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3NT by South. IMPs. Lead: ♠Q. Plan the play. Neither the diamond ace nor club ace turn up anything unexpected.
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Deceptively easy
#2
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Posted 2015-April-18, 00:55
If I can take ♠AK ♥K ♦A ♣AK, I'm still going to need 3 more tricks. I can only get 3 more tricks in clubs if they are exactly Qxx-xxx, which is much less likely than diamonds 2-2, so I win the ♠K and run the ♦9.
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-- Bertrand Russell
#3
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Posted 2015-April-18, 02:33
mgoetze, on 2015-April-18, 00:55, said:
If I can take ♠AK ♥K ♦A ♣AK, I'm still going to need 3 more tricks. I can only get 3 more tricks in clubs if they are exactly Qxx-xxx, which is much less likely than diamonds 2-2, so I win the ♠K and run the ♦9.
Even with 2-2 ♦ you are looking at 2♠+4♦+2♣ tricks. So you still need another trick which can not come from ♥ suit since their spades will be all set. Excluding the squeeze possibilities, I think we need ♣ suit to provide 3 tricks anyway. So why don't we first try club finesse and see if they are 3-3 for easy 9 tricks. If clubs turn out to be 4-2, now we shift to diamonds. If diamonds are 2-2, creating a club trick or two for them won't hurt us, no?
Take ♠ in hand and play a ♣ to J, and then cash another. If clubs are 5-1 you know we need diamonds to be 2-2. If they follow cash 3rd ♣. If 4-2 you still need 2-2 ♦
"Genius has its own limitations, however stupidity has no such boundaries!"
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"It's only when a mosquito lands on your testicles that you realize there is always a way to solve problems without using violence!"
"Well to be perfectly honest, in my humble opinion, of course without offending anyone who thinks differently from my point of view, but also by looking into this matter in a different perspective and without being condemning of one's view's and by trying to make it objectified, and by considering each and every one's valid opinion, I honestly believe that I completely forgot what I was going to say."
#4
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Posted 2015-April-18, 05:16
Nice hand, the title is very fitting. Could easily see getting this wrong at the table heh. Although it will be sad if I'm vul and end up going down like 3 or 4, definitely worth it.
Slight improvement to Timo's line is win in hand, club to ace, diamond to ace, club hook (to cater to stiff Q of clubs offside).
Slight improvement to Timo's line is win in hand, club to ace, diamond to ace, club hook (to cater to stiff Q of clubs offside).
The artist formerly known as jlall
#5
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Posted 2015-April-21, 18:30
Take K♠, play the 9 diamonds and run it/duck. Take spade return, cash ace club, then cash ace diamonds. If 2-2, cash diamonds and depending on the pitches, either finesse the club or establish the heart trick when someone gets squeezed to drop spade winners.
In 90% of actual hands, the person with short spades will start pitching one first, to avoid pitching a heart spot card or a club.
Imagine East holding
87xxx
Axx
xx
Qxx.
Running the diamonds would force 3 pitches.
He can pitch 2 hearts, but what's he going to do for the 3rd pitch? Spot the anguish in their faces and -evil grin- If at this point west has already pitched a spade, a spade pitch from east basically gives you a safe make via hearts. Most defenders will do this. If it's an excellent defender who pitches a club, then too bad for you but you tried your chances.
or West holding
QJTxx
Ax
xx
xxxx
How is he going to find 3 discards? If he discards 2 clubs, you can basically drop the queen offside. So he probably discard 1 club, 1 heart and 1 spade. Again you get a safe make.
If diamonds break badly, take the club finesse and hope for 3-3.
Postponing the club finesse in this line is better as it opens up possibilities of some kind of squeeze to occur and overtricks when clubs break 4-2 for instance. There's absolutely no advantage to taking the club finesse early. You will lose 3 spade, 1 club and 1 heart for -1 anyway if it's offside. If it's onside and 3-3, you are always going to make; if it's onside and 4-2 or worse and diamonds are breaking you still make.
tl;dr: maintain control of diamond suit by ducking 1 round early. If 3-1, play club 3-3, Q club onside. If 2-2, run diamonds and watch discards. Fall back on club finesse if nothing interesting happens.
In 90% of actual hands, the person with short spades will start pitching one first, to avoid pitching a heart spot card or a club.
Imagine East holding
87xxx
Axx
xx
Qxx.
Running the diamonds would force 3 pitches.
He can pitch 2 hearts, but what's he going to do for the 3rd pitch? Spot the anguish in their faces and -evil grin- If at this point west has already pitched a spade, a spade pitch from east basically gives you a safe make via hearts. Most defenders will do this. If it's an excellent defender who pitches a club, then too bad for you but you tried your chances.
or West holding
QJTxx
Ax
xx
xxxx
How is he going to find 3 discards? If he discards 2 clubs, you can basically drop the queen offside. So he probably discard 1 club, 1 heart and 1 spade. Again you get a safe make.
If diamonds break badly, take the club finesse and hope for 3-3.
