Sometimes it is right to break a rule.
Bridge Column for December 12, 2003, Harvey Bernstein
Both sides vulnerable.  North deals.
                              North
                              S: J 4 3 2          
                              H: A 5         
                              D: K 10        
                              C: A K Q J 6
            West                             East
            S: K 7 6                         S: Q            
            H: K 10 4 3                      H: Q J 7 2    
            D: A 9 7 2                       D: Q 8 6 3           
            C: 9 8                           C: 10 7 5 2    
                              South                         
                              S: A 10 9 8 5
                              H: 9 8 6      
                              D: J 5 4     
                              C: 4 3    
          The Bidding:  
                  North    East    South    West                  
                   1C      Pass     1S      Pass
                   4S      Pass     Pass    Pass
     One of the rules a bridge player learns early on is that he
should not underlead a non-trump ace against a suit contract.  Of
course, the corollary is simply to ignore the rule when it is
right to underlead an ace.
     Today's hand was played in a team event at a regional bridge
tournament this past October.  Thanks to Jack Weingold and Joann
Antoniou of Shaker Heights for providing the details.  Weingold
held the East cards.  His partner was Jeff Meckstroth of Tampa,
FL.  Meckstoth had listened to the bidding and decided that if
North had a singleton he would have made a "Splinter" bid.  That
is a double jump in a new suit to show a singleton or void in
that suit, with enough points and trumps to demand game.  While
it was still possible that South had a singleton, at least North
had not shown that type of holding.
     Meckstroth led the two of diamonds.  Declarer played low
from dummy and Weingold won the queen.  Weingold had to decide
how to continue.  It was obvious that his partner held the ace of
diamonds, but how about the jack?  Would he have made the same
lead from the ace-jack combination?  If not, a diamond back to
the ace would set up the jack for a discard later in the hand. 
It would be better to establish whatever trick they had coming in
the heart suit prior to taking the ace of diamonds.  Accordingly,
Weingold shifted to the queen of hearts.
     When Meckstroth regained the lead with the king of spades,
he was able to cash the king of hearts and the ace of diamonds
for down one.
     At the companion table, Antoniou's partner, Eric Rodwell of
Clearwater, FL, in the South seat, became declarer after a
similar auction.  West opened the three of hearts.  Rodwell made
four spades for a big swing on the way to winning the match and
the event.  What should have been a flat result turned on a well-
timed, if unusual, opening lead.
_______________________________________________________
Bernstein is a free-lance writer in Solon.