SHORT and sweet this week — a hand which you may get right here but will almost certainly get wrong at the table. Check for yourself!Pairs:

Dealer North

N/S VulnerableNorth

[spade]A 6 3

[heart]6 2

[diamond]4 3 2

[club]10 9 5 4 3

South

[spade]K Q J 10 9 2

[heart]K 8 3

[diamond]A K 5

[club]A

North Sout>

Pass 4[spade]

PassI like the 4[spade] bid — the hand is too strong for 1[spade] and not quite a 2[club] opener so 4[spade] is a good compromise.

So you win the club lead, cross to the spade ace and lead a heart to the king and ace, and West returns a second trump.

Feeling decidedly uneasy now, you play another heart but the defence wins and clears trumps — one down!North

[spade]A 6 3

[heart]6 2

[diamond]4 3 2

[club]10 9 5 4B>

West East<$>

[spade]7 5 4 [spade]8

[heart]A Q 4 [heart]J 10 9 75

[diamond]9 7 6 [diamond]Q J 10 8

[club]Q J 6 2 [club]K 8 7

South

[spade]K Q J 10 9 2

[heart]K 8 3

[diamond]A K 5

[club]AThe answer — win the club and lead a low heart from hand. Now you are one step ahead of the defence. If they lead a spade win in dummy and now lead a heart towards the king — if West has the ace you make and if East has it the overtrick is back as a diamond goes away on the heart king.

Looks so obvious here — doesn’t it?