[Helmer]

Scoring: IMP

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Dummy opened 1 ♥
Declarer 1 ♠

Dummy 2 ♠
Declarer 4 ♠

What would your lead be, imagine its not a poll, but what your usually leading in a case like this?

Thanks

[ralph23]

4th best ♣.

Going for ruffs seems wrong as I probably have a natural trump trick anyhow.

I hope to get a trick with my ♦ as declarer will probably finesse for the Queen and, knowing that I have the trump length and suspecting I have ♣ length, he'll be more likely to play partner for diamond length. I can easily give the ♦ away by leading one so I'll refrain from that.

[mikeh]

♣6

Seems clear to me. Doesn't mean it always works.

Leading a trump looks wrong: while it may cut down on a crossruff, my stiff ♥ suggests that there isn't going to be one.

Leading a stiff ♥ is unlikely to work, and (when it does), I may have time for it later.

A diamond is needlessly aggressive, but would be my second choice.

A club is what's left... but that doesn't mean I'm unhappy with it, choosing it as the least of evils. Seems like a normal lead to me.

[jtfanclub]

I like leading dummy's suit.

I like that it's a jack.

I like that, with 6 hcp and no controls, partner's probably sitting on a 10 count or so.

And I like leading singletons in this situation, even if I don't expect (or want) a ruff. I like partner's chances of having length and strength in hearts. Dummy should be short in one minor, and I don't want to give the opponents a free finesse in it.

I lead a heart.

[FrancesHinden]

I think it's very close between a diamond and a club.
A diamond may in fact be needfully aggressive, it depends on dummy's heart holding.

I can't see the point in leading a heart, other than in some pretty obscure layouts.

[cherdano]

jtfanclub, on Aug 8 2007, 09:55 AM, said:

I like leading dummy's suit.

I hate leading dummy's suit (especially when it is a 5-card suit).

[skjaeran]

1st choice: ♣6
2nd choice: ♦4
3rd choice: ♥J
No choice: a trump

[ArtK78]

♥J.

1) Unlikely to give up a trick (may give up a tempo).
2) I don't think I need a ruff, but I might need 2 or 3 (with the last one being an uppercut, perhaps).
3) More likely to be partner's best suit than clubs or diamonds.
4) Leading either minor suit here is a shot in the dark.

I know that one of the points the Granovetters make in their daily column is to lead a singleton whenever there is a reasonable chance that it may accomplish something good. There is certainly at least a reasonable chance that leading the ♥J on this hand will be good.

[pclayton]

Club. Even though its probably a 4-4 spade fit, it could be 5-3 or even 4-3.

There's plenty of hope we can establish the tap.

[lordorange]

I'm in the ♥J lead camp.

The lead cuts communication between opps. LHO likely to be with max 4 in minors. RHO could be 5-2 in the majors on the bidding. Declarer bid 4♠ confidently so partner will have 6/8 hcp.

In defense:

Whether or not partner can take the first trick, he'll signal where his entry is and what suit to lead next.

If partner holds ♥K in five (ducking the 1st trick if Ace is not in dummy), declarer probably starts on trumps after taking the Ace in dummy and he'll have a bit of a surprise, partner possibly void, you holding four. On a ♠ lead then, you can take the trick and play the suit partner asked for. He'll cash his ♥K and a you'll have an uppercut with the 9 when he returns a ♥. Declarer can also play on the minors but have to open the suit and may hit your partner's entry. A clear way to a killing defense if it works.

Somehow I don't see the same thing happening when you lead a ♣. If declarer holds ATx(x) and the KQ are divided, you've given a trick away that declarer usually doesn't get. Dummy is short and you may have given declarer the chance to eliminate the suit and a possible ♦ discard. He could also ruff C's in W playing the hand for one loser in ♠and two in ♦. In case N has ♣A, he'll not have a ♦ top and I'd be rather worried as defender that I've been too slow.



.

