[Gerben42]

Scoring: IMP

---

Pass 2♠ Dbl Pass
2NT* Pass 3♦** Pass
3NT Pass Pass Double
Pass Pass Pass

* Lebensohl - partner should bid 3♣
** 19+, 5+♦

What do you lead and why? Is this an agreement or "common sense"?

[joshs]

I don't think there is a completely universal agreement here.

A. The most standard agreement is that when "our side" has bid exactly 1 suit and the opps bid to 3N, x demands the lead of our suit. Since the pre-empter may not have a side entry and usually leads his own suit anyway, its not clear that this helps

B. What might be a better agreement is exactly the opposite: they are going down on power, just don't blow a trick at trick 1.

C. Lightner asking for a diamond lead.

I think its pretty rare when agreement C will set the contract and agreement B wouldn't....

[FrancesHinden]

I don't think there is a standard.
I wouldn't lead a diamond, because although partner clearly has length in the suit we aren't going to develop many tricks.

I would probably lead a spade, because we will run the suit if partner has a low doubleton and declarer KQx. But hearts or clubs could be right.

[whereagles]

RHO's hand seems to be a sign-off with hearts, so that crosses out a heart lead. I don't think clubs is the right lead, so that leaves a diamond or a spade. If pard's dbl is lightner, then diamond. Else spade. If everything was on tempo, I'll go for lightner.

[han]

The agreement I had with my f2f partner is that the double asks for a spade lead. Had the preemptor doubled then it would ask for a non-spade lead (unlikely here, but that would be our agreement for similar auctions).

[asdfg2k]

My mamma taught me that this means: do not be disuaded, partner, please lead your suit.

It looks to me like the 3NT bidder is 3316, dummy is 1462 or 2362, partner has diamonds and hearts with just enough spades and faith in my vul two spade opening.

[Gerben42]

Well at the table I led a ♦ which wasn't what partner wanted, this was clear when dummy tabled:

Scoring: IMP

---

Declarer takes the Ace and King of ♦ and surrenders the 3rd ♦ to partner, who leads the 8 of ♠, covered by the Queen.

What did you discard so far? What are you going to do now?

[whereagles]

Well, seems like pard's double was on points. Anyway, declarer seems to have 8 tricks: 1 spade, 1 heart, 4 diams, 2 clubs. We won't have the heart king as well (otherwise he would have bid 2NT, and if he has it, he makes 3NT anyway), so you have to duck the spade to keep communications to pard. Meanwhile, you can afford to discard 2 spades, 1 club and 1 heart.

[FrancesHinden]

Luckily I wasn't in this position!

Assuming declarer has the KQ of spades, he has 4 diamonds, 2 clubs (via a finesse) a spade and a heart. Partner needs the J or 10 of clubs and the king of hearts, otherwise declarer has 9 tricks.

I have two options:

i) Duck the spade. This plays partner to have a doubleton spade. Declarer can take a club finesse now (last time he's in hand) and run red winners. The interesting layout is when declarer has

KQx
Jxxx
xxx
Jxx

and takes the club finesse then cashes the rest of the diamonds. In the 6-card ending (5 diamonds, 1 spade, 1 club gone), dummy has
x
Axx
-
Ax

and his hand has

Kx
Jx
-
Jx

if I have only black cards left (or 1 heart and black cards) he can cash the ace of hearts and throw me in with one black suit to give him a trick in the other.

So I'd better hold on to two hearts: I have to keep the same shape as declarer.

ii) Win the spade and play a heart. Effective playing for partner to have started with a singleton spade. This needs partner to have much better hearts than just the king - at least the KQ, and even that is not enough as declarer can just lead twice towards the J of hearts. With KQJ of hearts I would have expected partner to switch to the HK now, forcing declarer to duck at least once, before the spade.

So all in all playing partner to have a doubleton spade seems better odds than for him to have a singleton and all the stuff he needs in the other suits. As long as I remember to keep both my hearts, I can't see where his 9th trick is coming from. Good job I've got the C9.

[whereagles]

Seems like a good analysis

[Walddk]

So partner wanted a heart lead. Not sure how he wanted us to figure that out when he doubled. Anyway, I agree with Frances' analysis, although there was an error in her previous post (very unlike Frances).

I would probably lead a spade, because we will run the suit if partner has a low doubleton and declarer KQx.

That's not quite true. A good declarer would duck if you lead the jack or 10; then you can't get more than 2 spade tricks. It's routine for expert players (given that they can afford to duck), but to be fair most declarers would win the queen or king.

Roland

[cherdano]

Walddk, on May 18 2006, 04:42 PM, said:

So partner wanted a heart lead. Not sure how he wanted us to figure that out when he doubled. Anyway, I agree with Frances' analysis, although there was an error in her previous post (very unlike Frances).

I would probably lead a spade, because we will run the suit if partner has a low doubleton and declarer KQx.

That's not quite true. A good declarer would duck if you lead the jack or 10; then you can't get more than 2 spade tricks. It's routine for expert players (given that they can afford to duck), but to be fair most declarers would win the queen or king.

Roland

So what? You got a free spade trick then, and the lead was certainly a success.

[FrancesHinden]

Walddk, on May 18 2006, 03:42 PM, said:

So partner wanted a heart lead. Not sure how he wanted us to figure that out when he doubled. Anyway, I agree with Frances' analysis, although there was an error in her previous post (very unlike Frances).

I would probably lead a spade, because we will run the suit if partner has a low doubleton and declarer KQx.

That's not quite true. A good declarer would duck if you lead the jack or 10; then you can't get more than 2 spade tricks. It's routine for expert players (given that they can afford to duck), but to be fair most declarers would win the queen or king.

Roland

All true. And indeed we can now deduce that declarer doesn't have the queen of hearts, or he would have ducked the 8 of spades at this point then led towards it.

We would still have been better off had we led a spade at trick 1 and had it ducked.

[whereagles]

What definitely wasn't a sucess was pard's double If we're lucky, 1 down is the best we can get here. It sure doesn't pay for the headache in selecting the lead.. lol.