QT954 Q92 Q A765
73 84 JT986 Q432		862 KJ6 K753 KJ9
	AKJ AT753 A42 T8

 

South	West	North	East
1NT	Pass	2	Pass
2	Pass	3NT	Pass
4	Pass	Pass	Pass

Opening Lead: J

Players are taught to count losers in a suit contract. Sometimes it is easier to count winners. This month’s hand is a good example. You have 3 winners outside of the trump suit. If you can get 7 trump tricks, you have the 10 tricks you need for your contract.

To do that you need to take all 5 trump in dummy and 2 in your hand. With that in mind you win East’s King with your Ace. Now you lead a club from your hand and duck it. No matter what the opponents return you now have an easy road to 10 tricks.

Let’s say the opponents return a trump. You win in hand and return a club to the Ace of clubs and a heart to the Ace of hearts (best to cash your aces before starting a cross ruff). Now you ruff a diamond, ruff a club, ruff a diamond, ruff a club, and you still have the QT of spades in dummy for 10 tricks.

Could you find this plan if you counted your losers instead? The answer is yes, but it is always nice to have another way to look at a hand.