[lamford]

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IMPs converted to VPs over an eight-board match. Lead ♣K

You are crowded a bit by the auction here and bid a practical 6H on the second round. How do you play on the lead of a top club from West?

[gszes]

I need my 2 entries to help me two ways 1. take a dia finesse and 2. take a trump finesse if a heart honor drops from lho on the play of a top heart OR in the tiny chance east has all 4 hearts.

Trick 1 win club A and pitch a dia
Trick 2 dia finesse (paying off if west has (Kxxx or Kxxxx) or east has Kxxxx)
Trick 3 plunk down heart A and see whats going on

Q OR J fall from west
Trick 4 spade to K
Trick 5 heart to T Aside from open spaces I am hoping for Lho to hold 2+ spades (no spade lead) 1 H 3d (hoping for Kx* in east if my heart play is wrong) 7C.
if this wins making 6 or 7. If this loses hoping for Kx* in east to make 6.

Small from west
Trick 4 Heart K hoping for 22 split making 6 or 7 OR if trumps 31 need east to hold Kx* in diamonds

west shows out (I am REALLY glad I took that dia finesse early)
trick 4 spade to K
trick 5 heart toward T this lets me pick up trumps for 1 loser though I still need rho to have begun with Kx* in dia.

* sigh with no dia lead if the T or 9 of diamonds falls from west at trick 2 the lack of a dia lead will probably get me to play lho for T9 of diamonds. The only real change will be playing the dia J after going to the spade K pretty much no matter how the play goes.

[Cyberyeti]

YOu also if you have to lose a trump have chances if E has something like QJx, QJx, K10x, xxxx where he ends up getting squeezed in the pointies if you haven't expended ♠K, this is why I might consider playing hearts from the top anyway.

[mikeh]

This is an interesting hand.

We can infer, with some confidence, that clubs are 6=4, since west passed originally.

I win in dummy, pitching a diamond. I cross to hand in hearts. Now the lines split.

If both follow low, I play the other top heart.

If both follow, I’m cold.

If west shows out on the second trump, I give east his trump trick.I now need the diamond hook, which means east has to play a black card. I win in hand and run the hearts.

I have to commit to east’s shape when I play my last trump.

If he has Kx in diamonds, I can’t pitch down to K9x void Jx void, in the 5 card ending, since west, unless he’s blundered (which I will have seen) can stop the diamonds even with his weakest possible holding of 9xx.

I don’t think east would bid 5C with QJxx QJx Kx xxxx or QJx QJx Kxx xxxx. Why would he think we have slam? He’s pretty much sure of going 500 when we might fail in game or 800 when games the limit. Anyway, most opps will tell me something on the run of the hearts. But I’m probably going to give up on the squeeze and play east for Kx in diamonds

If west plays an honour on the first heart, I’ll take the restricted choice against most west’s. Against a great player, I won’t

Why not? Because a good player will play an honour from QJx!

Note that this dooms us, if we use our dummy entry to take the heart hook.

In fact, I hope west has three hearts, since now the squeeze against east works when west is 2=3=2=6 and also on 3=3=1=6 if his spades are xxx.

I’d still prefer hearts 2=2😀

[lamford]

A strong US friend thought that the right line was to ruff in hand and lay down the ace of hearts. Now if the queen or jack does fall on your left, it is less likely to be a false-card from QJx because of the danger of stiff king opposite and I think you cross in spades and finesse the heart. If the jack falls on your right, then you could try the Butland Coup of leading the ten, when West with Qxx will have a nasty guess. The last two times David Burn tried this, East had QJ doubleton!

Winning the first trick in dummy and taking the diamond finesse risks a diamond ruff, and I think is inferior.

If nothing happens on the first round of hearts, then you play two more rounds, and have to guess the ending as mikeh says.

[mikeh]

If the Jack falls on our right and we lead the 10, what kind of player, as west, would think that we jumped to 6H with A109xxx, with no raise?

Not only is that silly, since an opp might hold KQJ, but it hides a side 4 card suit in an auction in which we have a good chance of finding a fit,

Say we held Axx A109xxx AKxx and dummy were KJxx xx QJxxx xx

6H has no play but 6D is pretty good😃

There are auctions where a defender might plausibly consider a duck from Qxx, but this isn’t one of them (IMO)

[lamford]

 mikeh, on 2020-December-07, 16:46, said:

If the Jack falls on our right and we lead the 10, what kind of player, as west, would think that we jumped to 6H with A109xxx, with no raise?

Not only is that silly, since an opp might hold KQJ, but it hides a side 4 card suit in an auction in which we have a good chance of finding a fit,

Say we held Axx A109xxx AKxx and dummy were KJxx xx QJxxx xx

6H has no play but 6D is pretty good��

There are auctions where a defender might plausibly consider a duck from Qxx, but this isn’t one of them (IMO)

I did say "could try". With AQx AT9xxx AKQx none, which you are pretending you have, one SHOULD bid something like 5NT - pick a slam, but the auction is crowded. Note that you are only giving up QJ doubleton on your right, and not losing when there is Qxx on your left as you can still play your line.

I do think winning in hand and laying down the AH is the right start, however. Of course, someone should false-card with QJx over you still, but here the risk of AT9 to SEVEN is much greater (say AQx AT9xxxx AKQ none).

[nige1]

Lamford: IMPs converted to VPs over an eight-board match. Lead ♣K You are crowded a bit by the auction here and bid a practical 6H on the second round. How do you play on the lead of a top club from West?
++++++++++++++++++
MikeH: If west plays an honour on the first heart, I'll take the restricted choice against most west's. Against a great player, I won't.
.+++++++++++++++++
Nige1: Yes A good LHO defender could play an honour whenever he holds 1-3 ♥s (i.e.from QJx tripleton Quack doubleton and Quack singleton).

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[lamford]

 nige1, on 2020-December-08, 08:28, said:

Lamford: IMPs converted to VPs over an eight-board match. Lead ♣K You are crowded a bit by the auction here and bid a practical 6H on the second round. How do you play on the lead of a top club from West?
++++++++++++++++++
MikeH: If west plays an honour on the first heart, I'll take the restricted choice against most west's. Against a great player, I won't.
.+++++++++++++++++
Nige1: Yes A good LHO defender could play an honour whenever he holds 1-3 ♥s (i.e.from QJx tripleton Quack doubleton and Quack singleton).

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With Qx there is no gain in playing the queen (other than possibly saving the overtrick). There is an obvious loss when declarer has AJT9xxxx if he leads the ace from hand. But then declarer would (probably) have led from dummy on this hand.

[nige1]

 lamford, on 2020-December-08, 08:33, said:

With Qx there is no gain in playing the queen (other than possibly saving the overtrick). There is an obvious loss when declarer has AJT9xxxx if he leads the ace from hand. But then declarer would (probably) have led from dummy on this hand.

If declarer uses his remaining dummy-entry to finesse ♥, there might be a gain

[lamford]

 nige1, on 2020-December-08, 16:57, said:

If declarer uses his remaining dummy-entry to finesse ♥, there might be a gain

Indeed, but then the hearts are 2-2 so the contract is making even if the play stops declarer picking up the diamond, as here.