[Kaapo]

You declare 3NT. Scoring is IMPs:

Scoring: IMP

South North
1NT 3NT

---

West leads the ♦3 (4th best), which you let ride to your hand (East plays the 5). Next you play ♦Q, which is won by West, East discarding a spade. West doesn't help you with your ninth trick, but continues diamonds instead. You take the marked finesse against ♦J. These cards are left:

Scoring: IMP

South North
1NT 3NT

---

You've won 2 tricks. How do you play the rest?

[cherdano]

Lol, I looked at this one for a moment, then thought "Heh this should be a B/I problem", the realized it was
Nice problem.

[vuroth]

The dangerous opponent is EAST.

Both majors are finessable either way, so I'll be leading towards my hand for both finesses.

I doubt west has 4 hearts, as I generally prefer (rightly or wrongly) to lead from a 4 card major than a 4 card minor on this auction.

So cash the last diamond. KH, H to the 9. If it loses, west must return a heart to avoid giving me the 9th trick, IF HE CAN. Win the T, KS, low to the T. Now, he has to return a spade (or a heart, if I was wrong and he had 4) to avoid giving me the 9th trick. Now I win the jack and finesse the king of clubs.

V

[Trumpace]

vuroth, on Jan 9 2008, 03:41 PM, said:

The dangerous opponent is EAST.

Both majors are finessable either way, so I'll be leading towards my hand for both finesses.

I doubt west has 4 hearts, as I generally prefer (rightly or wrongly) to lead from a 4 card major than a 4 card minor on this auction. 

So cash the last diamond.  KH, H to the 9.  If it loses, west must return a heart to avoid giving me the 9th trick, IF HE CAN.  Win the T, KS, low to the T.  Now, he has to return a spade (or a heart, if I was wrong and he had 4) to avoid giving me the 9th trick.  Now I win the jack and finesse the king of clubs.

V

You are on the right track. Can you think of a way of

Spoiler

♣ completely avoiding the spade or club finesse? ♣

[jtfanclub]

This is at least 95%....

Spoiler

Take the last diamond. Heart to the ace, small heart to the king, now finesse the heart. If RHO shows out on the third heart, then take the queen and lead the nine, sluffing a club from dummy.

Whether it's queen or another or the failed finesse, LHO will have only black suits left, and have to give you your 9th trick. Fails only when RHO has a singleton heart.

If LHO started with 4 diamonds and 5 hearts, hmmm. I can't do it then...if I throw him in with a heart, I squeeze myself. It gets tricky- there's an odd looking squeeze on RHO, but I'm not sure if I can get it to work.

[rogerclee]

Nice problem. I think these sorts of plays (which get pretty darned complicated, as in Reese's Master Play) are particularly elegant.

[Echognome]

jtfanclub, on Jan 9 2008, 01:00 PM, said:

This is at least 95%....

Right. And given the auction and lead, it's 95% + 5%.

NB: I agree with your line thereafter.

[Kaapo]

This hand really took place on BBO. Unfortunately most declarers received a ♣ lead from ♠Q♥J753♦AJ43♣AQJ8, after which it was a different story.

[karaprens]

♦10->♦K
♥Ace->♥10
♥K->♥6
♥2->♥9
if east can win this hes endplayed.
if not its the 9th trick

[jtfanclub]

karaprens, on Jan 10 2008, 11:24 AM, said:

♦10->♦K
♥Ace->♥10
♥K->♥6
♥2->♥9
if east can win this hes endplayed.
if not its the 9th trick

What if West shows out on the third heart?

[FrancesHinden]

jtfanclub, on Jan 10 2008, 06:05 PM, said:

karaprens, on Jan 10 2008, 11:24 AM, said:

♦10->♦K
♥Ace->♥10
♥K->♥6
♥2->♥9
if east can win this hes endplayed.
if not its the 9th trick

What if West shows out on the third heart?

There are some easts and wests confused in these posts, but the general idea is correct.

After playing 4 rounds of diamonds, you continue with the ace of hearts (unblocking the 10), a heart to the king in dummy and a third heart towards the Q9 in hand.

- If East follows, you finesse the 9. Either this holds (9 tricks) or West started with Jxx and is endplayed to give you the king of clubs or the spade finesse.

- If East discards on the third heart you win the queen and exit with the 9 which endplays West in the same way.