Count your tricks carefully.
Bridge Column for February 8, 2002, Harvey Bernstein
Neither side vulnerable.  West deals.
                              North
                              S: A 6 3           
                              H: A 5         
                              D: K 10 9 7 2  
                              C: A 6 3   
            West                             East
            S: 10 9                          S: J 8       
            H: K Q 9                         H: J 8 7 6 4  
            D: A Q J 5                       D: 8 6 3             
            C: J 10 7 5                      C: K Q 4       
                              South                         
                              S: K Q 7 5 4 2 
                              H: 10 3 2     
                              D: 4         
                              C: 9 8 2    
          The Bidding:  
                   West   North     East   South                  
                    1D     1NT       2H      4S  
                   Pass    Pass     Pass
     After an auction that was anything but elegant, West opens
the king of hearts.  Declarer calls for the ace from the dummy. 
You can see all four hands, would you rather defend or declare
this contract?
     Did you decide to declare?  You can count ten potential
tricks.  These include six spade tricks in your hand, the ace of
hearts, the ace of clubs, and the king of diamonds.  If you can
trump one heart in the dummy you will come to ten.  In order to
be successful, you have to lead towards the king of diamonds
before the ace of clubs is forced out.  To this end, you should
lead a small spade to the king and then a diamond toward the
dummy.
     West wins the ace but there is nothing that he can do to
disrupt your plan.  If he had three trumps he could continue with
one at this point and another when he gains the lead with the
queen of hearts, but he only has two and will be out of trump
before he can hurt your contract.  
     If you decided to defend, you have to make a different
opening lead.  This is a hand where West has only one chance.  A
club lead at trick one will defeat the spade game.  Declarer can
win the ace and knock out the ace of diamonds, but the defense
will score two club tricks to go along with a heart and a diamond
before declarer can make productive use of the king of diamonds.
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Bernstein is a free-lance writer in Solon.