Some interesting suit combinations

[laughter]

You may try your technique of handling suit combinations, some of them are less well known and quite challenging:

 

1. K82 AJ1054

You are in 6NT, with plenty of entries to both hands. You need to play this one for 4 tricks to land your slam.

 

 

2. A5 Q10872

You cash your A and lead to dummy, all following small (no K, J or 9), Q or 10?

(Oops, you need to play for 4 tricks here)

 

3. A52 K10876

Your play for 4 tricks with no entry restriction.

 

4. Q1076 K5

You are in a small slam, this is a side suit where LHO (the one over Q1076) has overcalled at 1 level. You have 10 tricks already and need to develop 2 tricks here. Plenty of entries and trumps are available.

Sry, it is not a problem on endply. LHO has a safe exit that you can't eliminate.

 

Hope you enjoy this one!

[Free]

 

1. finesse to the J. I think it works with any distribution :) With any 5-0 you'll know how to play in the next trick, with any 4-1 you'll have your tricks.

 

2. how many tricks needed? I think the 10 is more successful than the Q

 

3. finesse to the 8. If Q or J drops play the Ace and finesse when necessary (or finesse to A5), otherwise you can just cash and hope for a 3-2 split... This is slightly better than A and finesse I think, since you can catch a 4 card behind KT876.

 

4. since he overcalled, I think you don't need to play this suit, and you can endplay him :) Small to the K, small and cover whatever the guy plays, and let overcaller come to me...

 

 

[EDIT] WOOPS I've hidden my answer before anyone complains about what forum we're in...

 

Nice post ;)

[twcho]

My answer as follows:

 

 

1. lead 2 towards 10 if next opp follows. If next opp shows out, win with A and return a small S towards K8.

 

 

 

2. u can't handle any 42 combination. So you have to play for 33 break and the chance of Jxx to Kxx is equal. So Q or 10 are of equal chance.

 

 

 

3. Play the 10 and if next opp doesn't cover, let it ride.

 

 

 

4. Interesting. Never thought that before. Try the 10 and force the overcaller to cover with J and win the K or let the 10 ride if opp does not cover. Then play back the 5 and just cover whatever the opp plays. Then play your highest remaining card for ruffing finesse. This will work whenever the overcaller's pd is 9x or 8x or 98 or singleton 9 or 8 or 9xx or 8xx but will fail if he holds 98x or the J.

 

[luke warm]

i'll try the hidden thing trick also, under each question

 

1. K82 AJ1054

You are in 6NT. You need to play this one for 4 tricks

 

 

finesse the 10 unless lho shows out

 

 

2. A5 Q10872

You cash your A and lead to dummy, all following small you need to play for 4 tricks

 

 

i hate this one... this is *very* close to the first trick (the ace) being wrong (the Q would need to be led)... i'd play the Q on the 2nd trick on the theory that lho would play low with or without the K.. i have no idea what's right

 

 

3. A52 K10876

Your play for 4 tricks

 

 

low to the 6.. win next with A then lead toward K, 10

 

 

4. Q1076 K5

You have 10 tricks already and need to develop 2 tricks

 

 

small to K then duck all around (unless J pops up in front of Q, 10)... aim is to play Q at next opportunity, hoping to drop Jxx

 

[skorchev]

1. Small to 10 - it's safety for 4 tricks.

 

2. Q - it's not safety but it's the best imho.

 

3. Small to 6 - it's not safety but it's the best imho.

 

4. This one looks a little silly for me because there is only one variant - small to K and small to small, the chance is double Ace (or singleton Ace or Jack in RHO). I mean that you can't give 2 tricks because then the slam is going down.

 

 

Stefan

[twcho]

Why are there so few responses to these questions? It is quite interesting indeed. Try them.

[inquiry]

Ok.. I will answer, but I am not going to hide my answers.. heck, they are never right anyway.

 

1. K82 AJ1054

You are in 6NT. You need to play this one for 4 tricks

 

This is easy one. Lead from the three card hand and if RHO follows shows out, play the Jack. And if RHO follows low play the jack.

 

2. A5 Q10872

You cash your A and lead to dummy, all following small (no K, J or 9), Q or 10?

(Oops, you need to play for 4 tricks here)

 

2). I disagree with the conditions. I would not play the ace first. If you did play the ace first, then play low the Queen or Ten. Equal chances. But this line is markedly inferior to other lines. The one I like would be to brazenly start with the Queen from my hand. If West covers, I will win and lead low the eight. If the Queen loses to the king. Even if the queen floats and loses to the king, you have a slight chance of cathing West with J9 doubleton.

 

How do you compare these lines? The Ace and small requires 3-3 split (35%), and not KJx behind the Q, and a lucky guess when Kxx or Jxx is behind the queen. This comes to be something like 17% (roughly half of the 3-3 splits with a good guess). How does Q lead do?

 

Well, if West has Kxx great. If he has KJx, great. If he has J9 doubleton, great (the Ace will drop the jack). If West has Kxxx, great, if West has KJxx (the nine shows up on second round). The sum of these chances is greater than starting with the ace.

 

3. A52 K10876

Your play for 4 tricks

 

3) I play the high card from the three card hand, then I lead low and just cover whatever card my RHO plays.

 

4. Q1076 K5

You are in a small slam, this is a side suit where LHO (the one over Q1076) has overcalled at 1 level. You have 10 tricks already and need to develop 2 tricks here. Plenty of entries and trumps are available.

 

I lead the Ten from dummy. If (when) rho covers, I win king, and lead low back the Queen. Hope lho has one of these holdings.. 9, 8, 9x, 8x. or 98. Even the unexpected A9 or A8 will do.