[zende_ru]

♣ 6 is the best I think

[EricK]

A club looked fairly clear to me. Which is strange, because I hate leading from suits headed by a J!

[jdonn]

I hate the heart lead since it creates a blueprint, declarer will think it's a singleton so guess the trumps and the whole hand in general right. Anything could work on a given layout but a club seems the obvious choice.

[cherdano]

The heart lead really isn't a serious option in my opinion. In addition to what Josh said, it only works when we can get partner in in time and we are not ruffing one of his natural heart tricks and declarer can't just pitch minor suit losers on partner's heart plays and we are not ruffing with a natural trump trick. Against that, it will so often give declarer a tempo in setting up the heart suit, or remove a guess there.

[mike777]

1) club over Diamond
2) with longish trumps lead longest unbid side suit of the opp?
3) if unbid suit, vs suit contract, try 100% to never lead from a queen(Michael Rosenberg rule?)

[jdonn]

Jlall, on Aug 12 2007, 04:14 PM, said:

Why is a club clear over a diamond? I agree that a heart is not very good but I have seen no arguments for a club over a diamond.

I choose a club over a diamond since I don't want to be very aggressive with trumps not breaking, and on the general principle of leading my longest suit with 4 trumps though I admit a tap isn't likely with such bad clubs.

[SoTired]

never a heart. A heart is a poor lead. I don't know how many times I have played with poor players that can't forget "lead thru strength". I want to scream at them:

WHY CAN'T YOU LEAD ONE OF OUR SUITS ONCE IN A WHILE. WHY DO YOU ALWAYS WANT TO LEAD THEIR SUITS.

I like a club over a diam because that may start a forcing problem for declarer. With 4 trump, declarer may get into trump trouble. (Although I remember that someone once said there was a special hell for those that lead away from J9x, but this is J9xxx).

My mother scared me out of leading away from queens. She said that if you lead away from a king, you still may have a chance to score it, but if you lead away from a queen, you have probably lost it.

[jtfanclub]

cherdano, on Aug 12 2007, 04:16 PM, said:

In addition to what Josh said, it only works when we can get partner in in time and we are not ruffing one of his natural heart tricks and declarer can't just pitch minor suit losers on partner's heart plays and we are not ruffing with a natural trump trick.

Arrrgh.

Can you at least accept that those of us leading a heart aren't trying to get a ruff?

I'm not worried about tempo. I'm worried about breaking suits. I don't get why everybody's talking about tapping. Dummy has the majors. Every minor suit card he trumps on the board is one less trump...he wastes pulling mine. I just don't see this as a good tapping situation.

What are you hoping dummy has? Suppose LHO has....

♠J732
♥AQ965
♦AJ2
♣2


and he let you peek before you led. Would you say 'I'm going to lead a club so I can tap dummy"?

We bad players look at our hands, and decide if the hand calls for a passive or agressive lead. I look at this hand, and I see...

1. LHO bid hearts, RHO did not support, and I have shortness. That implies that the heart length is over length.
2. I have minor honors in both minors. I actually have tenaces in both of them to boot, which are likely to be over the length.
3. I can see that trumps are splitting badly.

To me, all three of those call for a passive lead. The club lead is agressive, as others who've made that lead have pointed out. A diamond lead seems even more agressive. Normally, my passive lead would be a spade, but it seems like there's too many holdings where that gives up a trick. That leaves hearts. Since I doubt that he's going to be leading hearts towards his hand, the heart lead shouldn't cost a trick (unless it reveals too much). I'm perfectly happy 'giving up tempo' on a hand like this one. I'm a lot more worried about setting up his hand for him.

Leading the jack of hearts may reveal too much to good opponents. Maybe if we don't get our clubs now we never get them, so we need to cash our minor suit winners quick.

But can somebody tell me why this auction and hand calls for an aggressive lead?

[mike777]

"But can somebody tell me why this auction and hand calls for an aggressive lead? "


I assume 95%+ contracts call for an aggressive lead. See no reason why this hand is the rare exception?