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The arithmetic is erroneously thought to be the elementary part of the mathematic, but adding and subtracting isn’t always as easy as 2+2=4; on the contrary, the Numbers Theory – the more exact name of this science – is an universe of unimaginable complexity.
The Lorenzo Lauria’s arithmetic is very simply, instead: cash the winners and do what it’s obviously to be done. Italy Cup 2012, Final Lavazza-Angelini.
The auction:
Dummy
♠K4
♥K972
♦ K10763
♣ J5
Declarer
♠J3
♥AJ4
♦AJ854
♣A82
The ♣4 led by Duboin was won by Sementa’s 9; Lauria ducked the second round of the suit, won by Duboin’s king, and took the third. The plan: there are two tricks in heart and five in diamonds; added the club ace, already cashed, still needs one trick. There are three ways to find it; the spade ace onside, the heart queen finesse, but only toward North, or her falling on ace-king.
It needn’t to decide at once, then Lauria started to run the diamonds, and the ♦Q dropped from South in the second round; this makes definitively necessary to add the spade ace to North, the Overcaller, or he wouldn’t have had the capitals needing for the enterprise to enter the auction after the positive response. Lauria followed to play diamonds, watching for… well, we don’t know what Lauria was watching for, while running diamonds, just it’s sure he didn’t watch opponent’s discards: he needed not.
After the last diamond, the hand’s eight trick, North’s remnants must contain two winning club and the spade ace; so he cannot now have more than two hearts, whatsoever he had discarded, thus the finesse is useless: if he had the queen, it would drop; if he hadn’t, it would drop from South or nothing would save the contract.
The complete hand:
***
Paolo Enrico Garrisi
December 16, 2012