help with basic card combo

[goobers]

Axx facing QT98x

 

Best play for 1 loser?

[TimG]

Play the Ten, finessing if it is not covered. If it loses to the jack, next play the Queen and finesse if it is not covered; if it wins, next play the Queen and finesse if it is not covered. If the Ten is covered by the King, win the Ace and next finesse against the Jack.

[jtfanclub]

Play the Ten, finessing if it is not covered. If it loses to the jack, next play the Queen and finesse if it is not covered; if it wins, next play the Queen and finesse if it is not covered. If the Ten is covered by the King, win the Ace and next finesse against the Jack.

Is this better than my usual plan, or six of one half dozen of the other?

 

1. Play the queen through, if LHO plays the K, then play the ace.

 

2. Regardless of what happens there, next play the ten through, covering an honor if you still have the ace.

 

Note that this play assumes that 0 losers and 1 loser is the same, just avoid having two losers.

[TimG]

Play the Ten, finessing if it is not covered.  If it loses to the jack, next play the Queen and finesse if it is not covered; if it wins, next play the Queen and finesse if it is not covered.  If the Ten is covered by the King, win the Ace and next finesse against the Jack.

Is this better than my usual plan, or six of one half dozen of the other?

 

1. Play the queen through, if LHO plays the K, then play the ace.

 

2. Regardless of what happens there, next play the ten through, covering an honor if you still have the ace.

 

Note that this play assumes that 0 losers and 1 loser is the same, just avoid having two losers.

It's the same for avoiding two losers -- one line loses two tricks to stiff K offside, the other loses two tricks to stiff Jack offside, but they the same otherwise.

 

But, playing the Ten first picks up an extra trick when the stiff King is onside.

[pclayton]

I looked this one up a few months ago. Tim's basically right, but some know length in West in another suit makes it better to play Ace and low toward hand.

[Finch]

It's good practice to work these out, rather than ask someone to look them up. Let's see what I can do without going and looking it up, or quoting from memory:

 

 

The 'obvious' lines are

a) Run the queen, then run the 10

:D Run the 10, then run the Queen

c) Ace and low to the 10

d/e) Run the queen/10, then cash the ace

 

a) loses to LHO holding x, xx, Jxxx, KJxxx

B) loses to LHO holding x, xx, Kxxx, KJxxx (so a and b are symmtrical for 1 loser)

c) loses to LHO holding KJxx, KJx, Jx (ace and low to the Queen is obviously worse)

d) and e) are obviously worse than (a): they only gain with KJ doubleton offside, but they lose to one of Kxx / Jxx onside which is clearly much more likely

 

So all we need to do is compare (a) and ©

 

x in LHO is symmetrical with KJxx in LHO

xx in LHO is symmetrical with KJx in LHO

So we are left comparing Jxxx+KJxxx with Jx . There are three possible Jx holdings, but there is only one possible Jxxx and only one possible KJxxx. And on top of that, each individual Jx is more likely than either Jxxx or KJxxx. So run the Q, then the 10. Or the 10, then the Q.

 

p.s. you need to have a rethink if you don't hold the 8, as now in addition you cannot pick up KJ8x on your left.

[goobers]

Yeah, I looked at it with my friend for like 20 minutes, and we simply couldn't figure out the best line, so I came here.