. West wins with his ace and continues with the heart nine — first the top of a sequence, then the bottom. Declarer takes the trick with his ace and cashes his club winner, discarding dummy’s last heart. Finally, with North nodding affirmatively, it is time to draw trumps.

Maybe you are wondering why anyone would go down in this contract, but many players do not pause for 30 to 60 seconds when the dummy comes down to count losers and winners, and to find a successful line of play.

As Paul Simon nearly wrote, “Slow down, you play too fast.”