102
A865
10954
A109

AKQJ964
2
AK63
6

The contract is 6. Lefty opened the bidding with a weak 2 in hearts. You made a takeout double, to which your partner responded 3. Now Lefty leads the 2, which looks remarkably like a singleton.

How do you play the hand?

This is a straightforward squeeze trim and endplay, with winners in each of the possible exit suits. Play the 10 at trick one, which is covered by Righty's J and your A. Then simply run your spades, coming down to

--
A
954
A
--
               ?
               Q87
               ?
               --
2
K63
6

If Righty saved only two diamonds, play on diamonds. If Righty saved three diamonds, what are Righty's last two cards? If they are are heart and a club, your squeeze is complete and you just have to execute the trim -- play your aces in any order. If Righty has two hearts, you play the ace of clubs to squeeze out one of Righty's hearts, then cash the ace of hearts to trim the last heart. Vice versa if Righty saved two clubs.

Then your endplay is to lead a small diamond from both hands.

Bird suggested a different line of play (which comes to the same ending). First, Righty's hearts can be eliminated by ruffing them out. Then the squeeze-trim-endplay has only clubs as the exit suit.

Second, on the play of the next-to-last trump, Righty will pare down to two clubs. This is a trimmable size -- you can simply lead a club to the ace and ruff a club.

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Squeeze-Trim-Endplay Hands

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