Bidding : 1H (N) - 2H (S) - 3C* (N) - 4H (S)

* = Long suit trial bid. South, with only 1 loser in the suit, responds positively bidding Game.

LTC : 6 + 9 = 15 losers, but counting TSPs there are sufficient points for Game. The long suit trial bid is an extra insurance.

Opening Lead : 7 of Hearts (E) = top of a doubleton in the trump suit, a defensive lead.

Declarer (N) counts 5 possible loser : one each in Spades, Diamonds and Clubs and two in the trump suit if East holds all 4 Hearts.

Declarer Play
Long suit trial bid   -   Leading up to Dummy's weakness   -   Refusing a finesse
Declarer wins the opening lead with the Ace and follows on with the trump King, drawing all enemy trumps in two rounds. He then leads the Diamond Queen which is captured by West's Ace.
At trick 4 West leads a small Spade up to Dummy's weakness. Declarer plays the Ace, refusing the finesse. At trick 5 Declarer plays the Diamond Jack, followed by a small Diamond to Dummy's King. The enemy Diamonds break 3-3, making Dummy's 4th Diamond a winner on which Declarer can discard his Spade Queen. Declarer concedes one trick in the Club suit (ruffing one of his Club losers in Dummy) , making 11 tricks total.

Score = 5 x 30 pts + 500 bonus pts = 650 pts

Bidding : Pass (E) 1D (W) - 1S (E) - 2S (W) - 3H* (E) - 4S (W)

* = Long suit trial bid. West, with 2 losers in Hearts and a maximum bids Game

LTC : 8 + 7 = 15 losers

Opening Lead : King of Hearts (S) = top of a solid sequence

Declarer (E) counts 5 possible losers : three in Hearts, one in Diamonds and also one in Clubs if the enemy cards do not break 3-3.   He can ruff one Heart loser in Dummy, but a ruff of the 4th Club may be risky as in that case he can not draw all enemy trumps first.

Declarer Play
Long suit trial bid   -   Double finesse   -   Testing an enemy 3-3 split in a side suit
South wins the first two Heart tricks with his King and Queen, then switches to a small trump won by Dummy's King. Dummy then (trick 4) leads the trump Queen followed by a small trump to Declarer's Ace which draws all enemy trumps.
At trick 6 Declarer leads his Diamond 9, South and Dummy both play low and North wins with the King. North then leads his Club Jack which is captured by Dummy's Ace.

At trick 8 Dummy leads a second Club, won by Declarer with the King who then leads his Club Queen. Seeing that the Clubs don't break 3-3 (as North shows out), Declarer now must follow through with the double finesse in Diamond to make his contract. He leads therefore (at trick 10) his last remaining Diamond and when South plays low Dummy plays the Jack and wins. Dummy's Ace is lead next on which Declarer discards his 4th Club and South drops the Queen. Dummy's last remaining Diamond is now also a winner on which Declarer's Heart loser is discarded. (Both Dummy's Diamond and Declarer's heart could also have been ruffed in the opposite hand. Total tricks made : 10.

Score = 4 x 30 trick pts + 500 bonus pts = 620 pts

Bidding : 1S (S) - 2S (N) - 3C* (S) - 4S (N) - 4NT (S) - 5D (N) - 6S (S)

Creative bidding ! North's positive suit trial bid response could mean a maximum with 2 losers. South therefore double checks with Blackwood (or RKC Blackwood) to make sure North has the Club Ace.

LTC : 4 + 8 = 12 losers

Opening Lead : Queen of Diamonds (W) = top of touching Honours

Declarer (S) counts 4 possible loser : two in Diamonds and two in Clubs. One Club loser can be ruffed in Dummy and two Diamond losers can be discarded on Dummy's King and Queen of Hearts.

Declarer Play
Long suit trial bid   -   Blackwood Convention
Declarer wins the opening lead with his Diamond Ace, then draws two rounds of trumps, removing all enemy trumps. At trick 4 he leads his Heart Ace followed by a small Club to Dummy's Ace. Dummy then leads his King and Queen of Hearts on which Declarer discards two small Diamonds. Declarer concedes a Club trick to the opposition, then ruffs his last Club in Dummy. The remaining tricks are all his, a total of 12.

Score = 6 x 30 trick pts + 1250 bonus pts = 1430 pts

Bidding : 1S (W) - 2S (E) - 3H* (W) - 3S (E) - Pass (W)

* = Long suit trial bid. East responds in the negative, showing 3 losers in Hearts.

Opening Lead : King of Hearts (N) = King of A K J x

LTC = 6 + 10 = 16 losers

Declarer (W) counts 5 possible loser : three in Hearts and two in Spades if North holds Q J x x in the trump suit.

Declarer Play
Long suit trial bid   -   Defence not leading trumps
North wins the first three tricks in Hearts with King Ace an Jack (South unblocks by throwing his Queen on the 2nd trick), then exits (at trick 4) with a small Club. Declarer wins and draws two rounds of trumps, after which North's trump Jack remains as a 4th winner for the Defence. All up Declarer makes the 9 tricks required for his contract.

When holding Q x (X) or J x (X) do not lead that suit, especially in trumps. Let Declarer start drawing trumps and you will always end up with a trick no matter in which hand the A and K are held.

Score = 3 x 30 trick pts + 50 bonus pts = 140 pts