7NT

[heart76]

Posting this interesting hand I played in an MP arena challenge.

East led a small ♠.

Can you figure the line for 13 tricks?

 

If you wonder about the bidding, it went: 1♥ - 2NT / 4♣ - 4♦ / 4NT - 5♠ / 5NT - 6♦ / 7NT.

Of course, at IMPs one goes for 7♥, which looks laydown already from the bidding with a ♣ ruff in dummy.

But at MPs and with 12 tricks from the top...

 

[hv=pc=n&s=sa2hkjt32d2cakq92&n=sk643haq854dak7c4]133|200[/hv]

[pescetom]

If you wonder about the bidding, it went: 1♥ - 2NT / 4♣ - 4♦

I do wonder a bit, could you please explain?

[heart76]

I do wonder a bit, could you please explain?

Well, it's GIB standard, so:

2NT = game force, typ. 4 card support

4♣ = 5-card ♣, typ. a good suit

4♦ = cuebid

[helene_t]

Hope that the club length (4+) and spade length (5+) are together and go for the simple squeeze.

 

Additional chance: ♣JT or JTx somewhere. Or maybe someone discards wrongly.

[nige1]

[hv=pc=n&w=SQJ9H76DQT865CJ73&s=sa2hkjt32d2cakq92&n=sk643haq854dak7c4&d=S&a=1H(2/1)P2N(Jacoby)P4C(Length)P4D(Cue)P4N(RKC)P5S(2+Q)P5N(Ks?)P6D(!DK)P7N(Punt)PPP&p=S5]400|300|

Declarer wins ♠A and ♥AKQJT

If East protects ♣s, he is susceptible to a compound squeeze: on the 4th ♥, East must abandon a pointed suit.

1. If East keeps fewer than 3 ♦s, then declarer cashes ♦AK discarding a ♣. Now, ♣AKQ execute a double-squeeze. with ♠s a threat against both opponents.

2. If East keeps fewer than 2 ♠s, then declarer cashes ♠K. Now, ♣AKQ execute a different double-squeeze with ♦s a threat against both opponents.[/hv][hv=pc=n&w=SQJT98H76DQT8CJ73&s=sa2hkjt32d2cakq92&n=sk643haq854dak7c4&d=S&a=1H(2/1)P2N(Jacoby)P4C(Length)P4D(Cue)P4N(RKC)P5S(2+Q)P5N(Ks?)P6D(!DK)P7N(Punt)PPP&p=S5]400|300|

Anyway, declarer can still start with ♠A and ♥AKQJT.

Now, with no clue to the distribution, from opponent's play,

Declarer must guess for which of many possible squeezes to play. One line is to continue ♠K, ♣AKQ, playing for the 2nd double-squeeze. Another good line is Helene_Ts black suit squeeze which works against either defender.[/hv]

Edited March 13, 2018 by nige1

[steve2005]

Nice. At MP i will take the laydown 7♥ and use my saved energy on another hand.

[ahydra]

Nige1, North is declarer, so your second example looks unrealistic as East probably wouldn't lead the ♠9 from that. The compound squeeze is pretty cool though, I've got to admit.

 

Had a similar hand the other day: ♠KQJ98x ♥Q9x ♦7 ♣AK9 opposite (declarer) ♠A ♥A10xx ♦AKQJ10 ♣10xx, lead ♣x. Given I'm posting it you can tell spades break 5-1 and the ♠10 doesn't come down :). I was in the unambitious 6NT but if I had been in 7NT, I needed to find the squeeze where ♥KJ is with the long spades.

 

ahydra

[nige1]

Nige1, North is declarer, so your second example looks unrealistic as East probably wouldn't lead the ♠9 from that. The compound squeeze is pretty cool though, I've got to admit.Had a similar hand the other day: ♠KQJ98x ♥Q9x ♦7 ♣AK9 opposite (declarer) ♠A ♥A10xx ♦AKQJ10 ♣10xx, lead ♣x. Given I'm posting it you can tell spades break 5-1 and the ♠10 doesn't come down . I was in the unambitious 6NT but if I had been in 7NT, I needed to find the squeeze where ♥KJ is with the long spades.ahydra

 

Thank you, AHydra, I've altered the deal to make North declarer and the ♠ suit so that it is a reasonable lead for East. That does not much alter the choice between lines. Although, in principle I prefer declarer to be South (or West).

[maartenxq]

This seems to be a double squeeze. west should hold long ♠ and east long [clubs. Can we improve on that? Take first trick and try ♣. If nothing happens or if west has short ♣try the double. If west appears to have 5 ♣we shall be down. If however we start with 5 ♥we will get some discards while opponents are still in the dark. Some of them will be disastrous. So thats what I will do. ♠Ace, hearts,♠K, ♣ and see what happens.

 

Maarten Baltussen

[lamford]

I would certainly play 7H, as I would assume the opponents were able to find the diamond lead to break up the compound squeeze or the double squeeze, as diamonds is the pivot suit. This will always defeat 7NT when both opponents guard spades and diamonds, as is very likely, and they should be able to work that out before the lead if they know that South has a singleton diamond. If you want to get into the papers, then try for Nigel's very nice line.

