What's the best way to play this?

[Hanoi5]

[hv=n=skqxha98xxxdjxcjx&s=sajtxxhdaqtxxckqx]133|200|Scoring: MP[/hv]

 

You reached 6♠ and received a ♥Q lead (your partner opened 1♥). How would you play it?

[Patapon]

Intuitively I would play the Ace of Heart and run the Jack of Diamond.

 

I would know if I am down or not immediately that way:)

 

Other lines are too complicated for me and don't seem significantly better.

[Mbodell]

I think I play on clubs first before diamonds so I can lead the ♦J from board and if covered, win, if not play the A♦ and then make ruffing finesses in diamonds (since I can pitch a ♦ on a ♣). The hard part with this is pulling trump and keeping transportation open. Without looking too deeply I think ♥A pitching a d, then ♣J would be my line.

[gnasher]

Trying to throw a diamond from dummy and ruff three diamonds in dummy won't work - they''ll switch to trumps on winning ♣A. For the same reason (and some others) I can't ruff the hearts good. That leaves the diamond finesse.

 

There's no reason to play LHO for ♦K, and playing RHO for ♦K requires less elsewhere, so I'm going to run ♦J. I should draw at least one trump first.

 

One trump caters for someone being 1-1 in the pointed suits. If I draw only one trump, I go off when someone has one diamond and two spades.

 

Should I draw a second trump? After ♥A throwing a diamond, ♠J, ♠K, ♦J, ♦10, ♦ ruff, I'm OK if trumps were 3-2 - ruff a heart, draw the trump, knock out the ace of clubs - or if diamonds were 3-3 - knock out ♣A before drawing the remaining trumps. If trumps are 4-1 and diamonds 4-2 the other way, I have to knock out ♣A and hope that it's won by the hand with the trumps, who can't hurt me.

 

These seem very close to me, so I had to seek electronic assistance. Richard Pavlicek's dual suit break calculator tells me that:

- 4-2 in the pointed suits occurs 9.28% of the time. It's only a problem if ♣A is in the wrong hand, so drawing two trumps fails 4.64% of the time.

- 2-1 or 2-0 in the pointed suits is less common, at 3.72%. This is when not drawing a second trump fails.

 

I should just have written "Agree with Patapon" and saved myself some time.

[xcurt]

Why not throw a club at trick one and tempo the opponent by playing a club, then following the line Andy described. If diamonds go 5-1 that is going to work poorly, but the main line only works in that case when RHO has xx, K or xxx, Kxxxx in spades and diamonds.

[Mbodell]

There's no reason to play LHO for ♦K, and playing RHO for ♦K requires less elsewhere, so I'm going to run ♦J.

Well, it depends on the auction which wasn't given. If the diamond suit has been concealed (say a relay auction with N giving the shape) during the auction then RHO with the ♦K might well cover the ♦J. If he doesn't, then that presents some chance that LHO has the ♦K instead.

[gnasher]

Why not throw a club at trick one and tempo the opponent by playing a club, then following the line Andy described. If diamonds go 5-1 that is going to work poorly, but the main line only works in that case when RHO has xx, K or xxx, Kxxxx in spades and diamonds.

If you're not worried about diamonds 5-1, you can simply play one trump, two rounds of diamonds, ruff a diamond high, draw trumps, knock out ♣A.