ArtK78, on May 1 2009, 07:44 AM, said:
Win trick one and ruff a heart. Cross in spades and ruff a second heart. If all follow, pull trump (they must break or you cannot make) and claim. If someone shows out on the third round of hearts but does not ruff in, cross in trump and ruff a third heart. Cross to hand in diamonds and pull trump, claiming.
If, on the first round of spades, the ♠J falls, you will have an alternate line available to you - either 3-3 clubs or a heart-club squeeze (perhaps even a double or triple squeeze might exist). Personally, I would prefer to play for the ♠J as being a false card and stick with the line that I set forth above. I don't believe you can combine your chances.
I have not attempted to figure out which line is better. The possibility that a defender will falsecard with the ♠J on the first round of the suit when all of your heart losers can be successfully ruffed out is something that cannot be dismissed.
You fell into the same trap I did. It just looks so sexy to do a dummy reversal, especially in a club game.
But, IMO, pulling trumps works best, like others have mentioned. If hearts split 4-3, where I can ruff twice, then hearts just plain get set up. If they don't, then I need the spade Jack to not be with the doubleton heart.
Against that one hedge, pulling trumps allows me to fall back on a heart-club squeeze, or a double squeeze bringing in diamonds, or the brainlessly simple 3-3 club split, which seems more likely than dropping the stiff Jack on the first return to hand in spades, or even Jx, or catching the Jack not with the doubleton.
In practice, clubs split 3-3.
In practice, however, being a club game, with a kibitzer who likes the flashy, I announced going after the dummy reversal with a chuckle. However, LHO had only two hearts with the Jxx in spades.
In practice, however, the story is even funnier. When LHO had a chance to ruff my heart, she pitched. When I was about to complete the dummy reversal, she realized what happened and let out a big, "Oh, Crud!!!" Realizing what that must mean, I changed tacks and went for the double squeeze OR clubs coming in SANE line. Score up the grand!
"Gibberish in, gibberish out. A trial judge, three sets of lawyers, and now three appellate judges cannot agree on what this law means. And we ask police officers, prosecutors, defense lawyers, and citizens to enforce or abide by it? The legislature continues to write unreadable statutes. Gibberish should not be enforced as law."
-P.J. Painter.