[mohitz]

Was kibitzing this on BBO today. Thought might be interesting.

(4♥) - p - (p) - 4♠
(p) - p - (X) - All pass

Scoring: IMP

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The defense is a little helpful today.

Trick 1: They lead Ace of diamond, East playing the Jack.
Trick 2: 9 of diamond to the King.
Trick 3: East returns Queen of heart which you win
Trick 4: You play Ace of spade, West discarding a heart

How do you play this?

[Simplicity]

I'd play ♠K and run the ♣Q, assuming this holds finesse in trumps, draw them all and play ace and another club.

Running the queen is necessary when RHO is 5242 with the ♣K and still picks up 5143 as he can only return a diamond.

[rhm]

What option is there now, other than going to dummy with the king of ♠ and taking the ♣ finesse. If it works you make, maybe with an overtrick if you can return in clubs and take the ♠ finesse.
However, if the ♣ finesse looses, you will be one down since you will get forced in ♥.
Of course LHO could theoretically have 0=8=4=1 with a singleton king of ♣, but this looks a bit remote and I doubt he would have played ♦ 9 at trick 2.

Rainer Herrmann

[gnasher]

Simplicity, on Dec 4 2009, 02:40 PM, said:

I'd play ♠K and run the ♣Q, assuming this holds finesse in trumps, draw them all and play ace and another club.

That won't work very well if RHO is 5233, and also needlessly surrenders an overtrick when he's 5134 or 5143. Once the first club finesse works you can take another club finesse in complete safety.

[kenrexford]

If RHO has the club King, and only one heart, we cannot go down on either line, whether hooking clubs until the cows come home or pulling trumps and yielding a club.

so, the concern is that RHO has a doubleton club or that LHO has the club King, and stiff King because this would be unmakeable.

So, thinking that stiff King is less likely, I just hook clubs until the job is done. Heck, I could just play clubs until RHO ruffs in, win the return, pull his remaining trumps, and claim.

[Simplicity]

gnasher, on Dec 4 2009, 09:16 AM, said:

Simplicity, on Dec 4 2009, 02:40 PM, said:

I'd play ♠K and run the ♣Q, assuming this holds finesse in trumps, draw them all and play ace and another club.

That won't work very well if RHO is 5233, and also needlessly surrenders an overtrick when he's 5134 or 5143. Once the first club finesse works you can take another club finesse in complete safety.

doh, so we can - what a plank!

[mohitz]

If someone told you LHO has the King and not King singleton, what will you do?

[kenrexford]

mohitz, on Dec 4 2009, 12:25 PM, said:

If someone told you LHO has the King and not King singleton, what will you do?

If I knew 100% that LHO had the King of clubs and at least one more club (maybe I peeked)?

Let's assume Kx specifically, with eight hearts and three diamonds. RHO then also has three diamonds, plus four clubs. So, I cash a diamond and then play a club toward dummy. LHO presumably wins this and presumably forces another heart, on which RHO presumably pitches a club and I ruff small.

I now could cash the club Ace, lead a club to dummy, and then send back a diamond, planning to ruff that in hand. I could then ruff my last club high on dummy and then claim.

That seems to work.

So, I suppose an alternative line if to cash one trump, getting the bad news, and then check for a stiff club King to the left. If nothing shows, lead another club out. If LHO has stiff King, I win. If RHO has the King, I win when he also started with just one heart. If LHO has Kx, I win in some layouts anyway. If LHO has Kxx(x), I was screwed from the start, it seems.

Maybe.

[gnasher]

Quote

If someone told you LHO has the King and not King singleton, what will you do?

If RHO is 5134 or 5233, we can make by cashing a diamond and playing a club from hand. LHO wins and forces with a heart, but we cash two more clubs, ruff the last club in dummy with the king, and take a trump finesse. I don't think that ever costs the contract, though it will often cost an overtrick.

Edit: When I cash the diamond, if I find that RHO has four diamonds, I now know that losing a club to West won't work. So, I revert to taking a club finesse.

[mikeh]

Had long post, then read Andy's who got there earlier.... one has to cash the diamond first, of course, as a discovery play. LHO won't show out, based on the spots played in diamonds (not that it matters if he does...the club hook is almost guaranteed....

At imps, one should, I think, cater to LHO holding the club K if diamonds are 3-3, but it isn't completely clear.

Even with the club K, I don't think RHO has a double...and who in their right mind doubles with 10xxxx Q KJ10 xxxx?

A doubled overtrick yields 990, against the expected 650 at the other table. If we play safe for 790, we score 4 imps. If we play for the overtrick, and it works, we score 8 imps, while if it loses, we lose 13 rather than win 4. So the imp odds for hooking rho when diamonds are 3=3 are 17-4 against.

Hmmm...I play safe at those odds, but it may be close depending on who my rho is.

At mps, strangely, I would always play safe. I would expect so few people to double that I'd expect my 790 to be very close to a top, and wouldn't want to paint the lily.

[mohitz]

You have got it right. Here is the link to the deal. Declarer went down after taking a club finesse.

http://tinyurl.com/badbreak