[Apollo81]

All white, MPs

(2♥)-p-(p)-2♠
(p)-4♠-all pass

♠10953
♥K753
♦K3
♣AKJ

♠AQJ84
♥Q84
♦974
♣32

The lead is the ♣9. You ask their carding and they say "standard signals, lead of the 9 shows 0 or 2 higher"

[Free]

Ace wtp? you can finesse later on if necessary...

[Apollo81]

Free, on Sep 7 2007, 11:08 AM, said:

Ace wtp? you can finesse later on if necessary...

The problem obviously isn't "what do I play on this trick"

Plan the play.

[skjaeran]

I'll win the ♣A and run the ♠T. Assuming this wins the trick and west follow suit I repeat the finesse and draw the last trump if it's 3-1. Then I lead a ♥ to the king (west is forced to duck) followed by the ♣K and ♣J. If (when) east puts in the queen I discard a ♥, endplaying him.

[Fluffy]

skaeran, on Sep 7 2007, 03:27 PM, said:

I'll win the ♣A and run the ♠T. Assuming this wins the trick and west follow suit I repeat the finesse and draw the last trump if it's 3-1. Then I lead a ♥ to the king (west is forced to duck) followed by the ♣K and ♣J. If (when) east puts in the queen I discard a ♥, endplaying him.

If you have only 1 trump in dummy left and you have to ruff a diamond there is no endplay I think.

I would try the same, but if trumps are 3-1 try ♣ to the ♣J just in case.

[Apollo81]

The line stated so far succeeds when trumps are 2-2 and RHO holds the ♣Q or when trumps are 3-1 and LHO holds the ♣Q. I think this is the right line.

Now, assume that LHO has flashed you the ♣Q. Re-plan the play.

[awm]

If you know LHO has the ♣Q:

Win the club jack at trick one. Take the spade finesse and pull trumps. Lead a heart up to the king, LHO must duck. Cash the top clubs discarding a diamond from hand, and exit a diamond. After cashing two diamonds, either RHO is on lead and must concede a ruff and discard (pitch a heart from hand) or LHO is on lead and must either concede a ruff and discard or lead away from the heart ace into your queen.

Of course, this still fails if the spade finesse is off but there is probably not much to be done in that case.

[gwnn]

Can I call the TD if RHO has the ♣Q? I remember a short story entitled "Sherlock Holmes and the Case of the Knotted Cravat" where some of this flashing was done purposefully and deviously. I don't understand which circumstances would allow me to know for sure where a card is. Of course it might be an interesting theoretical problem, but not really a realistic one.

[Apollo81]

LHO has

---
AJ10xx
8xx
Q109xx


There is actually a line to make this hand:

Win ♣A
Spade finesse ending in hand.
heart to King
diamond

You will lose two diamonds and a heart, or one diamond, one heart, and a trump if LHO wins hA when you lead a heart

You can't make if you run the ♠10, lol

[Fluffy]

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