[akhare]

You arrive in 6N after an uncontested auction that revealed declarer's exact shape.

LHO leads a small diamond. If you duck the opening lead, RHO's Jack will force your queen. The spade finesse works, but LHO will show out on the first round.

How do you intend to play the hand?

---

[gnasher]

Win in hand, cross to ♥J, spade to the queen, planning:
- If ♠Q wins, duck a spade, then if the spades aren't 3-3 take a club finesse.
- If ♠Q loses, win the return, cash the third diamond, then take three rounds of hearts ending in hand. If ♣Q is onside and either defender guards all three suits, he won't survive the third round of hearts.

When LHO shows out on the first spade, I just take a club finesse after cashing the ace. I don't see how any squeeze or endplay can work.

[Cyberyeti]

gnasher, on 2013-September-09, 13:22, said:

Win in hand, cross to ♥J, spade to the queen, planning:
- If ♠Q wins, duck a spade, then if the spades aren't 3-3 take a club finesse.
- If ♠Q loses, win the return, cash the third diamond, then take three rounds of hearts ending in hand. If ♣Q is onside and either defender guards all three suits, he won't survive the third round of hearts.

When LHO shows out on the first spade, I just take a club finesse after cashing the ace. I don't see how any squeeze or endplay can work.

Is spade to the 10 or spade to the Q best without knowing LHO is going to show out ? Spade to the 10 in theory could get you in a mess with Kxx over ducked, but it's a tough duck to find at trick 2, as you could be going for your only chance for the contract of generating an extra trick with ♠AJ10xxx.

[akhare]

Cyberyeti, on 2013-September-09, 14:25, said:

Is spade to the 10 or spade to the Q best without knowing LHO is going to show out ? Spade to the 10 in theory could get you in a mess with Kxx over ducked, but it's a tough duck to find at trick 2, as you could be going for your only chance for the contract of generating an extra trick with ♠AJ10xxx.

At the table, declarer played a spade to the T. This is probably the best play if playing for 3-3 spades since it makes it difficult for LHO to duck with Kxx.

[mikeh]

Well, at the table I am not at all sure that I would play a spade to the 10 at my first opportunity, but it isn't clearly wrong and on the actual lie, with the improbable 0=6 spade split, it may turn out to be essential.

Having sort of reflexively won the opening lead in hand, I would cross in diamonds, and hook the spade 10.

Now I play heart K and low to the J, and cash the remaining diamond winner, and one club, and then back to my hand in hearts.

If RHO is precisely 6=3=3=1, he is now toast: I exit a low spade, win the spade hook on the forced return of the suit and claim 3 spades, 4 hearts and 5 minor tops.

If he has pitched a spade or two, I cannot endplay him...he can return whatever side suit he holds...even a club works because while it gives me an extra club, I never score my spade A! And LHO is not squeezed because I haven't cashed the 4th heart, so he has an idle card (not to mention that I have to make a pitch from one of dummy's minors)

In the likely event that RHO is not 6331, I cash the spade A and take the club hook.

[PhilKing]

Deleted rubbish.

[johnu]

You have 10 top tricks, 1 spade, 4 hearts, 3 diamonds and 2 clubs. Your problems are over if you can bring in spades with 1 loser. Otherwise, you probably need to make a club trick with the jack along with a 2nd spade. How do you play spades? If both spade honors are offside, nothing matters, if both are onside, finessing either 10 or Q will work. If split, it's a coin toss on what to finesse. So you finesse, test spades, and take a club finesse if spades don't break. But, if spades are split 6-0 onside as in this hand, you have an extra chance if you finesse the 10.

So win the ♦Q, heart to the jack, finesse the ♠10. Cash the remaining diamond honors, and return to hand with a heart. If RHO showed less than 3 diamonds, duck a spade to RHO. With any kind of luck RHO will have to return a spade for a guaranteed finesse, or a club into dummy's tenace. If a heart is returned, win in hand, cash the ♠A and take a club finesse. You can't afford to cash a club honor early in this line of play since RHO could return a club and you don't have the transportation to return to hand to cash ♠A and return to dummy to cash the 4th heart.