 

Ben

[cherdano]

Hi Ben,

 

your answer to no. 4 seems right for 2 tricks, but not if you are in a small slam (or more generally when you can only lose one trick in the suit). I see nothing else but leading low to the K and then back low to the 10 (playing the short hand before Q1076 for Jx(x)). Which means I probably missed s.th. obvious...

 

Arend

[inquiry]

Hi Ben,

 

your answer to no. 4 seems right for 2 tricks, but not if you are in a small slam (or more generally when you can only lose one trick in the suit). I see nothing else but leading low to the K and then back low to the 10 (playing the short hand before Q1076 for Jx(x)). Which means I probably missed s.th. obvious...

 

Arend

What you missed are we are in a suit contract and we only need two tricks..... and we have plenty of trumps.... so.... maybe that is what you overlooked...

 

Ben

[paulhar]

if West has KJxx (the nine shows up on second round).

It sure does, but that doesn't help if West withholds an honor on your queen.

 

2. Very interesting problem indeed, but pretty tough for intermediates and almost impossible for beginners.

 

First, if you play the ace and it goes low, low, nine, you must play for J9 doubleton.

 

Given that, an expert can 'force' you to guess to play the queen by playing the 9 from K9x. However, since the queen and ten are equal chance plays, I'm going to pretend that my opponent dropped the nine whether he did or not (he could have if he held it), and play the queen, picking up all the jack thirds and J9 doubleton. (He might get me by playing the jack with J9 but fortunately few players are that good.) So, ace and low to the queen picks up KJ, some J9's, J96, J94, J93, J64, J63, J43 over the Q10 hand. Ben's line of leading the queen picks up K64, K63, K43, KJ3, KJ4, KJ6, J9, K643 over the Q10 with no chance for a falsecard from J9. So Ben's line is technically slightly superior, and he also gains more from possible misdefense.

 

If my opponent was an "real" expert and thought I was a turkey (probably likely :lol: ), there's a lot to be said for playing ace and low to the 10 when the 9 shows up, since he would play the jack from KJ or J9 and would only play the 9 from K9x to try to dupe me for playing him for J9.

 

1. Everybody gets this one right, low to Jack picks up 5-0 on either side.

 

3. No difference between running the 10 and leading low to the 8 (except a weak opponent.) All 3-2 splits make, all 5-0 splits don't make. Everything loses to QJ9x offside. Running the 10 also loses to Q9xx offside. (By offside, I mean sitting over the 5-card hand.) Leading low to the 8 loses to singleton 9 in either hand. Here's where the weak opponent comes in. If you lead low toward the 8, and the 9 pops up before you play the 8, are you really going to go up with the king and finesse on the way back? Good! Your expert opponent just dinged you out of your winning position by playing the 9 from QJ9x. If you don't think your opponent would ever do that, then by all means, play low to the 8, and then pick up QJxx offside when the 9 comes up, which is superior to running the ten.

 

4. I think most people got this one right (or at least played as I did :lol: )

Run the 10, planning to take a ruffing finesse after the 9 or 8 drops.

[Stephen Tu]

[A5 vs. QT872]

ace, then low to Q regardless of whether J or 9 dropped works just as well as

ace, then low to T, but low to 8 if the J dropped. 22.609%. Good defender should be falsecarding 9 from K9x or J from J9 enough so that you can't do better than this. If you follow this strategy you won't do any worse than this. If you can decipher an opp's suboptimal falsecard strategy you might do better, but you might do worse if you are wrong.

 

Leading the Q is definitely much worse, terrible really. You need the 9 for leading the Q to be right. Leading the Q (then hook 8 if covered), vs. ace then low to Q, gains when KJx (not KJ9), Kxx (not K9x), 6 of the 3-3 breaks are onside. But it loses on KJx, KJ9, Kxx, K9x, KJ offside, or 10 3-3 breaks + a 4-2 break. That's a net 8.72% worse.

[Stephen Tu]

[a52 vs. kt876]

No difference between running the 10 and leading low to the 8 (except a weak opponent.) All 3-2 splits make, all 5-0 splits don't make.

 

Uh, no.

Line a, low to 8, but hop k if Q or J shows up then run 8, picks up all 3-2 breaks,

qj9x onside, and all stiff Q, stiff J.

 

Running the T, presumably hooking on the way back if covered:

picks up all 3-2 breaks, and stiff 9s, and stiff q / J on one side. So net,

you lose on qj9x onside or 5.65% worse.

[sceptic]

1/. I would play 2 to the 10 to see how the cards split

 

 

2/. Ace the 5 to the Q

 

 

3/. Dunno

 

 

4/. 6 to the king

[jtfanclub]

What you missed are we are in a suit contract and we only need two tricks..... and we have plenty of trumps.... so.... maybe that is what you overlooked...

 

Ben

It's too late. If you play the ten and it isn't covered, and you let it ride, the opponent takes the J and A immediately. You don't get a chance to ruff.

[inquiry]

What you missed are we are in a suit contract and we only need two tricks..... and we have plenty of trumps.... so....  maybe that is what you overlooked...

 

Ben

It's too late. If you play the ten and it isn't covered, and you let it ride, the opponent takes the J and A immediately. You don't get a chance to ruff.

Well if my LHO has singleton or doublleton JACK, you are correct, leading the ten leads to down. However if he has singleton or doublton 9 or 8, leading the Ten makes. Now, so the question is, which combination is more likely (not even counting that bidding on A98xx is much less likely tha bidding on AJ9xx).

 

Let's see...Chances of West with Jx

 

 

A

J

J4

J3

J2

J9

J9

AJ

 

Five chances.. Now p[laying WEST for the 9 or 8

 

A

9

8

92

93

94

98

82

83

84

 

As you can see, 10 chances are better than 8, and that is not counting that hte chance of West haivng doubleton AJ or singleton Ace is probalvy close to zero.

 

Ben