Arm Wrestling

Teams. Dealer South, E/W Vul.

As West you are looking at the following hand. After two Passes, North opens 1♦ and your opponents bid as follows:

What do you lead?

By jumping to 3♠ over South’s 1♠, North described 15-17HCP in an unbalanced hand (either a two-suiter 5-4 with Diamonds and Spades or a 4-4-4-1). This cries out for you to lead from your sequence in Clubs.

Contract: 4 Spades by South.
Lead: ♣J, for dummy’s Ace and East’s 7.

At trick two, South calls for the Jack of trumps, which holds the trick, and continues with a small trump to cash the Ace and King. East follows to all three rounds of trumps.

Have you learned anything interesting?

Oh yes you did! South is a passed hand and you know he held the Ace-King-Queen of Spades, that is to say 9HCP.