The Silliest Result of The Year!

South's diamond suit on today's hand is one for the record books.  This result from the recent Sunday Pairs is equally outrageous.

South's 2♠ bid was 4th-Suit-Forcing, to create a game-going situation.  His follow-up of 4NT was Key-Card Blackwood.  North dutifully showed three key cards including, by agreement, the king in the last-bid suit.  Having forgotten that factor of his own system, south envisioned three aces in partner's hand.  North's 6♣ bid admitted to possession of the club king.  Being able to count thirteen tricks, yet also forgetting that his partner might well be void in diamonds, south tried for the wrong grand slam.

East could hardly be blamed for doubling with an ace in her hand.  But which one?  Now, it was time for west to suffer brain-fade.  Failing to appreciate that her partner had eschewed two opportunities to make a lead-directing double of a club bid, she recalled only an old lesson regarding the Lightner Double, which generally calls for the lead of dummy's first-bid suit.

So concluding, she placed the ♣2 upon the table.  After a period of lamentation regarding his own idiocy and the adequacy of the contract, declarer accepted the only realistic option available.  He called for a low club from dummy, winning the trick with the ♣9!

Unable to resist the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, South cashed the ♦6 at trick two!  Then he promptly claimed the remainder, for +1790 points.

Most of the field found the best contract of 6♦.  One timid pair stopped short of slam, and another went down a ton in 6NT.  In the final analysis, thirteen tricks were available in diamonds without a heart lead — via either a club finesse or a black-suit squeeze against west.

It's going to be difficult to top this one at Dante's Infernal, but I am confident that someone will try!