A misfit misadventure

[AL78]

5CM, strong NT, MPs

 

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After the overcall I detected a stonking misfit so decided against wading in. I thought if partner had a decent hand she will bid again. She didn't and the opps ended up in a club contract.

 

Looking at the full deal in isolation I'm glad I stayed quiet. We might make 2♦ but we should get them off at least two. On misfits like this the objective is to get a plus score. We almost got it right but failed spectacularly near the end. I decided to start off with clubs to cut ruffs down rather than start with my singleton diamond (although that might have helped partner with hindsight).

 

The clanger was dropped when partner got in with her last spade and the spades in dummy are now set up, with the diamond ace as an entry. She has to make the apparently gutsy play of the ♦K to knock out the ace whilst she holds the master trump, then ruff a spade with it. Dummy's spades are then dead and I make some heart tricks. Unfortunately she decided to draw declarer's last trump then play a heart. Game over, 2♣=, 25%. The rest of the evening didn't go much better (some of it my fault), and the 45% we ended up with was deserved.

 

I'm not sure I've got the play exactly right, but what generally happened is captured.

[shyams]

The clanger was dropped when partner got in with her last spade and the spades in dummy are now set up, with the diamond ace as an entry. She has to make the apparently gutsy play of the ♦K to knock out the ace whilst she holds the master trump, then ruff a spade with it. Dummy's spades are then dead and I make some heart tricks.

In all honesty, I too might have flubbed the defence in the South seat. However, if one sits back and thinks it through, the correct action is possible to deduce.

 

North's play of the ♠J (I meant) ♠4 at trick 3 was actually a very useful card to South, who now knows that North held 4 cards in spades. This indicates that West is either 2=6=1=4 or 2=5=2=4. In either case, South needs the ♦Q to be singleton (either with West or with North) so the play of ♦K should be possible. Here (West holding a singleton ♦x) means that a low diamond works equally well.

[johnu]

The clanger was dropped when partner got in with her last spade and the spades in dummy are now set up, with the diamond ace as an entry. She has to make the apparently gutsy play of the ♦K to knock out the ace whilst she holds the master trump, then ruff a spade with it. Dummy's spades are then dead and I make some heart tricks. Unfortunately she decided to draw declarer's last trump then play a heart. Game over, 2♣=, 25%. The rest of the evening didn't go much better (some of it my fault), and the 45% we ended up with was deserved.

Faulty analysis. The hand was over (double dummy) the last trick and 2♣ was cold at that point. You can check with GIB at that point to confirm.

 

On the lead of ♦K, declarer wins, and cashes 2 hearts. If South ruffs the 2nd heart, they have to give dummy entry with a diamond to cash the spades. If South doesn't ruff, there is a trump throw in with the same result.

 

On the lead of a low diamond, dummy ducks, and North can't knock out dummy's ♦A entry.

[AL78]

Faulty analysis. The hand was over (double dummy) the last trick and 2♣ was cold at that point. You can check with GIB at that point to confirm.

 

On the lead of ♦K, declarer wins, and cashes 2 hearts. If South ruffs the 2nd heart, they have to give dummy entry with a diamond to cash the spades. If South doesn't ruff, there is a trump throw in with the same result.

 

On the lead of a low diamond, dummy ducks, and North can't knock out dummy's ♦A entry.

 

Thanks, I didn't see that line, I take it back, my partner wasn't at fault. I guess I'll file this one under getting a poor score with me taking actions that seemed reasonable at the time but worked out badly.

[johnu]

Thanks, I didn't see that line, I take it back, my partner wasn't at fault. I guess I'll file this one under getting a poor score with me taking actions that seemed reasonable at the time but worked out badly.

Well, not exactly. The trick before, instead of a club, South can beat 2♣ with a diamond switch (not the ♦J) instead of the trump switch. It seems easy to misdefend this hand.

[akwoo]

I would not have passed with the South hand over 1♠; I would've bid 2♦. East/West could have a spade fit, and if so you want partner to be in on the decision about whether to compete to 3♦ or not.

[AL78]

Well, not exactly. The trick before, instead of a club, South can beat 2♣ with a diamond switch (not the ♦J) instead of the trump switch. It seems easy to misdefend this hand.

 

That is not easy to find at the table. I likely wouldn't have found it.

[doccdl]

The fact remains fact.why did your partner not lead the DQ to start with.Why did he/she leave everything for your imagination?

[AL78]

The fact remains fact.why did your partner not lead the DQ to start with.Why did he/she leave everything for your imagination?

 

I didn't lead the DQ because I wanted to cut down on heart ruffs in dummy. Standard strategy when you know declarer has a load of losers in a suit and dummy will be short.

[Huibertus]

I didn't lead the DQ because I wanted to cut down on heart ruffs in dummy. Standard strategy when you know declarer has a load of losers in a suit and dummy will be short.

 

True.

 

 

But in this case there is a conflicting standard practise. When you suspect you can beat the contract by defenders becoming masters in trump, lead the partnerships best suit in order to do so even more so when that suit is in the sam hand as the long trumps. If the original assessment of a mistfit is correct then south has ♦ and ♣, so that would ask for a ♦ lead.

[miamijd]

I didn't lead the DQ because I wanted to cut down on heart ruffs in dummy. Standard strategy when you know declarer has a load of losers in a suit and dummy will be short.

 

The Kc was a reasonable opening lead given the bidding. That would have been my choice, for the reason you mentioned.

 

But when dummy comes down, I think you should switch to the Qd at trick 2.

 

Dummy has only three trump headed by the 9. Partner has a stiff heart (maybe a void). So if declarer's plan is to ruff hearts (the reason you led clubs), he is going to fail: partner will almost certainly be able to overruff.

 

OK. What would declarer's Plan B be? Set up dummy's spades. This is especially true if declarer has Ks, for example. How do we foil that plan? Get the outside entry off the dummy.

 

Your partner should see this as well when in with the first spade. He knows that declarer will fail if he tries to ruff H. What is declarer doing? Right - trying to set up spades. How do we stop that? Lead diamonds and remove the Ace.

 

Cheers,

Mike

[AL78]

The Kc was a reasonable opening lead given the bidding. That would have been my choice, for the reason you mentioned.

 

But when dummy comes down, I think you should switch to the Qd at trick 2.

 

Dummy has only three trump headed by the 9. Partner has a stiff heart (maybe a void). So if declarer's plan is to ruff hearts (the reason you led clubs), he is going to fail: partner will almost certainly be able to overruff.

 

OK. What would declarer's Plan B be? Set up dummy's spades. This is especially true if declarer has Ks, for example. How do we foil that plan? Get the outside entry off the dummy.

 

Your partner should see this as well when in with the first spade. He knows that declarer will fail if he tries to ruff H. What is declarer doing? Right - trying to set up spades. How do we stop that? Lead diamonds and remove the Ace.

 

Cheers,

Mike

 

Ok I see what you meant now, thanks. I have a habit when formulating a defensive plan to miss one piece of logical deduction which then puts me on a sub-optimal line. I didn't think at the time about the fact that partner would be overruffing dummy, and I didn't twig the spades as a threat immediately. The latter dawned on me one trick later but it is too late then, I never get back in.