[rogerclee]

I would be very happy if declarer made such a statement like that and it turns out we could beat him. I think it is likely I could get an adjusted score, no matter if I would have found the surrounding play to squeeze dummy or not. (I could be wrong about this.)

[ggwhiz]

Quote

The difference between this and Zia is Zia's opps can see that he is right when he claims squeezes. For many of us, claiming on a squeeze when our contract is guaranteed for the overtricks would take longer and cause more frustration than simply saying "I have plenty of tricks."

This is absolutely correct and also the reason the rest of us should shy away from doing it or simply saying "I have plenty of tricks". If the opponents tank is about to become that painfull, they are very rare exceptions that even I might be able to state a line of play for.

If you can't state that line, button up and suffer. Is it not under the laws conceivable that "I have plenty of tricks" is considered to be a statement of claim?

ps. I've also told lho that I've got the rest unless your partner can ruff a ♦ aFter which they did exactly that but it only cost an overtrick.

[gnasher]

Obviously if you know what your line of play is going to be and can explain it in reasonable time, you should claim. Apart from anything else, not to claim when you can is "needlessly prolonging play", which is against the rules. I often claim a variable number of tricks depending upon whether a finesse or a squeeze will work.

If declarer is unable to do that (presumably because he hasn't decided upon a line of play, or the line involves so many branches that it will be quicker to play it out), I don't have any problem with his saying the equivalent of "I'm only playing for overtricks." That leaves me better placed than I was before: I now have information that I didn't have before, and I can make my own decision about how much time and energy I'm going to expend on trying to prevent these overtricks.

[barmar]

The only time I'm tempted to say something like this is when an opponent is struggling trying to find a discard, and I want to let him know that his hand is irrelevant. I may not be able to claim, because his partner may have options that affect how many tricks I take.

[the hog]

matmat, on Jun 24 2010, 11:42 PM, said:

You are declaring 3NT. 2 tricks or so have been played to, and you are certain you are making, but there might be some overtricks to be gained.

is it appropriate to make the statement: "I'm taking at least 9 tricks, just so you know"

Just wondering why you would do this. Make the opps use their brainpower; if they get tired, it may help you on subsequent hands.

[barmar]

It can be tiresome waiting for opponents throughout the hand, when you know that they're wasting their time trying to figure out how to set you.