[Echognome]

Scoring: IMP

1NT - 2♣
2♦ - 3NT

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An interesting play problem and back to normal (IMPs) bridge.

T1: 10♠ - 2 - A - 3
T2: K♠ - 5- 4 - Q
T3: 6♠ - J - 7 - ?

EW say they are playing standard leads. You have plenty of chances in this contract, but as usual there are potential pitfalls. What is your safest route to 9 tricks?

[Elianna]

How did the spade 2 manage to be played twice? And how did the Q wait until the third spade trick?

[Echognome]

Oops! Thanks Elianna. All fixed now.

[HeartA]

We have 8 top tricks, 1S+1H+3D+3C. I would pitch a ♥ from dummy.

DQ and D to A and DK. If DJ drops under DA or D33, I am home (will try C if they are 3-3 as well). If D wouldn't run, I will try ♣s. If C 3-3, I have enough. Finesse ♥ as the final resort.

[sceptic]

LHo has the 9 spades so finese the hearts 3 times , even if it loses and RHO has a spade (4/4 split) they can only make 3 spades and 1 heart, or am I missing something?

[Winstonm]

I believe Justin is on the right line, but there may(?) be one very slight improvement.

Instead of Queen of diamonds and then the 10, isn't it better to play the 10 to the King and low to the Queen. Now you are back in hand to take the heart finesse if the diamond Jack has not appeared.

If you play the other way, if RHO ducks the King of hearts and you don't cash out right then, you can have troubles as you only have 1 entry left to hand. By playing the 10 and then the Queen of diamonds, you can finesse the heart and still have 2 entries to hand to reapeat the heart finesse for a safe overtrick or more.

WinstonM

[Fluffy]

you have to discard a ♦ to be sure West has no entry.

♥fin ese and you have ♣ entry back and ♦Q to be 100% sure of the contract as long as Eeast has at most 4♠.

[Fluffy]

Jlall, on Jun 8 2005, 11:31 PM, said:

queen of diamonds, diamond to ace. If no jack drops, club to ace and hook a heart. This loses only to rho having 5 spades, the heart king, no diamond jack dropping doubleton, lho leading a random T from Txx and rho not ducking and then lho not giving count on the second spade with the 7 then small. At the table this is probably not how I'd play it as we may be giving up on some overtricks.

After winning the ♥10 you are locked in dummy I think.

Edit: sorry I forgot to count ♠J as a trick. My line would be best if ♦Q was in dummy since you would need 2 ♥ fineses. without cashing ♣s.

[Free]

It's quite confusing which player had which ♠s... Did West play 10-4-7???

[Echognome]

Scoring: IMP

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Well done everyone. You had to figure out that the heart finesse was safe as long as the opening leader had at least 4 spades. I sloppily didn't watch the spots that carefully and tested clubs and diamonds finding out the bad news. (East had thrown a diamond on the run of the clubs.) I then threw East in with a diamond and he played his ♠8 to West's ♠9 at trick 11 and I was sunk. My line worked whenever clubs or diamonds broke or spades were 5-3 with the opening leader. However, you could do better as you all figured out.