[PhantomSac]

Scoring: IMP

---

Auction starting with partner:

P P 1S 2N
P 3C X P
4S p p p

They lead a relatively quick H9, you put in the jack. Your RHO thinks forever and:

1) Plays low
2) Plays the queen

How do you play in each scenario? RHO is me, LHO is an inexperienced but talented junior.

[MarkDean]

I thought forever on this hand.

I would lay down the ace in either case. If I run the queen to stiff king, I am down, and I assume if LHO has Kx in spades, he can get to pd to get his ruff, and I am down. However, I only pick up stiff 9 or 6 with LHO.

I spent a long time on the game theory of RHO's action, but with his uncertainly of the entry to dummy, I eventually did not read enough into either decision to sway me.

If he covers and it goes 69 (or 96) on the spade ace, I guess I need to think for a while again (but I will probably still go with playing for 2155 on my left).

[Siegmund]

Rushing in like a fool as usual...

Our goal is to play for 1 spade loser against as many breaks as we can. The ace works against single K or J; winning, crossing to DQ, and running SQ always works against single J, and only against small singletons and 4-0 breaks if we have a second entry (=if RHO puts up HQ); winning, crossing to DQ and leading toward the SAT works against singletons other than the J, and gains additional chances if there may be a reentry.

I feel like winning high, crossing to DQ, and leading small toward my hand is the winner against either heart play, and that East ought to be playing small on general principle.

I'm sure jlall will tell us where we are wrong soon enough.
(Editing to add that I didn't pay much attention to the 2-2 breaks where a ruff is possible; yes, ace-first gains against some of them too.)
(Editing again to add that I missed the "you put in the jack" part, so I always have the two entries if I need them. But I think that strengthens the conclusion, not weakens it, re leading the small spade - though it makes RHO's play more or less irrelevant.)

[Free]

Depends on your mindset and who you're playing against imo. The key suit is ♠.

If you play the Q, it looks like you don't want me to get to dummy. If you play low, it looks like you don't care that I'm in dummy (maybe even twice).

So what do you think? What do you want me to think? Do I think as far to think you're trying to fool me? ...

[PhantomSac]

IMO there are several things to think about:

1) Would LHO lead a stiff heart with stiff SK? With stiff SJ? With a small stiff spade? With Kx of spades? Etc. As I said LHO is talented but inexperienced and thus pretty erratic (capable of very good plays/thoughts, but also capable of some poor ones), so it's hard to tell, but I think you can attempt to weight the likelihood that he leads a stiff heart with various trump holdings.

2) How weak could LHO bid 2N if he's 5-5? Should you take some 5-5s out of his range because they are too weak, while keeping in the 6-5s? Again, who knows, but you can try to weight them.

3) Why would RHO duck or cover the heart? Obviously covering blows a trick, and ducking gives you an entry. Are there technical elements to this (ie certain hands should always duck or always cover), or is it all purely psychological. Obv you can try to ignore what I did, or you can try to guess what level I'm on and try to exploit me, your choice.

Adding this all up, what is the right line, and does my play impact what you think the right play is.

Obv I don't know the answers to these questions, they're all very subjective etc, but I think they are the crux of this hand.

[Cyberyeti]

If the J♥ is covered, I bang down A♠ and play hearts if all follow small, because I still make if the unusual caller has any singleton spade as a club goes west on the 8♥. I only go down if he has Jx (if he has xx, the J appears from his pd and I play another trump, if he has Kx a ruff doesn't cost).

Less clear to me is what to do if he ducks.

[Fluffy]

[tuna style]
Just run ♠Q from dummy, since RHO isweak he won't cover with ♠K and we make an overtrick or 2
[/tuna style]

Hell too many guesses, so far what I know from RHO is that he has decuded partner's got ♣A because he holds ♣K himself.

If RHO has ♠K he knows I have ♦AK, and that ♦Q is an entry. Then he is playing mind games as he loves to.

And then I'll get to dummy with ♦Q if he covers and play low spade to the 10.

If he doesn't cover he either doesn't have ♠K or wants me to fiense, in either case I bang down ♠A.

[phil_20686]

Since i know my caller to be an ethical player he will not be hesitating with Q stiff or small stiff. Thus he can have at most one spade. He could easily be playing games with stiff K hoping i will run the Q and partner will have JTx or J9x or indeed ATx though declarer can never realistically go wrong in that case. I think that if he ducks its much more likely that he has Qxx hearts and is void in spades. Then he isnt trying to deny you an entry so much as a winner for a club pitch. At any rate, if he plays the Q you should win this and bang down teh ace of spades, even if west is void you can now get a club pitch on the 4th heart.

If heast plays low, you should still bang down the ace of spades, and if east is void you bang down teh AK of hearts hoping that east has Qxx. Or at leasst Q9. I think in retro spaect it was an error to play the J of hearts. You wanted to be able to cater for eaest being 0-2-6-5 with qx of hearts - this seems moderately likely as bidding 2N with a hugh suit disparity isnt that tasty, and you can be failry sure that west does not hold HHx clubx and 4 trumps or he has an easy club lead.

