How many tricks do you need?

Nicole Kidman said, "When you relinquish the desire to control your future, you can have more happiness."

Not at the bridge table. If you can successfully control your future, you will make or break the contract and be happy - as will your partner.

In today's deal, look at the North and East hands. South is in three no-trump. After West leads the club queen, how should East try to stay happy?

North was a trick too strong for his three-diamond rebid, but nothing else was better.

East should stop to consider the alternatives. In no-trump, far more often than not, if third hand wins the first trick, he returns his partner's suit. But if East does that here, how many tricks can declarer cash? At least 10: two hearts, seven diamonds (even if South has a void) and one club.

After taking the first trick with East's club ace, the defenders must find four spade winners immediately. The best chance to do that is for East to lead the spade 10 or queen. With this layout, the defenders do take four spade tricks and defeat the contract.

Note that here, shifting to a low spade at trick two is no good. Declarer just plays low from his hand. The only time it is better to lead the spade two is when West has the spade ace-king-jack-tripleton and thinks of winning the first spade trick with his king, not with the jack.

In this situation, if you need two spade tricks, lead low; if you need three or four tricks, lead high.