[kenrexford]

In fourth seat, white on red, at MP, you are dealt the following hand:

♠AKxx ♥KJxx ♦x ♣xxxx

Dealer (your LHO) opens 1♣, partner doubles, and Responder (your RHO) bids 1♦. Your agreement is for a double here to be for the majors, for good or ill, but that makes life easy for you. So, you double.

Opener bids 1NT, and your partner passes. Responder-RHO jumps to 3♦. With extras, but a partner who is occasionally light for his takeout if shapely and who might have 3-3 in the majors even, you double. Whether this is right or not, this is what happened, so deal with it!

Anyway, Opener now bids 4♦ and partner pops in a 4♥, finally helping you out.

RHO now bids 5♦, which you of course hit. This runs around to Responder, who sends it back, all pass. A tad worried?

So, what is your lead?

After your lead, what is your play (or expected play) to trick #2 when you see this dummy (hidden):

Spoiler

Qxx-AQx-Kx-Kxxxx

[Jlall]

I'm sure the point of this is to lead a low spade at trick 1. I am just not feeling desperate, I have 2 sure tricks and partner can still have one for his bidding despite their redouble. Just because they redouble doesn't mean I'm desperate.

I guess leading the ace rather than the usual king is fine to preserve the chance to shift to a low spade.

edit: After seeing dummy I will cash the SK. I will then play a club and hope we have a minor suit trick.

[kenrexford]

Jlall, on Oct 15 2009, 10:25 PM, said:

I'm sure the point of this is to lead a low spade at trick 1. I am just not feeling desperate, I have 2 sure tricks and partner can still have one for his bidding despite their redouble. Just because they redouble doesn't mean I'm desperate.

I guess leading the ace rather than the usual king is fine to preserve the chance to shift to a low spade.

edit: After seeing dummy I will cash the SK. I will then play a club and hope we have a minor suit trick.

That's what happened at our table, but I don't think you are thinking this through deeply enough.

[the hog]

K of S. Agree with Justin.
I agree, the auction is ridiculous. You didn't have your second double. If partner had a 4H bid, why didn't he bid hearts the last time?

[mrdct]

I lead the ♠A and switch to a low ♣.

I think it's quite unlikely that partner has 5 in either major for his non-action over 1NT (particularly if he was aware of the agreement that my 1st double promised both majors) so the ♠K isn't going to run away and partner might have a stiff ♣A and need ♠K as an entry back to my hand for a ruff. It kind of feels like he's doubled at favourable colours with something like JXXX XXXX QJXX A, but this gives RHO a pretty dodgey hand for his actions - so who knows?

If partner happens to have 5♥ and no ♣A, then I haven't been given enough info about how bad the takeout double of 1♣ can be.

[Cyberyeti]

I want to see partner's count signal on the ace of spades first.

[kenrexford]

Cyberyeti, on Oct 16 2009, 03:39 AM, said:

I want to see partner's count signal on the ace of spades first.

It is the 8, which in context of what you have, see in dummy, and see from Declarer could be low or 3rd of four.

[Cyberyeti]

kenrexford, on Oct 16 2009, 07:45 AM, said:

Cyberyeti, on Oct 16 2009, 03:39 AM, said:

I want to see partner's count signal on the ace of spades first.

It is the 8, which in context of what you have, see in dummy, and see from Declarer could be low or 3rd of four.

Partner would play second of 4, so might be possible, but would expect to see the 10 or 9 from either him or declarer if he had 4.

What I do know is that the K♠ will stand up if I chose to cash it. So when can it be wrong to do so and then lead a club ?

The answer to this is when partner has the ace of trumps and a singleton club whether ace or not as the K♠ is the entry for the ruff. Would partner really double on a singleton club in say Jxxx, xxxxx, Axx, A ?

If partner has more than one club he pretty much has to have the ace as he's magiced up a takeout double with only one point max in the majors, and assuming declarer hasn't completely lost his marbles not more than 5 in diamonds.

Can declarer have xx, x, QJxxxxxxx, A and partner Jxxx, xxxxx, A, QJx or similar with J♦ and a small club swapped ? not if he wants to play with me again.

I can't see that any of these layouts are particularly likely as if partner has that many major suit cards, he'd have bid over 1N.

So what is going on ?

I can't see that it can cost more than an additional undertrick to cash A♠ next. I'll do that and then lead a club unless I'm suspicious of the spade pips.

[kenrexford]

top spade-top spade-Club nets you +200.

I'm rather surprised that no one has figured out what was really going on here.

Responder redoubled. He means it. And yet, he is missing a lot of cards that are sitting in dummy. How can he not have every other top card out there?

So, what is partner doing here?

He doubled white on red. He could not pick a major over 1NT, and yet later he competes to 4♥?!? What possible hand actually makes sense where partner does not have a club void here?

Top spade, club, spade back, club nets +600. Club lead nets +1000.

(In pactice, partner held a funny hand, but you knew that, surely. xxxx-Jxxxx-Jxxx-void.)

[Jlall]

They redoubled and you said we are white on red. That means we get 400 not 200 if we beat them one.

You also said it was matchpoints. Why do we need to get more than 400? Do you really think someone is getting 500?

Also, why do we both have the HJ?

Also how do you feel if you play top spade club and partner's joke hand was Jxxx xxxxx QJx x or something. You are really just so confident about what's going on that you are going to risk letting them make 5D XX at MP when you make nothing in order to try and get the key extra undertrick?

[cherdanno]

Surely you are joking Ken. You wouldn't post a hand where partner made a takeout double with one hcp. I am sure RHO has the club void, and partner thought double is penalty.

[jdonn]

My result is a zero tolerance penalty for my behavior toward partner after the hand.

[pooltuna]

jdonn, on Oct 16 2009, 11:16 AM, said:

My result is a zero tolerance penalty for my behavior toward partner after the hand.

you go psycho over the psyche is that like unusual/unusual

[kenrexford]

Jlall, on Oct 16 2009, 11:10 AM, said:

They redoubled and you said we are white on red. That means we get 400 not 200 if we beat them one.

You also said it was matchpoints. Why do we need to get more than 400? Do you really think someone is getting 500?

Also, why do we both have the HJ?

Also how do you feel if you play top spade club and partner's joke hand was Jxxx xxxxx QJx x or something. You are really just so confident about what's going on that you are going to risk letting them make 5D XX at MP when you make nothing in order to try and get the key extra undertrick?

Oh yeah -- scoring problems here. LOL

And, yes. Part of the principle to bridge is to hammer the opponents mercilessly even when it cannot possibly matter.