Again, its somewhat surprising that west has not led a minor suit, he clearly has one or two low diamonds. I'm goign to guess that he has a stiff diamond and really didnt want a ruff, as he has KJ9x trumps.

[kenrexford]

LHO might even have KJx in spades, for that matter. 3145 pattern is very much a possibility.

[Fluffy]

that holding, even if possible, seems irrelevant ken.

[phil_20686]

kenrexford, on Feb 23 2010, 07:57 AM, said:

LHO might even have KJx in spades, for that matter. 3145 pattern is very much a possibility.

rho hesitated "forever" here with a stiff heart you might well call the cops on him. I generally do not think that one must play quicker than normal with a singleton at trick one. If thinking for a few seconds when dummy hits is your normal tempo you shuld do that. But if you are thinking for a lot longer than your normal tempo you should play the card if single. Otherwise the door is open for all kinds of unethical abuses.

[helene_t]

phil_20686, on Feb 23 2010, 02:51 PM, said:

I generally do not think that one must play quicker than normal with a singleton at trick one. If thinking for a few seconds when dummy hits is your normal tempo you shuld do that. But if you are thinking for a lot longer than your normal tempo you should play the card if single. Otherwise the door is open for all kinds of unethical abuses.

Suppose you have a single but you need a lot of time to think through the defense plan. What should you do?
- Play in normal tempo and then think afterwards?
- Play the single face-down after a normal pause, then think and finally turn it over?
- Say "just planning the defense", then think, then play the single?
- Say nothing, take your time, then play the single?

[gnasher]

Phil, RHO has five hearts. It was LHO who showed the minors.

If RHO covers, he probably has ♠K. His only other reason for covering is a singleton diamond and no ♠K, but he'd have to see pretty deeply to work that out. I cross to ♦Q and run ♠Q.

If RHO plays low slowly, maybe he's worked out that I must have ♦AK, so the extra entry isn't going to help me. So I still run ♠Q.

[gnasher]

helene_t, on Feb 23 2010, 03:03 PM, said:

Suppose you have a single but you need a lot of time to think through the defense plan. What should you do?

Quote

- Play in normal tempo and then think afterwards?

That one seems obvious.

Quote

- Play the single face-down after a normal pause, then think and finally turn it over?
- Say "just planning the defense", then think, then play the single?
- Say nothing, take your time, then play the single?

All three of these involve an unfair use of time that belongs to the table as a whole. Whilst you're doing your thinking, you know what you're going to play to trick one, but nobody else does. Hence you're able to use the time more effectively than anyone else.

[pooltuna]

PhantomSac, on Feb 23 2010, 01:28 AM, said:

Scoring: IMP

---

Auction starting with partner:

P P 1S 2N
P 3C X P
4S p p p

They lead a relatively quick H9, you put in the jack. Your RHO thinks forever and:

1) Plays low
2) Plays the queen

How do you play in each scenario? RHO is me, LHO is an inexperienced but talented junior.

1) play to the ♠A and lead another ♠
2) after winning in hand(allowing you to hold the trick looks unproductive ) I play a ♦ to the Q and finesse the ♠T

and if I see you at the table again when this comes up I will play the reverse of this...maybe

[kenrexford]

Fluffy, on Feb 23 2010, 07:58 AM, said:

that holding, even if possible, seems irrelevant ken.

Huh?

If LHO has KJx, and if you play him for KJx (or cater to it), then Ace and a spade out is necessary to avoid two spade losers.

[cherdanno]

kenrexford, on Feb 23 2010, 11:29 AM, said:

Fluffy, on Feb 23 2010, 07:58 AM, said:

that holding, even if possible, seems irrelevant ken.

Huh?

If LHO has KJx, and if you play him for KJx (or cater to it), then Ace and a spade out is necessary to avoid two spade losers.

Maybe you shouldn't only look at the spade suit...

[kenrexford]

cherdanno, on Feb 23 2010, 11:31 AM, said:

kenrexford, on Feb 23 2010, 11:29 AM, said:

Fluffy, on Feb 23 2010, 07:58 AM, said:

that holding, even if possible, seems irrelevant ken.

Huh?

If LHO has KJx, and if you play him for KJx (or cater to it), then Ace and a spade out is necessary to avoid two spade losers.

Maybe you shouldn't only look at the spade suit...

Oh yeah. Duh. There does seem to be a problem there.

[PhantomSac]

Results:

I played low, declarer played the spade queen, I played low and he....insta hooked. I had KJx of spades...pwned.

[jukmoi]

I would have fallen for that thinking east wants me to play ♠ from dummy. Everything seemed consistent with West holding something like Kx x xxxxx xxxxx.