[inquiry]

May 4, 2004. Main Room.

Scoring: IMP

West North East South

 -     -     -     2NT
 Pass  3♣    Pass  3♦
 Pass  4NT   Pass  6NT
 Pass  Pass  Pass  Pass

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It is not surprizing the field reached this slam, with 33 hcp between the two hands. It is probably not surprising that a fair numbeor of players went down. You are blessed with the spade three opening lead, and when dummy plays low EAST plays the spade ten.

Our BBF member csdenmark (anyone seen him lately?) was the victim of the only declerer to get the hand right imho (can be made on two lines, but one is superior to the other I think).

Ben

[luke warm]

lead low to the ♣A and lead a low club back... my hope is for rho to have 2 or 3 to the K... if the K wins on my right, it's easy... win the spade return and lead a diamond toward the J... very simple line, so probably off 2

[inquiry]

luke warm, on Sep 24 2004, 07:03 PM, said:

lead low to the ♣A and lead a low club back... my hope is for rho to have 2 or 3 to the K... if the K wins on my right, it's easy... win the spade return and lead a diamond toward the J... very simple line, so probably off 2

Let me see if i got this right, you cashing club ace, giving up a club and if it is to West lead low to diamond jack. That seems very simply down one immediately, losing both minor kings.

[luke warm]

oh man, what a blunder... i have no idea what i meant, only that i usually don't start a slam try by purposely losing the first two tricks

[inquiry]

luke warm, on Sep 24 2004, 08:24 PM, said:

oh man, what a blunder... i have no idea what i meant, only that i usually don't start a slam try by purposely losing the first two tricks

Well two players were down two, your line beats them, and ties some others who were down one.

[luke warm]

oh hush

[xx1943]

inquiry, on Sep 24 2004, 11:24 PM, said:

May 4, 2004. Main Room.

Scoring: IMP

West North East South

 -     -     -     2NT
 Pass  3♣    Pass  3♦
 Pass  4NT   Pass  6NT
 Pass  Pass  Pass  Pass

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Ben

Hi Ben
1) You have 3♠, 4♥, hoping for 3♣ you need 2♦ tricks
2) You have only 2 entries to table and have not to loose the lead after you are the second time at the table, because you must cash your Q of ♠.
3) If RHO has ♣Kxx and ♦K you win by playing ♣A, ♣to the ♣J and a third ♣. taking next trick cashing 4♥, ♠Q and hook the ♦Q. 0,33*0,*0,5 = 8%
But this can't be the solution. This is the line most players took and went down.
4) If LHO has both minor suit Kings along with 4 ♠ (because the lead). Play small ♦ to the J. If LHo takes his K you have 12 tricks with the ♣K onside.
This is 25%. But if LHO doesn't take his K, back to the hand with a heart, finesse in ♣, cash all your winners, ending in dummy with a 3-card ending and throw LHO in, hoping he has 4♠. Remains 25%, if the lead not a false card.
5) Same play as in 4) but hoping ♣s are 33. But this only 8%.

I lead small ♦ to the second trick.

Cheers

Al

[Fluffy]

3♠+4♥+1♦+1♣=9

3 extra tricks needed, and the best spot for them IMO is 1 in each minor+ another VIA squeeze, this means we will ahve to try both minor fineses and hope at least 1 of them is onside.

Timing has to be carefull since you will need a minor suit entry, and it can be killed with ease if we are not carefull.

Start with ♣Q, if it holds the trtick we need ♦K onside.

If it is coered run ♦J next trick, opps can´t kill both minor suit entries and we will be in time for a ♠/♦ squeeze or a double squeeze maybe.

If it isn´t covered but loses to the ♣ we are in a good position again, with 2 minor suit entries and only one possible guarder for the ♣, it will be a similar position to the first one, jsut that we will need to make the ♦ finese soon and hope it wins.


the worst of all is when ♣Q holds the trick, we cannot try a losing ♦K finese since a ♦ finese later will kill our transportation for a squeee, and even more we cannot trya WINNING ♦ finese sicne again when we rectify the count in ♣ they will kill our entry again.

The ♦ finese will ahve to be delayed untill the end and hope it is a winning one, duck a ♣ and win the continuation if ♣ aren´t 3-3 we will need someone to have 5♦+4♠ for a squeeze to work on him+♦K onside.

[BrianEDuran]

Hi

Lets start with a low heart to the J. Maybe they give count that will help later on. Now the J of diamonds. If the jack holds or is covered. It easy, with 3♠, 4♥, 2♦, and I play for 3♣ by ace and clube towards the queen. Since i have an entry problem, this only work with 3-3 split, or Kx on the right.

Assuming the J does not hold, I now have a problem. If LHO started with 4♠ and the club K, I can come down to a four card end position
Q7
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Ax


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__
A
QJ8

Brian

[inquiry]

Ok, let's get this one answered. Yes we have nine tricks, yes we need quite a few more. The low spade suggest that WEST might have four spades (one of them will have four or more). It is better for us in theory perhaps if it is WEST because the spade "threat" for the squeezes fluffy mentioned need a card in the upper hand.. any diamond and club threat will be in south, and so squeezes involving just those two suits alone will never work against WEST (well, backwash and some squeeze throwin's, but not the variety we are talking about here).

With 9 tricks, we can easily establish a tenth in either minor, and even an 11th, by getting a trick in both minors. Problem is we can not lose the lead twice in doing this, as we would be down.

Option one is lead club QUEEN/JACK and lead DIAMOND JACK (or diamond to the QUEEN). Assume the club works, and no cover of the club QUEEN, the diamond doesn't and West returns a diamond when wins the king. The squeeze play is dead on delivery. As there is no reentry to south hand, after the squeeze card (4th heart). Unless WEST has the fourth diamond, the fourht spade and the club king (then a triple squeeze will get him).

Opton two is to lead twice from dummy towards QJxx of clubs (gaining 2 tricks if EAST has Kx, Kxx, or Kxxx of clubs). This is not a bad line, as noted by brian. But if the club king is offside, you do need clubs to behave and guess diamond hook or squeeze.

Option three, is lead low diamond towards the JACK. If west has king, he can win, giving us two extra diamond tricks right away. Now club hook will give us the 12 trick. If west ducks, we can go for an endplay if the club hook wins, and for a diamond - spade spade if it doesn't.. If east wins the diamond king and return a diamond (breaking up a potential simple spade-diamond squeeze), we have a potential guard squeeze if west's clubs are KTx or K9x, and we have a true triple squeeze if his clubs are KT9 or any four to the king. And if WEST has four clubs to the king? The we have a simple spade-club squeeze, but we have to manage our entries, and with three to the ten but only 3 diamonds, then we ahve a double squeeze.. win diamond and clarify the club sitution by leading the QUEEN. If north covers, cash all non-club winners in hand and then run hearts and the queen of spade for club=spade simple or double squeeze if clubs 3-3... Save spade queen for last winner, in case this is a guard squeeze.

So is there any advantage to one line over the other? I think so. It seems to me that low to the diamond jack is the best line. Pretty much any of these lilnes worked in the real world.. the hand was...

Scoring: IMP

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