 

Even thinking of bidding 7NT is a serious error. Bridge Analyser showed that 7H is making 99.4% whereas 7NT only makes 23.3% of the time.

[Lovera]

Infact it is so: because you are landing in 7♥ if you want try NT have to ask ..6♠(=? King) and having 6NT(=yes K) as answer you can bid 7NT but needs that club suit is already estabilished (if partner has another card and suit breaks 3-2) or a simple squeeze there is. But this is not how the compound says(=unilateral in club) and with this ending only a balanced or "type R" double squeeze is possible.(Lovera)

[miamijd]

I guess I would cash the spade, diamond, and heart winners ending in dummy, so that dummy had two spades, a diamond, and a club, and declarer had AKQx of clubs and then if my spade or diamond weren't good, play clubs and hope one of several possible squeezes had materialized.

 

I'd much rather be in 7H even in MPs. Many won't bid the grand, and virtually no one will bid 7NT. No point risking a 70% score for a zero.

 

Mike

[heart76]

The full deal as played:

 

[hv=pc=n&sn=heart76&s=SA2HKJT32D2CAKQ92&wn=Robot&w=SJT95H976DQJT6C65&nn=Robot&n=SK643HAQ854DAK7C4&en=Robot&e=SQ87HD98543CJT873&d=e&v=e&b=6&a=P1H(5+)P2N!(Jacoby)P4C(SideSuit)P4D(Cue)P4N(RKCB)P5S(2+Q)P5N(Ks?)P6D(!DK)P7N(-)PPP&p=S7SAS5S3H2H9HAD3HQD5H3H7H4C3HKH6HJD6H5D4HTC6H8D8D2DTDAD9DKS8C2DQC4CTCAC5CKDJS4C7&c=13]400|300|[/hv]

 

Declarer wins ♠A and ♥AKQJ.

If East protects ♣s, he is susceptible to a compound squeeze: on the 4th ♥, East must abandon a pointed suit.

1. If East keeps fewer than 3 ♦s, then declarer cashes ♦AK discarding a ♣. Now, declarer's ♥T and ♣AKQ execute a double-squeeze. with ♠s a threat against both opponents.

2. If East keeps fewer than 2 ♠s, then declarer cashes ♠K. Now, declarer's ♥T and ♣AKQ execute a different double-squeeze with ♦s a threat against both opponents.

 

Yep, and I went for it. Good that GIB chose the right (for me) pointy suit (♠), otherwise I'm one down.

Per A.Moon's book, in this position, one should cash also the last heart to fully clarify the position, since the suit that must be played next is the one that the tripled-squeezed opponent has abandoned (in the play it was obviously ♦, so it was easy). This is possible since there are 2 free cards (here the ♥) opposite the squeeze cards (what Moon calls an unrestricted position).

 

I would certainly play 7H, as I would assume the opponents were able to find the diamond lead to break up the compound squeeze or the double squeeze, as diamonds is the pivot suit. This will always defeat 7NT when both opponents guard spades and diamonds, as is very likely, and they should be able to work that out before the lead if they know that South has a singleton diamond. If you want to get into the papers, then try for Nigel's very nice line.

 

Even thinking of bidding 7NT is a serious error. Bridge Analyser showed that 7H is making 99.4% whereas 7NT only makes 23.3% of the time.

 

As I wrote in the post, my evaluation of 7♥ was 100%. I assume the outcome of that contract to be 60% or so in a slightly-above-average context.

The evaluation of the possible useful cards if 7NT is not laydown, i.e. ♠Q, ♣J, ♣ length, ♦Q, plus the additional chance of a squeeze, made the case to 7NT. Life is short :)

The squeeze (compound in this case) gives you the 13th trick every time when:

(a) E has 4+♣ and does not lead ♦

(b) E has ♣J10x on whichever lead

I think this should correspond to the 23% chance you calculated. Before seeing the double-dummy, you still have the chance of an extra card.

So for me it depends a bit on the context.

[lamford]

As I wrote in the post, my evaluation of 7♥ was 100%. I assume the outcome of that contract to be 60% or so in a slightly-above-average context.

The evaluation of the possible useful cards if 7NT is not laydown, i.e. ♠Q, ♣J, ♣ length, ♦Q, plus the additional chance of a squeeze, made the case to 7NT. Life is short :)

The squeeze (compound in this case) gives you the 13th trick every time when:

(a) E has 4+♣ and does not lead ♦

(b) E has ♣J10x on whichever lead

I think this should correspond to the 23% chance you calculated. Before seeing the double-dummy, you still have the chance of an extra card.

So for me it depends a bit on the context.

Indeeed, if I just change the nine of clubs to the ten of clubs, the chance of success zooms to 81%. Now Deep finesse takes a deep finesse of the ten when it works, and plays for the jack to come down or a squeeze otherwise