Grand Slam with bad trump break

[xeno123]

So playing in the free daily tournament (IMP) I ended up in this not very good 7♠ contract.

 

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1. How to improve the bidding? I was indeed worried about the Q♠ but couldn't figure out what to do about it after the 5NT reponse.

 

2. Why did the robot East not cover the J♠? Certainly gave me heartburn, but I figured I had to play East for the Q anyhow.

 

3. Why does covering the J turn out to be the only way to set the contract?

 

4. Why did the robot East discard the A♥? Worried about an end-play perhaps? And why the club discards?

 

5. I think my play was sub-optimal, although it worked here. Can someone else confirm what I think to be a slight improvement? (Incidentally nobody else in a field of 105 bid and made the spade grand slam - one other player bid and made 7 diamonds, with 6NT being a popular contract).

[johnu]

1. How to improve the bidding? I was indeed worried about the Q♠ but couldn't figure out what to do about it after the 5NT reponse.

 

2. Why did the robot East not cover the J♠? Certainly gave me heartburn, but I figured I had to play East for the Q anyhow.

 

3. Why does covering the J turn out to be the only way to set the contract?

 

4. Why did the robot East discard the A♥? Worried about an end-play perhaps? And why the club discards?

 

5. I think my play was sub-optimal, although it worked here. Can someone else confirm what I think to be a slight improvement? (Incidentally nobody else in a field of 105 bid and made the spade grand slam - one other player bid and made 7 diamonds, with 6NT being a popular contract).

 

1. You don't know what North's void is, and you are missing ♠Q. Once you bid 4NT, you are in trouble. GIB plays Soloway jump shifts, so you showed an independent strong suit when you bid 4NT. Your systemic bid after the spade raise would be 3NT to show a fairly balanced hand with a lot of points.

 

GIB could have bid 4♥ instead of raising spades to show spade support and a void and then would have to adjust it's bidding to not bid 5NT over 4NT since the void was already shown. You would then be able to make a trump queen asking bid. Probably too much to expect from GIB programming.

 

3. If GIB covers the jack, you need 1 entry to take another finesse, another entry to trump a diamond to reduce your trumps to the same length as East, and a third entry to execute the trump coup. You only have 2 entries.

 

4. A GIB surrender play? You are marked with the ♣A so it doesn't matter what GIB discards if you play the cards correctly. GIB frequently throws random cards when analysis shows that it doesn't matter.

 

edit add - 5. Playing ♠AK only picks up Q10 tight. Running the jack can pick up Q10 or (Q10x or Qxx depending on your 2nd trump play) (or Qx if East doesn't cover).

[manudude03]

1. I think the 5NT bid should show either the queen of spades or extra length personally, but no way to find out in the gib methods.

2. Probably didn't think it could cost.

3. To pull off the trump coup, you would need to cross to dummy, take another trump finesse, and then run all the diamonds maintaining an entry for if East ruffs, you don't have the entries with the club finesse being offside.

4. Probably can't cost double dummy.

5. Don't see anything myself.

[Cyberyeti]

What were you intending to do if J♠ was covered ?

 

Since you don't have the entries for the trump coup, you are down to:

cashing the ace, hoping the 10 drops - in which case you were simply better cashing AK

crossing in diamonds and taking a trump finesse hoping for Q10x, if E shows out, take the club finesse to generate the entry for the trump coup

 

Looking at W's holdings

 

A intending to play K without ruffing a heart works for Q10, Q8, Q6, Q3, 1086, 1083, 1063, 863, Q

J intending to cash K next works for 108, 106, 103, 863, 10 <50% of the time (needs working club finesse and E to have 2+♦)

J intending second trump finesse of 9 works for 86, 83, 63, (10 or 8) same <50% above

 

Looks to me that simply cashing AK is best

[steve2005]

1. I think the 5NT bid should show either the queen of spades or extra length personally, but no way to find out in the gib methods.

Biding 5NT showing a void with 0 KC as an opener is just wrong. Any book I have ever seen suggests supressing a void with 0 KC.

As opener it is even more bizarre. Responder is unlikely to want to be in slam opposite an opener with no KC even if somehow they knew what the void was.

 

[xeno123]

I do have the J♣ as another potential entry for the trump coup, but realistically I wouldn't know it was needed until too late. So you might well be correct that my trump line was suboptimal.

 

The inaccuracy I was actually thinking of was the timing of my ♦ruff - I think I should do it earlier. If East was shorter in clubs, it could discard a club right away and threaten to ruff my club return to dummy after I ruff a spade. Then I'd have a heart loser. (Not 100% sure about this).

 

I really never seem to end up doing well with the Soloway jump shifts - don't know how much is me and how much is the system. Partly it doesn't come up much so hard to practice.

[manudude03]

What were you intending to do if J♠ was covered ?

 

Since you don't have the entries for the trump coup, you are down to:

cashing the ace, hoping the 10 drops - in which case you were simply better cashing AK

crossing in diamonds and taking a trump finesse hoping for Q10x, if E shows out, take the club finesse to generate the entry for the trump coup

 

Looking at W's holdings

 

A intending to play K without ruffing a heart works for Q10, Q8, Q6, Q3, 1086, 1083, 1063, 863, Q

J intending to cash K next works for 108, 106, 103, 863, 10 <50% of the time (needs working club finesse and E to have 2+♦)

J intending second trump finesse of 9 works for 86, 83, 63, (10 or 8) same <50% above

 

Looks to me that simply cashing AK is best

 

You already used one of dummy's spades for ruffing a heart, meaning you can't pick up Qx in either hand (unless QT tight).

[Cyberyeti]

You already used one of dummy's spades for ruffing a heart, meaning you can't pick up Qx in either hand (unless QT tight).

 

I did specify I cashed AK without ruffing a heart, I don't need the entry, 5♠, 7♦, 2♣ is enough

[Cyberyeti]

You already used one of dummy's spades for ruffing a heart, meaning you can't pick up Qx in either hand (unless QT tight).

 

ah sorry, missed the heart lead, thought declarer had voluntarily ruffed one

[nige1]

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400|300| Thank you xeno123, for posting such an interesting hand. IMO ♠ finesses are declarer's best practical shot. Especially as RHO might not cover with ♠Qxx.

If RHO covers ♠J, then you need the ♣ finesse to work to give you 3 dummy-entries,

- to finesse ♠9

- to shorten your trumps with a ♦ ruff and

- to run dummy's ♦ to coup RHO's trumps.

 

RHO failing to cover ♠J means that you only need 2 entries to dummy -- which is lucky when RHO holds ♣Q.

 

After finessing ♠9 and cashing ♦AQ, declarer must guess who has ♣Q.

 

If LHO has ♣Q, then you should ruff a ♦, immediately, before RHO gets rid of too many ♣s. With no other information, I think this is the distribution for which declarer should play. Hence RHO GIB's discard of ♥A was precipitate surrender..

.

IMO, it's inferior to play RHO for ♣Q, as here. Although, you can still succeed with an unusual kind of front-wash squeeze:

 

When you guess that RHO has come down to a singleton ♣Q, then ruff a ♦ and return to dummy with ♣K. Later, when RHO ruffs, you can over-ruff, draw trumps, and re-enter dummy with ♣J to cash dummy's ♦s.[/hv]