Delicate game

[Siegmund]

Early in a Swiss against a solid B team (expect competent play and defense at both tables, but nothing bizarre or sneaky.)

 

[hv=d=e&v=n&n=sxha9xxd9xxcakxxx&s=sjthkqxdakt8xxcxx]133|200|Scoring: IMP[/hv]

 

1) Our uncontested auction - feel free to comment (but let's not focus on which suit North should bid first with a 5-4, which is going to be fixed for any given partnership by their system and style; I'm more interested in how people take the 4♦ and 4♥ bids and what contract they would finish in):

 

1♦-1♥

2♦-3♣

3♥-4♦

4♥-Pass

 

2) Now that you're in 4♥ by North all you have to do is find your best chance of making it.

 

Tricks 1-2: East cashes ♠K and continues ♠Q.

 

If you start pulling trump:

Both opps follow low to the first round; East follows low and West follows with the ten on the second round

 

 

If you cash a high diamond:

West drops the queen

 

[jjbrr]

I'd splinter with the N hand after 2♦. South will then bid 4♥, and I'd probably end in 6♦, but I guess 5 is possible too.

 

As for the play, just looking quickly I might try pitching a ♦ on the second spade. When I get in, KQ♥ followed by ♦A and K if I havent learned anything interesting.

 

Edit. Nevermind, pitching a ♦ scerws up my entries. I'll pitch a club.

[karlson]

Looks like a book hand -- if you pitch on the second spade you just need hearts 4-2 and diamonds coming in.

 

If hearts turn out to be 3-3 you can afford to safety play the diamonds (run the 9 on the first round).

[PhantomSac]

Looks like a book hand -- if you pitch on the second spade you just need hearts 4-2 and diamonds coming in.

 

If hearts turn out to be 3-3 you can afford to safety play the diamonds (run the 9 on the first round).

How is that? If you pitch on the 2nd spade they play a third spade. You ruff in dummy and do what? I don't see how you are guaranteeing your contract on 4-2 hearts even if diamonds come in.

[pooltuna]

probably pitch a ♦ on the second ♠ lead

[Cyberyeti]

I'm wondering whether pitching actually helps here. If you're going to lose a diamond and a heart then you're going off. What about ruffing, diamond to the A, if an honour drops, club to the Ace and diamond to the 10. If this is ruffed, provided it's ruffed from 3 or 4 trumps you're OK. If the 10 loses to the Q you're not in great shape but still have the chance of hearts 3-3.

 

This is yet another auction over 1m-?-2m where playing the next suit up relay helps, our auction if we decided to bid hearts first:

 

1♦-1♥-2♦(guarantees 6)-2♥(relay)-3♥(max, 3♥)-4♦-5♦(maybe, or a heart cue, for us 4♥ is RKCB, 4N is the ♥ cue, but even after the cue, we'd sign off, AKQxxx and KQx would be a 3♦ rebid, so you're shooting for something pretty precisely like xxx, Kxx, AKQxxx, x for the slam)

 

I think 6♦ might be not that much worse than 4♥ on the actual hand.

[karlson]

Looks like a book hand -- if you pitch on the second spade you just need hearts 4-2 and diamonds coming in.

 

If hearts turn out to be 3-3 you can afford to safety play the diamonds (run the 9 on the first round).

How is that? If you pitch on the 2nd spade they play a third spade. You ruff in dummy and do what? I don't see how you are guaranteeing your contract on 4-2 hearts even if diamonds come in.

You're right of course, I had two lines mixed up.

 

In that case I see three options:

 

1) Ruff and play diamonds immediately (yeti's line). I don't much care for this one -- nobody forces the long hand to ruff. If they just hold off and ruff the diamond with the short trump, I don't see how to make it after that unless hearts are 3-3.

 

2) Ruff and play HK,DA,HA,diamond. This will work if the third round of diamonds doesn't get ruffed, i.e. diamonds are H-Hxx and the fourth trump is with the long diamond. If the third diamond is ruffed, I think I'm toast.

 

3) Pitch a club, then (assuming 3rd spade) HKQ,DA,CA,HA. If the hearts are 3-3 give up a diamond and claim, otherwise CK, hook the diamond, and hope that you can pitch your last club on the fourth diamond (i.e. the third diamond is not ruffed.)

 

Unless I've missed something again, pitching is still best, but of course not a claimer.

[Codo]

For the bidding: With 1435 and AAK I hat rated my hand worth a game forcing and answered 2 club.

 

If I had played a mafia style and answered 1 Heart, I had raised diamonds - with a splinter if possible.

 

In anyway I had reached 5 diamond, a better spot.

 

For the play:

I would pitch a club. In theory they will play a third round of spade but in practice they will never allow me to score a ruff with the short trumps and a second discard. They will switch.

[gnasher]

1) Ruff and play diamonds immediately (yeti's line). I don't much care for this one -- nobody forces the long hand to ruff. If they just hold off and ruff the diamond with the short trump, I don't see how to make it after that unless hearts are 3-3.

If I can make three diamond tricks (having picked up Hxx onside and had RHO discard twice), I can try to cash my two clubs and then make four trump tricks from A9x opposite KQx.