[jakob_r]

Scoring: IMP

---

Suppose you're South declaring in 6 ♥. During the auction West preempted 3♦ over South's 1♥ opening and was raised to 5♦ by East.

How do you plan the play on the lead of the ♠5, covered by East's ♠8?

[gnasher]

Draw trumps (assuming they're 2-1) and play a club from dummy. If the spades turn out to be 5-1, I still have time to take a ruffing finesse against East in clubs.

[mtvesuvius]

I don't see much that can be done if RHO has 3♥, so I will win the ♠ play A♥ and if they are 3-0, 3 with LHO, I think leading the Q♣ next is best... and will try for a ruffing finesse in ♣, while ruffing out 1 round of ♣ also.

[gnasher]

mtvesuvius, on May 6 2009, 10:23 PM, said:

I don't see much that can be done if RHO has 3♥, so I will win the ♠ play A♥ and if they are 3-0, 3 with LHO, I think leading the Q♣ next is best... and will try for a ruffing finesse in ♣, while ruffing out 1 round of ♣ also.

That won't work very often. If LHO has three hearts, as well as presumably seven diamonds, he has only three black cards. When you lead a club, RHO will be able to win and give his partner a black-suit ruff, unless LHO has precisely a singleton ace of clubs. I suppose LHO might also be 2=3=6=2, in which case your suggestion would work.

I don't, however, have anything better to suggest - a spade lead from 3370 seems even less likely.

[Codo]

I would play off the ace of diamonds first, then draw trumps and play a club. Maybe the one with the short spade will be on lead, seems to be helpful.
(Of course most times this won't change anything.)

[gnasher]

Codo, on May 7 2009, 07:30 AM, said:

I would play off the ace of diamonds first, then draw trumps and play a club. Maybe the one with the short spade will be on lead, seems to be helpful.
(Of course most times this won't change anything.)

What are you hoping that they're going to do? A ruff and discard won't help you.

[Codo]

You know that a ruff and discard is not useful, because you know my hand. But he doesn't know.

And it costs exactly nothing, so even a gain of .5 % will be enough.

[gnasher]

True. As long as you remember to take the ruff and discard in the right hand.

[jakob_r]

Scoring: IMP

---

This was the full deal. I'm still intrigued by it and still wondering if anyone would come up with the right line at the table

[gnasher]

The only successful line I can see is to lead a club at trick two, then use dummy's four entries to set the clubs up.

That gains when LHO has ♣AK and spades are 1=5, but loses when RHO has ♣AK or Kxxxx and spades are 1=5. I don't see why we'd play for a second-hand preempter to have a side AK.

[jakob_r]

I agree that it's weird for preemptor to have both of the top ♣s. If he has one of them, though, it would have to be the stiff A or, if he has Ax, he would also have to be weird enough to not duck the Q

edit: i forgot to mention that if you play to establish clubs you have to hook the J♥ on the first round of trump to maintain enough dummy entries. all in all it does seem like a fairly risky venture..