Who is the goat here?

[mikeh]

Playing in the round robin stage of the World Seniors, you are sitting north with the above hand and auction…Peter Weischel, another legend, is on your left…and the GOAT Bob Hamman is on your right.

 

1C was alerted: it could be as few as two but only if 4=4=3=2.

 

The xx is explained as asking partner to run.

 

Do you stick to your guns and defend or do you yourself run?

 

(Had the hand as south but it was north..sorry about that)[hv=pc=n&n=s985hk8da98cat752&d=w&v=b&b=4&a=1cppdpprpp]133|200[/hv]

[sfi]

The posted hand is South - it's just labelled incorrectly.

[LBengtsson]

Trust partner. You were prepared to defend 1♣X so be prepared to defend 1♣XX. Yes partner has made a balancing X but it could well be better than minimum. I would not care who was at the table lol! (Although the two players you mentioned, mikeh, I have great respect to) West has a good hand but will have to lead away from it as East is very weak.

 

The problem here is being endplayed. You probably have 4-5 tricks available to help partner, but it will all depend on in which order they are played. The difficult area is to choose the opening lead ♥K or a ♠. A ♠ might help declarer establish a trick in the suit, and the ♥K looks danger.

 

Bidding 1NT is an option, but its fun finding the right defense against a 1XX contract, I guess lol! :)

[paulg]

I pass and hope that they don't make two overtricks :)

[helene_t]

Declarer will usually have 6 clubs but I'm OK with that. ♣7 is likely to become a trick and so is♥K so partner needs to be able to give me a heart ruff or have two tricks on his own. I think there are good chances.

 

Declarer's pass doesn't mean that they are confident. 3325 or 3226 they may just have nowhere to go.

 

Pass could be wrong but I think it's a reasonable gamble.

 

Nice lead problem, btw. I don't lead a diamond.

[gszes]

the 2 of clubs comes tumbling out of my hand. I expect 2 club tricks and this will not cost me anything (who knows, maybe p has the stray 9). I do not see the situation as any more dangerous than my first pass and I hate making dangerous leads when a safe lead should cost me nothing. I realize I may get stuck leading another suit anyway but I will have better info available by then.

[mikeh]

the 2 of clubs comes tumbling out of my hand. I expect 2 club tricks and this will not cost me anything (who knows, maybe p has the stray 9). I do not see the situation as any more dangerous than my first pass and I hate making dangerous leads when a safe lead should cost me nothing. I realize I may get stuck leading another suit anyway but I will have better info available by then.

The club 2 is a terrible lead on the actual hand and, imo, a terrible lead in theory.

 

I was the goat here: guilty of not thinking clearly.

 

Hamman obviously has 6 or 7 clubs to sit for the xx, but he can’t have a good hand…he can’t have 2 or 3 tricks on the side. With any hand like that, he’s bidding 2C over the double.

 

So I have a clear pass

 

 

I’d already decided to lead the heart King which, whether theoretically sound, would have worked very well, generating an easy 1600.

 

Oh well.

 

I bid 1N and played 3N for 630.

[gszes]

The club 2 is a terrible lead on the actual hand and, imo, a terrible lead in theory.

 

I was the goat here: guilty of not thinking clearly.

 

Hamman obviously has 6 or 7 clubs to sit for the xx, but he can’t have a good hand…he can’t have 2 or 3 tricks on the side. With any hand like that, he’s bidding 2C over the double.

 

So I have a clear pass

 

 

I’d already decided to lead the heart King which, whether theoretically sound, would have worked very well, generating an easy 1600.

 

Oh well.

 

I bid 1N and played 3N for 630.

 

 

I didn't think MIKEH was still reading my input. ANYWAY I am glad your partner was strong enough to raise 1n to 3n for a game score but setting 1C xx only 1 is 400 which beats any NON GAME score opposite a partner with slightly less values. IMHO a low club gives away nothing and may very easily hold declarer to 5 tricks (even if they hold 7 clubs) if they have to play the side suits from their hand. I am assuming that switching to the heart K at trick 3 does not yield down 2 for an easy 1000 beating all GAME scores our way even if not the theoretical maximum for the hand.