[Phil]

Scoring: IMP

1♦ - 2♥;
3N - AP

2♥ is alerted as a minimum responding hand and 5♠ + 4♥.

You track the ♣Q, 2, 4 (udca), K.

Declarer plays the ♦A from hand.

You have the opportunity to tell partner "I liked my lead" via playing low-high in diamonds.

Yes or no?

---

[awm]

No. Partner should know (or at least expect) that you have the jack and also have a good idea of your overall (lack of) values. The important question is whether you have a club suit to establish, and you don't. For example, you don't want partner continuing clubs with an original Txx or Axx if he has something better to do (like switch to hearts). Holding QJxx(x) would be a different story.

[Free]

Yes. I like my lead, and I don't want to encourage partner to switch. Can't I lead the ♣Q from Qx?

[655321]

Agree with awm, and it seems pretty clear too.

[OleBerg]

No, mainly for the reasons stated above.

Exchange my ♥J with dummy's ♥10, and I would encourage.

[Phil]

awm, on Aug 17 2010, 01:02 AM, said:

No. Partner should know (or at least expect) that you have the jack and also have a good idea of your overall (lack of) values. The important question is whether you have a club suit to establish, and you don't. For example, you don't want partner continuing clubs with an original Txx or Axx if he has something better to do (like switch to hearts). Holding QJxx(x) would be a different story.

I don't think that partner has ♣Axx of clubs, since that would leave declarer with ♣Kxxxx. Partner knows this as well. Declarer holding ♣Kxxx with or without the 10 is a concern perhaps.

I also think that a lead from ♣Qx is possible on this auction. It depends if you think declarer has a balanced 19, or a little less with a trick source. With the latter, a club lead is plausible. With the former, not so much.

Personally I also think a partnership can develop some 'obvious shift' considerations when deciding whether or not to Smith. If the points were distributed more equally between EW and West's hearts were stronger, I can see a hi-lo in diamonds to not only say "meh re: clubs", but also "ship an attitude heart over". We already play OS on the opening lead, so West knows East's feelings toward hearts, but not v.v..

This was in the last match and this was my partner's hand. I held ♠Kx ♥AQxx ♦xx ♣ATxxx. On the run of the diamonds, I can't go wrong on this layout so we beat it a trick.

Declarer held ♠Qxx ♥K ♦AKQJxx ♣Kxx. Our teammates bid 4♠ which had no issues.

[rduran1216]

is there an upside here to using this rather than playing foster echo and getting a picture of partner's suit first?

[Phil]

rduran1216, on Aug 17 2010, 10:51 AM, said:

is there an upside here to using this rather than playing foster echo and getting a picture of partner's suit first?

Foster echo has nothing to do with Smith. Foster is when 3rd hand plays their 2nd highest card when dummy wins the trick.

I'm not aware of anyone that plays this and haven't for years.

Various versions of Smith are useful and very popular, although far from universal. The toughest part about using Smith is making your signals in tempo, however, and you have to stay on your toes, or be prepared to occasionally make the wrong signal to avoid giving pard UI.

[rduran1216]

i know what foster echo is. Partner's 4 on opening lead isn't helping me get a picture of the suit.

[Phil]

rduran1216, on Aug 17 2010, 11:05 AM, said:

i know what foster echo is. Partner's 4 on opening lead isn't helping me get a picture of the suit.

Then perhaps your question should be "Would Foster Echo help?" or "What do people think about Foster Echo?". That would be a much more effective threadjack.

The word "this" in your original reply implied a comparison between Smith Echo and Foster Echo.

[gnasher]

Phil, on Aug 17 2010, 05:21 PM, said:

"What do people think about Foster Echo?"

I think it's almost as useful as the Losing Trick Count.

[rduran1216]

sorry, im not trained in thread jacking technique or trolling which is what it seems this forum is for.

I know alot of people dislike foster echo, but this hand looks like a chance to show some of its virtue.

[Tomi2]

-my partner gave me his lowest card, I expect him to have 4 or 6 clubs, HIS smith signal will show me possession of the ace and maybe the 10
- what suit shouild I have to establish else? spades? or 2 heart honors?

I play the 4 now... had I only Qx in clubs or that misterious heart honors: ♦9
QJTx(x) I would give the 2 first

[benlessard]

obvious no

[Phil]

rduran1216, on Aug 17 2010, 11:39 AM, said:

sorry, im not trained in thread jacking technique or trolling which is what it seems this forum is for.

I know alot of people dislike foster echo, but this hand looks like a chance to show some of its virtue.

heh. I don't like Foster Echo, and I doubt many of us trolls like it much either.

I suppose on the actual hand East can't afford the 10 spot to Foster and West would have to rely upon the 8, which doesn't say much about the A.

Perhaps UD Foster would work? Yeah, I could signal the 7 to show "one card lower" than the 7 spot. Maybe I'm on to something!

[TimG]

Perhaps it is just semantics, but how do we say "my lead is about what you'd expect"?

The way I learned Smith is that a hi-lo is something of an alarm clock signal and says I'd like a switch.

It doesn't seem to me that the two signals (hi-lo and lo-hi) can cover three cases (like lead, neutral about lead, want switch). And, it's more useful to use the signal to suggest either 1) Switch 2) go about normal business rather than trying to distinguish whether I really like my lead or I just have a normal affection for my lead.

[gnasher]

rduran1216, on Aug 17 2010, 05:39 PM, said:

I know alot of people dislike foster echo, but this hand looks like a chance to show some of its virtue.

OK, so tell us how it might have helped on this deal.

[MFA]

Yes, I would play small ♣.
Guess this is a style issue, but I'm not used to that smith's promises a lot by the opening leader. Here we really don't have much on the side. ♥J in not enough to hint partner to look elsewhere, if he is not about to play hearts all by himself. A high club would force partner to worry about ♣Qx, but it doesn't deny the ♣J of course to play high ♣.

[kenrexford]

Regardless of your position as to tactics, there is one thing that is certain. You cannot select between either a Smith Echo or count. Either the signal is postive-versus-negative Smith, or it is count.

So, if you play Smith in this situation, you MUST give a Smith signal, up or down. If you don't play Smith in this situation, then you give count.

[gwnn]

dislike my lead, wtp?

anyway what is foster echo?