If RHO follows to 3 diamonds, the throw in play may be in trouble since RHO will play a winning diamond after the throw in if they started with 4. If RHO was void in hearts 6=0=4=3 or 6=0=3=4, either a club finesse or a throw in is 50%. I would probably do the throw in because anybody can finesse If RHO followed to 2 rounds of hearts, take the club finesse since since RHO has at most 2 clubs (ie finesse wins 5-2, 6-1 or 7-0) If RHO followed to 1 round of hearts, also take the club finesse since RHO as at most 3 clubs, and may have 2.

[CSGibson]

mikeh, on 2013-September-09, 14:46, said:

Well, at the table I am not at all sure that I would play a spade to the 10 at my first opportunity, but it isn't clearly wrong and on the actual lie, with the improbable 0=6 spade split, it may turn out to be essential.

Having sort of reflexively won the opening lead in hand, I would cross in diamonds, and hook the spade 10.

Now I play heart K and low to the J, and cash the remaining diamond winner, and one club, and then back to my hand in hearts.

If RHO is precisely 6=3=3=1,(edit out a lot of impressive play for the simple line) I cash the spade A and take the club hook.

I altered your line of play somewhat because I was ammused that you went for the endplay rather than the simple 100% finesse.

[mikeh]

CSGibson, on 2013-September-09, 16:15, said:

I altered your line of play somewhat because I was ammused that you went for the endplay rather than the simple 100% finesse.

anyone can finesse Give me a choice between two 100% lines and I always go for the line that makes it clear to all that I knew what I was doing. The endplay does exactly that, and I would always, 100%, take that line unless I thought West had really screwed up and been pseudo-squeezed, which has about a .000000023% likelihood.

[cherdano]

PhilKing, on 2013-September-09, 15:20, said:

Deleted rubbish.

You robbed us of a rather unique experience there.

[johnu]

johnu, on 2013-September-09, 15:24, said:

You have 10 top tricks, 1 spade, 4 hearts, 3 diamonds and 2 clubs. Your problems are over if you can bring in spades with 1 loser. Otherwise, you probably need to make a club trick with the jack along with a 2nd spade. How do you play spades? If both spade honors are offside, nothing matters, if both are onside, finessing either 10 or Q will work. If split, it's a coin toss on what to finesse. So you finesse, test spades, and take a club finesse if spades don't break. But, if spades are split 6-0 onside as in this hand, you have an extra chance if you finesse the 10.

So win the ♦Q, heart to the jack, finesse the ♠10. Cash the remaining diamond honors, and return to hand with a heart. If RHO showed less than 3 diamonds, duck a spade to RHO. With any kind of luck RHO will have to return a spade for a guaranteed finesse, or a club into dummy's tenace. If a heart is returned, win in hand, cash the ♠A and take a club finesse. You can't afford to cash a club honor early in this line of play since RHO could return a club and you don't have the transportation to return to hand to cash ♠A and return to dummy to cash the 4th heart.

If RHO follows to 3 diamonds, the throw in play may be in trouble since RHO will play a winning diamond after the throw in if they started with 4. If RHO was void in hearts 6=0=4=3 or 6=0=3=4, either a club finesse or a throw in is 50%. I would probably do the throw in because anybody can finesse If RHO followed to 2 rounds of hearts, take the club finesse since since RHO has at most 2 clubs (ie finesse wins 5-2, 6-1 or 7-0) If RHO followed to 1 round of hearts, also take the club finesse since RHO as at most 3 clubs, and may have 2.

You can also try a spade throw in play if LHO follows with a spade after the ♠10 finesse wins. Cash 1 of the remaining diamond honors and return to hand with a heart, and duck a spade. If RHO has to win the spade and started with 2 or fewer hearts and 2 or fewer diamonds, a club or spade has to be returned. If LHO wins, you need the club finesse. I guess this is where the deceptive duck by LHO with ♠K could affect play. But it may let a hopeless contract make if declarer AJ10 of spades or just give a free overtrick if there are 13 runners after the duck so I don't know that is a good play. If spades were 3-3 all along, then RHO has to overtake the spade duck and play a spade right back. Depending on spots and table feel, this may be easy to figure out. If the end play doesn't work, you still have the club finesse.

Edit: On the original problem where spades are 6-0, do not cash the 3rd diamond winnner. Since you can't afford to try the throw in if RHO has 3 diamonds in case the 4th diamond can be cashed, 2 rounds of diamonds will be enough. If the club finesse loses, you only go down 1 trick instead of 2 if RHO has 4 diamonds.