[hrothgar]

The following hand cropped up this afternoon

White versus Red
IMPs

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The bidding was as follows

(P) - 2♠ - (3N) - All pass

Whats your opening lead and why?
If it matters, your the weakest player at the table and don't want to look any dumber than usual :-)

[kenrexford]

The diamond Ace. I expect 3NT to be based upon a running club suit, a spade control, and the Ace of hearts. I lead the diamond Ace because our best hope is to run diamonds first.

The diamond Ace works when Declarer has the stiff King, or when partner has the stiff King and diamonds are 3-3, or when partner has Kx(x) and no one has a fourth diamond. Small works against Kx from partner only, and only when diamonds are 6-1-2-4 or 6-4-2-1.

Finally, there is a remote possibility that partner has AJx, or a weird Axxx, and I can recouperate on that 0.00000001% of hands.

[Free]

I lead a ♥. I don't want to give declarer his 9th trick, which could well be ♦K. He won't have tons of ♥s so chances are that partner has 'something'.

[P_Marlowe]

Hi,

spade, partners suit.

If it is right, ... fine, if it is wrong,
... well they wont kill me in the post
mortem, they would not have expected,
that I find creative leads.

Any other lead is highly creative /
speculative, it may impress, but ...

With kind regards
Marlowe

[mikeh]

small ♦: very close between small ♦ and ♦A: no other suit/card makes any sense.

While partner should unblock the K under the A if he holds Kx, the slight chance that he won't combined with the fear that dummy holds 4 ♦ persuades me towards the small rather than playing for a stiff K and 3-3 elsewhere.

[paulg]

mikeh, on Aug 14 2006, 04:20 PM, said:

small ♦: very close between small ♦ and ♦A: no other suit/card makes any sense.

I'd lead a small diamond too, although can see some reasons for leading a spade and a heart.

Paul

[Codo]

the golden rule is to lead partners suit. Always, no excuse.
But no rule without exceptions and this hand is one. RHO smells like running clubs, a trick elsewhere and at least one stopper. I belive my nose and lead the ace of diamond. There is no way, that a sane pd will miss to unblock his king.
If the king does not appear I will lead a heart, hoping to take my tricks there.

If I was wrong and gifted him two tricks... bad luck..

[Gpm_bg]

i would lead Q♦ and to wait to win in any configuration 3-2-2 in any neither partner and opps.

Jump 3nt show or single control with long suit or balance strong card with 1-2 controls in ♠.
2♠ strong and distribution depends of vulnarability of both pairs, but i will choose Q♦

[pclayton]

So many times I've given up #9 with a diamond lead.

Yet, how are we going to untangle 5 tricks if I lead a spade or a heart?

Low ♦.

[mikeh]

Gpm_bg, on Aug 14 2006, 04:26 PM, said:

i would lead Q♦ and to wait to win in any configuration 3-2-2 in any neither partner and opps.

Jump 3nt show or single control with long suit or balance strong card with 1-2 controls in ♠.
2♠ strong and distribution depends of vulnarability of both pairs, but i will choose Q♦

The Q is the 'book' lead, in that if you look up this suit in a book about opening leads, I am sure that you will see that the Q is the lead given.

However, all such books by necessity deal in 'normal', common situations. There is simply insufficient space in which to go into rare hand issues, and most of these books are aimed at relatively inexperienced players, looking to learn tools that will get the job done adequately most of the time.

You cross the threshold from being someone who plays bridge to being a bridge player when you learn that 'books' represent the 'norm', and that that 'norm' is the result of applied logic. You can then take that logic and apply it yourself to novel situations such as the one we have here. If you do that, you will realize that the book lead is wrong: it simply fails to work as well as either the A or the low ♦.

Firstly, consider your post: you lead the Q, intending to run the suit on any 322 break.

The auction tells you that you are NOT getting in with the ♥K: 100 to 1 RHO is running a bunch of ♣s and obviously has some stuff in ♠...if he is wide open in ♦ after trick one, he is not going after ♥ for his 9th trick!

And on any hand on which partner has the early entry, the low ♦ is just as effective as the Q. At best, on your hoped-for split, declarer will have Kx left when partner skewers him with a second round of ♦.

In the meantime, the Q could lose in several ways.

Partner or declarer could hold the stiff K.. now, if the suit is 3-3, you wish you'd led the A.

Partner could hold Kx and one of the opps 4 cards in the suit, such that if partner overtakes the Q and returns a ♦, the suit is blocked.... you wish you'd led the small.

While the chances of the Q working badly are not huge, there is virtually NO upside consistent with the auction, and there is some downside. I personally think that the best leads are 1) a low ♦, 2) the ♦A and a distant 3) a ♠ (in the hope that partner has A♠ and 10x♦, stiff 9♦ or xx (both these last two require declarer to hold k10 tight) and switches to ♦. The ♦Q is an even more distant 4th choice.

[whereagles]

I'd like to know whether 3NT was based on a running minor or 19-22 hcp. If minor-based, I might try the ♦A. If balanced, probably the ♦Q. Small will make me look dumb if opener has KTx and you said I didn't want to look dumb

[hrothgar]

mikeh, on Aug 15 2006, 02:53 AM, said:

The Q is the 'book' lead, in that if you look up this suit in a book about opening leads, I am sure that you will see that the Q is the lead given.

Thanks for taking the time to post Mike...

For anyone who cares, here are the complete hands
(I lead the Queen of Diamonds, which worked "fine", however, I was interested in seeing what other folks recommended)

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[akhare]

I am late to the party, but Q♦ looks like a text book lead. The question of course is what do you do next if it goes Q♦, small, small, small (w/ dummy having 2 small and no obvious switch in sight).

Does declarer have KT9X and is trying to pull off a mini-Bath coup of sorts? I think any considerate partner would overtake w/ KXX and it's safe to rule that out.

Edit: Remind me to not reply before rushing off to work . If the above situation arises, you can simply cash in AD and hold declarer to one ♦ trick.

[Gpm_bg]

Q♦ prevent from K10x in dummy making two !d even partner and declarer are with 2 cards, and moslty if partner is singleton ♦, you both will make connect in ♥ probably.
At closed cards if Q!d win, you can pull A♦ and play J♦ which may discard for values in ♥

with already shown distrubution, i don't see why my Q♦ lead that i mention up is not logical ? sometimes book help , which doesn't mean that i don't like to support partner, but following 2♠ 3nt and this RHO is not drunk, u should risk with Q

[Codo]

hrothgar, on Aug 15 2006, 11:39 PM, said:

mikeh, on Aug 15 2006, 02:53 AM, said:

The Q is the 'book' lead, in that if you look up this suit in a book about opening leads, I am sure that you will see that the Q is the lead given.

Thanks for taking the time to post Mike...

For anyone who cares, here are the complete hands
(I lead the Queen of Diamonds, which worked "fine", however, I was interested in seeing what other folks recommended)

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maybe I am missing something, but any legal lead had won and esp. a low diamond had been as effective as the queen...

[hrothgar]

Codo, on Aug 16 2006, 04:11 PM, said:

maybe I am missing something, but any legal lead had won and esp. a low diamond had been as effective as the queen...

I wasn't posting the hand because my lead didn't work, rather, I was hoping to generate a discussion about the correct line...