[mikeh]

Scoring: IMP

RHO opens 1♦ and EW is silent thereafter as you bid to 4♠. The opening lead is the ♦2, and RHO covers the 9 with the King. You ruff and...... [advanced+ please hide answers]

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[jocdelevat]

I take out trumps and finnese hearts twice so if all finesse not work I should still have only 3 losers(2 hearts and a trump). The thing I don't know if opps leads club everytime they got the hand then I have problem with no trumps in dummie.

[jdonn]

Very good problem with a theme worth knowing.

Spoiler

The idea is to ruff two clubs, but ruff the first with the spade king. If you ruffed it with the spade ten and east was able to overruff with the queen and return a spade, you would be down when everything doesn't work. You are worried east has a hand like this.

Qx
KQx
AKxxxx
xx

My exact line is ruff diamond, ace of clubs, ace of hearts, club to the king, crossruff while ruffing the first club with the king. This also prevents the club king being ruffed if east has a singleton club.

[vuroth]

Mark me down for 2 club ruffs. My trumps are delicious, and the second club ruff can't be over-ruffed.

V

[jtfanclub]

jdonn, on Dec 17 2007, 02:37 PM, said:

Very good problem with a theme worth knowing.

I never would have thought of those two additional layers of safety.

[Trumpace]

jtfanclub, on Dec 17 2007, 04:37 PM, said:

jdonn, on Dec 17 2007, 02:37 PM, said:

Very good problem with a theme worth knowing.

I never would have thought of those two additional layers of safety.

Actually there is one more tiny layer.

Spoiler

♣
Ruff the second diamond with the A, for instance if W is 3-3-1-6
♣

[mikeh]

Trumpace, on Dec 17 2007, 05:14 PM, said:

jtfanclub, on Dec 17 2007, 04:37 PM, said:

jdonn, on Dec 17 2007, 02:37 PM, said:

Very good problem with a theme worth knowing.

I never would have thought of those two additional layers of safety.

Actually there is one more tiny layer.

Spoiler

♣
Ruff the second diamond with the A, for instance if W is 3-3-1-6
♣

without detracting from the technically correct aspect of your post, I wouldn't play RHO for AKJxxxxx of diamonds and to have opened 1♦ and passed thereafter

[vuroth]

Gah there's always something else to think of.

Plus, finding these things at the table, while still getting in more than 2 hands a night....

[y66]

Like this problem and jdonn’s solution.

For me, part of the difficulty with hands like this one is knowing when to stop analyzing and just pick a reasonable line and play it decisively.

For example, with jdonn’s line, trying to weigh protecting against a singleton club with RHO vs preserving the heart tenace in case RHO does have that hand, puts me in the red zone -- not just at the table either -- then I screw up the straightforward 90% line.

Guess that's what vuroth just said in fewer words.

[dburn]

The trouble is, as I have mentioned elsewhere, that crossing to ♥A might constitute a danger play. If East does have a singleton club, he may have this hand:

♠?
♥KQx
♦AK?
♣x

Then, he will ruff the second club, cash his hearts, and play a diamond. Of course, this enables you to pitch your remaining club loser, cash ♠K, lead ♠10 and... well, if East began with ♠Qxxx you had better finesse, while if he began with ♠xxx you had better play for the drop. The chances are that he started with 3=3=6=1 and not 4=3=5=1, because West with four diamonds, a singleton spade and six clubs might have taken some action in the bidding - but if the 1♦ opening could have been a three-card suit, he might not.

Moreover, if East began with this hand:

♠xx
♥KQxx
♦AKxxxx
♣x

you cannot make the contract by crossing to the ace of hearts and playing a club. East will win and play three rounds of hearts, and you cannot shut out West's ♠Q. Of course, West could have beaten you on that layout by leading his singleton heart, and maybe he would have done. But maybe he would not, and it would be a shame not to make your contract when your team-mate found the singleton lead in the other room.

Suppose East ruffs the king of clubs at trick three. Then you can still make the contract whatever hand he started with, provided you can guess what it is. Since he is somewhat endplayed at this point, your chances of doing this are very good.

The decision is a close one, and I don't claim to have analysed the position exhaustively. I would say only that crossing to the ace of hearts "feels wrong", an evaluation that I realise won't help beginners and intermediate players very much. They might like to consider how they would proceed if after ruffing ♣K, East were to exit with a spade. As a hint, assume that East played a low club on the first round - what does that imply about the location of heart honors, given that East seems to have only ♦AK without the jack and no club honor, yet opened the bidding?

[y66]

Placing D:J and C:QJ with West and D:K with East per play.

Think East also has H:KQ and D:A for opening bid.

If East ruffs CK at trick three and returns a spade, we can make if he started with

xxx or Qxx
KQx
AKxxxx
x

by winning in hand with CJ, ruff club with SK, ruff diamond, spade ace dropping queen. This leaves dummy with --,AJ93,Q10,--; East with --,KQx,Kxx,--; and me with 98,1074,--,9. Now HT loses to HQ and East is endplayed. Making 7 spades, a club and 2 tricks in the red suits (2 hearts or 1 heart and a diamond).

If East started with

xx
KQxx
AKxxxx
x

I can win his spade return in dummy, then SK, ruff diamond, SA dropping queen, then HT and East is endplayed again. Making 6 spades, a club and 3 tricks in the red suits (3 hearts or 2 hearts and a diamond).

Elapsed time: 45 minutes. Don't usually have that much trouble seeing endplays. Too much going on in this hand for me. Great problem though.