Postponing the club finesse in this line is better as it opens up possibilities of some kind of squeeze to occur and overtricks when clubs break 4-2 for instance. There's absolutely no advantage to taking the club finesse early. You will lose 3 spade, 1 club and 1 heart for -1 anyway if it's offside. If it's onside and 3-3, you are always going to make; if it's onside and 4-2 or worse and diamonds are breaking you still make.
tl;dr: maintain control of diamond suit by ducking 1 round early. If 3-1, play club 3-3, Q club onside. If 2-2, run diamonds and watch discards. Fall back on club finesse if nothing interesting happens.
#6
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Posted 2015-April-21, 20:10
shellsnail, on 2015-April-21, 18:30, said:
There's absolutely no advantage to taking the club finesse early. You will lose 3 spade, 1 club and 1 heart for -1 anyway if it's offside. If it's onside and 3-3, you are always going to make
lol, not at all true. If clubs are 3-3 with the queen on you can give up a heart if you play clubs early. You do not need diamonds to break. If you duck a diamond first, you will have 8 tricks when diamonds do not split (5 clubs, 2 spades, 1 diamond).
The artist formerly known as jlall
#7
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Posted 2015-April-21, 20:34
shellsnail, on 2015-April-21, 18:30, said:
Take K♠, play the 9 diamonds and run it/duck. Take spade return, cash ace club, then cash ace diamonds. If 2-2, cash diamonds and depending on the pitches, either finesse the club or establish the heart trick when someone gets squeezed to drop spade winners.
In 90% of actual hands, the person with short spades will start pitching one first, to avoid pitching a heart spot card or a club.
Imagine East holding
87xxx
Axx
xx
Qxx.
Running the diamonds would force 3 pitches.
He can pitch 2 hearts, but what's he going to do for the 3rd pitch? Spot the anguish in their faces and -evil grin- If at this point west has already pitched a spade, a spade pitch from east basically gives you a safe make via hearts. Most defenders will do this. If it's an excellent defender who pitches a club, then too bad for you but you tried your chances.
or West holding
QJTxx
Ax
xx
xxxx
How is he going to find 3 discards? If he discards 2 clubs, you can basically drop the queen offside. So he probably discard 1 club, 1 heart and 1 spade. Again you get a safe make.
If diamonds break badly, take the club finesse and hope for 3-3.
Postponing the club finesse in this line is better as it opens up possibilities of some kind of squeeze to occur and overtricks when clubs break 4-2 for instance. There's absolutely no advantage to taking the club finesse early. You will lose 3 spade, 1 club and 1 heart for -1 anyway if it's offside. If it's onside and 3-3, you are always going to make; if it's onside and 4-2 or worse and diamonds are breaking you still make.
tl;dr: maintain control of diamond suit by ducking 1 round early. If 3-1, play club 3-3, Q club onside. If 2-2, run diamonds and watch discards. Fall back on club finesse if nothing interesting happens.
In 90% of actual hands, the person with short spades will start pitching one first, to avoid pitching a heart spot card or a club.
Imagine East holding
87xxx
Axx
xx
Qxx.
Running the diamonds would force 3 pitches.
He can pitch 2 hearts, but what's he going to do for the 3rd pitch? Spot the anguish in their faces and -evil grin- If at this point west has already pitched a spade, a spade pitch from east basically gives you a safe make via hearts. Most defenders will do this. If it's an excellent defender who pitches a club, then too bad for you but you tried your chances.
or West holding
QJTxx
Ax
xx
xxxx
How is he going to find 3 discards? If he discards 2 clubs, you can basically drop the queen offside. So he probably discard 1 club, 1 heart and 1 spade. Again you get a safe make.
If diamonds break badly, take the club finesse and hope for 3-3.
Postponing the club finesse in this line is better as it opens up possibilities of some kind of squeeze to occur and overtricks when clubs break 4-2 for instance. There's absolutely no advantage to taking the club finesse early. You will lose 3 spade, 1 club and 1 heart for -1 anyway if it's offside. If it's onside and 3-3, you are always going to make; if it's onside and 4-2 or worse and diamonds are breaking you still make.
tl;dr: maintain control of diamond suit by ducking 1 round early. If 3-1, play club 3-3, Q club onside. If 2-2, run diamonds and watch discards. Fall back on club finesse if nothing interesting happens.
Count again. In general it is a good habit if you want to have any chance in the game of bridge.
HINT: ♥ A is still out when you duck 1st ♦ and clubs are 3-3 Q onside.
"Genius has its own limitations, however stupidity has no such boundaries!"
"It's only when a mosquito lands on your testicles that you realize there is always a way to solve problems without using violence!"
"Well to be perfectly honest, in my humble opinion, of course without offending anyone who thinks differently from my point of view, but also by looking into this matter in a different perspective and without being condemning of one's view's and by trying to make it objectified, and by considering each and every one's valid opinion, I honestly believe that I completely forgot what I was going to say."
"It's only when a mosquito lands on your testicles that you realize there is always a way to solve problems without using violence!"
"Well to be perfectly honest, in my humble opinion, of course without offending anyone who thinks differently from my point of view, but also by looking into this matter in a different perspective and without being condemning of one's view's and by trying to make it objectified, and by considering each and every one's valid opinion, I honestly believe that I completely forgot what I was going to say."
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