[fred]

Just because its the Relaxed Bridge Club doesn't mean you can afford to relax when you are on play in a slam that appears to be cold...

Scoring: IMP

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Lead: King of hearts

How do you play?

Fred Gitelman
Bridge Base Inc.
www.bridgebase.com

[ArtK78]

What is the contract? 6♣ or 6NT?

[smiffy]

Assuming the contract is 6 of clubs, one propably wants to dump the spade losers on the hearts. The problem here seems to be that defenders can prevent this by holding back the queen for one round, thus killing the transportation once hearts are not 3-3.
The only way i can imagine to still make, is to take the Ace of hearts in the first round, play two rounds of diamonds, dumping a hearts and duck a round of spades (playing the ten). When on lead again play Ace of spades, then cross-ruff with spades, diamonds, spades and hearts, ending in hand. Draw trumps and make. I hope. I very much hope.
No clue otherwise.

I see no way of making 6NT.

Edit: Fixed an error
Edit: Forget that about ruffing the spades. It was rather wishful thinking. To reduce the chances of getting overruffed on the fourth round i might draw a round of trumps, but i don't think that'll do.

@ Free: I guess this would be some sort of a standard line. I'm quite at odds though...

[Free]

If they hold off the ♥Q, you can switch to ♠. All you need is ♠K in W, or ♠KJ in E.

[gnasher]

Win the ace, playing the jack. Draw two trumps. If they break, play another heart and claim unless West has led a singleton (or Kx if dummy's clubs are all smaller than my smallest).

If trumps are 3-1, play another heart. If West started with KQxx, he has to duck; now pitch a spade on a diamond and:
- If East had three trumps, play a spade to the 10.
- If West had three trumps, cross to hand with a heart ruff and play a spade to the queen.
The idea is to keep the hand with the third trump off lead.

This also works if West has ♥KQxxx and three clubs. I can't see a good way to cope with West's ♥KQxxx when trumps are 1=3.

I would have gone off at the table too.

[fred]

ArtK78, on Sep 28 2008, 01:29 AM, said:

What is the contract? 6♣ or 6NT?

Sorry I left this detail out

The other posters are correct that the contract was 6C.

Fred Gitelman
Bridge Base Inc.
www.bridgebase.com

[fred]

gnasher, on Sep 28 2008, 09:14 AM, said:

Win the ace, playing the jack.  Draw two trumps.  If they break, play another heart and claim unless West has led a singleton (or Kx if dummy's clubs are all smaller than my smallest).

If trumps are 3-1, play another heart.  If West started with KQxx, he has to duck; now pitch a spade on a diamond and:
- If East had three trumps, play a spade to the 10.
- If West had three trumps, cross to hand with a heart ruff and play a spade to the queen.
The idea is to keep the hand with the third trump off lead.

This also works if West has ♥KQxxx and three clubs.  I can't see a good way to cope with West's ♥KQxxx when trumps are 1=3.

Good answer!

You found what I think is the key (but not obvious) play of dropping the Jack of hearts at trick 1.

The way you continue once you learn trumps are 3-1 is interesting and I had not previously thought much about this.

I haven't done the math (and I am not going to do so - sorry!) but assuming I have read your line of play correctly, it feels to me like your avoidance play is clearly inferior to the following less interesting line:

Draw the third round of trump before playing a heart. Assume LHO ducks and you win the trick in dummy. Now ruff a heart. If hearts are 3-3 you can claim. If hearts are not 3-3 play a spade toward the Queen and, if necessary, play a spade to the 10 later.

This line does better than yours when:

- LHO has 5 hearts and RHO has 3 clubs. You are down for sure on this layout because LHO can duck the 2nd round of hearts leaving RHO to ruff. Then there is no way to avoid a spade loser. Meanwhile, the line I suggest will succeed against 5-1 hearts if either spade finesse is right.

- All layouts in which hearts are 3-3 (or when LHO has KQ doubleton of hearts) and LHO has 3 trumps. I claim on these layouts, but you are down for sure - the defense can win the second round of hearts and kill dummy by playing a diamond. You might also be down if RHO has 3 trumps - depends on whether dummy's biggest x in clubs in higher or lower than your lowest x

- Layouts in which hearts are 4-2, one of the spade finesse works, and your avoidance play fails (because even though you avoid losing a spade trick to the hand with the 3rd trump, you are still down when spades are 5-2 and the player with 2 spades has 3 clubs).

- Some other obscure cases that involve things like 6-1 spades or 7-2 diamonds

Your line gains over mine on some layouts as well, but unless I am missing something big (entirely possible) I strongly doubt whether these gains are enough to make up for the losses illustrated above.

Quote

I would have gone off at the table too.

Nice of you to say, but despite misplaying the hand I did make 6C at the table and you would have too

Fred Gitelman
Bridge Base Inc.
www.bridgebase.com