[kgr]

Scoring: IMP

3D-3H
3S-4C
4D-4NT
5D-5H
6C-6S
- 3D followed by 3S=GF in S
- 4C: cue (1st or 2nd) / 3NT would be weaker (only 1 control)
- 4NT: RKC
- 5D: 3/0
- 5H: Queen?
- 6C: yes and club K (I don't know why my partner did bid 6C)

---

You overbid (?) by showing a GF in S and have to play 6S now.
LHO leads ♦Q for your Ace. What is the best play from here?
....hidden clue:

Spoiler

If you play trump then LHO will play ♠J on first trump

[Fluffy]

percentage play might be to finese spade, but its close, and you have to also cope with third diamond loser. If you need a diamond discard from clubs you have to give up some options like stiff ♣A or ♣J in return.

IMO best is to ruff a diamond in dummy draw trumps praying, and now play low club to the king, or ♥A + lo club to the queen. Depends on how likelly I feel opponents are to lead a club singleton or unsupported club ace on this bidding.

[kgr]

Would you start with a heart ruff, to shorten your trump in case RHO appears to have Txxx?

[foo]

♠xx ♥Axxx ♦xx ♣KTxxx
+
♠AKQ9xx ♥x ♦AKx ♣Q9x

You are in 6S with these cards and the DQ is led.

Unlike the abstract suit combination of xx+AKQ9xx being discussed in another thread, here you have a concrete situation to deal with.

To make 6S, you have to play ♣'s for 4 tricks (~42% rounded up) and you can't lose any ♠'s (~64% rounded up). (Making this an ~26% contract.)

You want to ruff a ♦ in dummy (you need the trick and the transportation), so your play in ♠'s is forced: you are playing for them to break nicely or for you to use some other technique to force RHO to give you what you need when they hold Txxx.

We have 3S's + 1H + 2D's + D ruff= 7 tricks off the top. We need 5 more.

So,
DA, DK, D ruff

Cx -> closed hand
A= If RHO rises with the A we play small from hand
(planning to play CQ and the CK next time we play C's)
B= if RHO does not rise with the CA, play the CQ, and it holds
(planning to run the C9 next time we play C's)
C= If RHO does not rise with the CA, play the CQ and it is taken by the CA
(planning to run the C9 next time we play C's)

Then run 2 rounds of trumps if either opponent shows out on 2nd or 3 rounds of trumps if both opponents follow to 2 rounds of trumps.

Then finish our plan in ♣'s

There might be a better plan, but that's the best I can come up with in time comparable to being ATT.

[Fluffy]

kgr, on Nov 19 2007, 01:15 AM, said:

Would you start with a heart ruff, to shorten your trump in case RHO appears to have Txxx?

I need ♥A later for either playing club to the queen (catching bare ♣A, ♣AJ at the right) or to back finese if I play low to the King.

So no.

[CSGibson]

Quote

Would you start with a heart ruff, to shorten your trump in case RHO appears to have Txxx?

A lot of things would be necessary for you to make if RHO has 4 trump.

First of all, RHO will have to be 4-3-3-3 or 4-2-3-4 for this to work, and you can basically eliminate 4-2-3-4 unless W has the singleon ace of clubs, because he's likely to lead a singleton club unless it's the ace. Not only that, but to make it work with the entry situation, LHO has to have the jack of clubs and RHO the ace of clubs. Let's follow the play, how it would have to go:

Ace of spades, ace of hearts, heart ruff. AK of diamonds, diamond ruff. if RHO has the ace of clubs, it's right to ruff a heart, play the king of spades to confirm the spade situation, and lead the Q of clubs, followed by a finnesse of the 10 of clubs if the queen holds. Then you can coup RHO. If LHO has the ace of clubs and RHO 4 spades, there is no successful line of play (assuming that you start with the A of trump, which seems reasonable).

[CSGibson]

I guess what I'm trying to say with the analysis is that it is such a low percentage for you to make when playing to coup RHO that I would ignore the possibility, especially since a good LHO holding JTx of trump will falsecard either the J or T on the first lead to place doubt in your mind and lead you to your potential demise.

[lowerline]

♥A, ♥ ruff, ♦K, ♦ ruff, ♥ ruff, ♠AK

If LHO shows out on the 2nd ♠, I need RHO to have ♣Axx...
If trumps break, I have to find ♣J...

-
x
-
KTxx

Q9
-
-
Q9x

Steven

[kgr]

Thanks all for the answers!
On the actual hand RHO had ♠Txxx and LHO had ♣A and the distribution of opps card made it impossible anyway to make the hand. 6♠-1