Monday's Play Problem

[Finch]

Playing aggregate the odds on vulnerable games are even more extreme than they are at IMPs. That can be the only reason why you bid this one:

 

[hv=d=n&v=n&n=saq6h5daj975cqj86&s=s109854hq62dkq108c4]133|200|1♦ 1♥ 1♠ 2♥

2♠ 4♥ 4♠ all pass[/hv]

 

You don't play support doubles, so you didn't know if partner's 2S bid was 3 or 4-card support. I was sitting on your right, and both the 4H bid and pass of 4S were slow.

 

LHO leads a low heart to RHO's king. It's about 95% that they break 3-6.

RHO thinks for a while they switches to a low club to LHO's king. LHO thinks for even longer then plays a heart.

 

How are you going to make this?

[ajm218]

Have to ruff this second ♥ and now have a problem of how to avoid losing more than one ♠ trick.

 

Not sure I can make this if the K♠ is offside as however I come back to hand to take the finesse, if RHO wins he can promote the J♠ wherever it is by returning the A♥.

 

So lets give west the K♠ (singeton, doubleton or tripleton, but ignoring KJ doubleton as trivial);

If doubleton or tripleton, I can take the trump finesse, cash the ace but that leaves me with an ♥ loser which i can't discard on a ♦ before one opp ruffs in (unless the trump is with four diamonds which seems a pretty remote chance)

 

So I also need a ruffing fineese in clubs to pitch a heart. (If LHO has the K♠ and the K♣, it doesn't seem too unreasonable to give RHO the AK♥ and the A♣)

 

A hand that might jump to 4♥ might be

xx

AKT98x

x

ATxx

 

Also I don't think I can make 4♠ if they are 4-1 even if i manage to drop a stiff king offside (because eventually opps will promote a trump with a heart)

 

Therefore I've decided my simple line is going to be ruff small in dummy and advance the Q♣, throwing the ♥ if the ace doesn't appear. Assuming I win, ♦ to hand, ♠ hook, cash the ace and play on diamonds if the spades are 3-2.

 

Finally if we have a singleton K♠ with LHO, i need RHO to have 3♦s to allow me to come to hand enough to draw trumps

 

I await the correct answer (but have just thought about Kxxx onside but its bedtime) :P

[jdeegan]

:lol: I don't see anything fancy to do here. Take ruffing finesse on the club ace (it ought to work). Either pitch the losing heart or ruff out the club ace if it is covered. Either way, I'm going to pitch my losing heart and hook the spade, hoping for one trump loser. Bottom line, if lucky, is to win five spades, one club, and four diamonds- i.e. losing one heart, one club and one spade.