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Few declarers made twelve tricks in a 4H contract on Board 18. Needless to say, there were none in 6H which can be made, if you have the help of Deep Finesse.
Board 18 from Wednesday 17/01/24
Dealer E NS Vul

	KQ862 AK6 A432 T
AJ753 T2 QJ6 A72		T94 J53 T95 9843
	Q9874 K87 KQJ65

Normal Blackwood 4NT or even Gerber (4C) will work well enough in most situations but there will be times when the RKC asking bid is crucial to being able to find the best final contract, which of course will nearly always be a slam, though sometimes it may be a five level contract when you find that a slam is unlikely or even impossible.

Before we start reviewing ‘double dummy’ problems from play in 2024, I would like to take another look at an interesting deal that I have reviewed some time ago, because it features one of my pet ‘likes’, the opening lead of an ace from specifically AQx against a No Trump contract.

Dealer N Nil Vul

	765 742 743 AKT7
983 AQ85 AQ6 864		KJ4 T93 KT852 J2
	AQT2 KJ6 J9 Q953

Heart in Mouth Stuff:
This one might possibly have been bid to 6H but never was. It might have made 6H but almost never was, in fact only three Souths made six on the obvious queen of diamonds lead. That is a good double dummy exercise in itself, how to make six the obvious and only sensible way, or how to make 6H the more risky Deep Finesse way. And finally we will have the real double dummy problem that would never occur in play, or in fact going to be executed by any declarer unless he was Deep Finesse or was clairvoyant or maybe obsessed with finessing everything that can be finessed!

Board 15 From Friday 8/12/23
Dealer S NS Vul

	642 KQ8 K632 J86
73 J6 QJT987 543		KJ95 973 A5 T972
	AQT8 AT542 4 AKQ

Double Dummy Fun - Deep Finesse at its best

From Monday 20/11/23 at X-Clubs
Board 6 Dealer E EW Vul

	K765 Q QJT9873 J
Q43 KJ965 62 AK8		T982 874 K8 9763
	AJ AT32 A4 QT542

This was the bidding at most tables:

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

You are WEST. You have “Deep Finesse” as your partner sitting East. How will you defend, from the opening lead right through to the end?