Hand 1 from a B player:

Local club game, match points

As East I hold:

S Kxxx

H AK10x x

D x

C AJx

RHO opened 1S, I overcalled 2H and the auction proceeded:

N       E      S     W

                 1S    2H

P        P      3D   P

5D      P      P     P

My lead:  Heart Ace, seeing this dummy:

Dummy

S xx

H QJxx x

D AJ9xx

C x

Declarer plays low from dummy, partner plays the 9, declarer plays the 3.  We use standard carding and signaling.

Question:  What do you lead next and why?  Would your play be the same against a good declarer versus a novice declarer?

John Burgener

My next lead would be the trump, I would like to win the spade K as the second defensive trick. Then cashing the A of clubs and the K of hearts might let us defeat the contract by 2 tricks. If after pulling trumps declarer exits with a high club I will continue with another club. The K of hearts will not be going away but getting it ruffed and setting up two hearts in dummy is not attractive. I would play the same way against any level of opposition but declarer's attitude, I might “know” that second heart will cash. The level of opposition might cause me to double but not to play any differently.

Mark Boswell

This is a very good problem.  There is no suit to lead that could not be a disaster.  My last choice is to try to cash a second heart.  If there is another heart to cash, it can't go away.  If I cash the A of clubs or lead a spade, my spade trick will probably be lost.   I will lead my one trump and be ready to apologize if I have pickled partners Qxx.  

Tom Kniest

Roger Lord

At trick 2, I lead a low hart.  If partner ruffs, e will set them 2 tricks when he returns a spade.  If it is declarer who shows out, the heart shift and declarer's sluff of a black card will not be fatal - we still set the contract unless declarer has the KQ of clubs with which he can discard a spade from dummy.

Tom Oppenheimer

I would switch to a trump.  Declarer is most likely 5-5 in spades and diamonds with 2 clubs and a singleton heart.  If I cash the ace of clubs and declarer has king, then my spade trick may possibly disappear.  I hope to get one heart, one spade and one club on defense.

Nancy Popkin

Rod Van Wyk

If you are not sure what partner is doing, you could switch to the ace and another club. Anything could lose a trick, but if declarer has 2 hearts you will probably score your king later.

It is common to give count when the guarded Q is in the dummy, but here attitude is better. If count, the 9 could be either singleton or doubleton. If attitude, it must be singleton because be knows you have 5 hearts and he play his lowest card to discourage continuation.  You could switch to a trump or a low heart.

Karen Walker  

Trump and wait for my spade king. It's highly unlikely partner has a singleton heart (if declarer is 5-2-1-5, that gives partner an 8-card club suit). It looks like our best hope is that partner has the club queen, which will prevent declarer from setting up a spade pitch from dummy. If that's the layout, declarer will have to hook into my spade king and I'll cash the club ace then.

En Xie  

I would return small heart. It's true that declarer likely to have 5 diamonds, but returning Hearts gives you the maximum chance to set the contract or even more.

Milt Zlatic

I don't know where the 2H is, but I'm shifting to a trump. If declarer has the remaining heart, your KH isn't going anywhere. Your KS is probably going to be a trick, so don't start banging down aces. If declarer has a doubleton KQC, one of the spades will disappear in which case the only beat is shifting to a spade and hope that partner has the QS. Declarer can't have a singleton club because that would give partner 8 clubs. So now we have declarer with at least 2 clubs, 1-2 hearts, 5+ spades, leaving room for no more than 5 diamonds. Why declarer didn't re-open with a double is something I can't figure out. A lesser declarer might forget to false card but with partner's play of 9H you still wouldn't know who had the remaining heart.

Hand 2 from a very new Player

		North
			Kx			Dealer:	West
			A8xx			VUL:	none
			Q10			Contract:	???
			A109xx
West				East
	J1097				AQ8xxx
	xx				void
	AKxxx				J98xxx
	Jx				x
		South
			x
			KQJ10xxx
			void
			KQxxx

Questions:

Can the hand be successfully bid and played at 6H or 6C?  We bid 6H by accident and made it when everyone else played at 4H; two others made 6.  We were wondering if we could have bid 6H by some logical method.

What should the auction be on this hand? 

John Burgener

This problem allows me to express a pet complaint. I do not like to play weak jump shifts except in competition. How easy is this hand when you can start with a game forcing 2H response to 1C opening by North. If that is not available South can begin with 1H and make forcing bids that convince him that partner has his two perfect aces or just blast a bid 6H. 1C p 1H p

2H p 4C(if forcing in your system and not a self splinter) p

4H p 6H ppp

Maybe blasting has a lot to say for itself. Please note two side issues over 6C a double by opening leaders partner would ask for a heart lead; 6C fails. But that likely pushes N-S into the frigid 6H

Mark Boswell

The bidding on this hand will depend too much on what the opponents bid to give you much of an answer, and I do expect them to be in the auction.  Note that the hand makes 6D E/W, and they should sacrifice in 7D if you bid to 6H.

Tom Kniest

We're not given the auction on this hand.  It makes a big difference if E opens in front of you.  However, if S deals, he can open 1H and N can make a forcing raise with a Jacoby 2 NT.  In standard Jacoby, S will bid 4C, showing a 5 card suit with 2 of the top 3 honors.  N would then be strapped without a control to show below game, but with his massive club fit, he would probably cuebid the CK, which would deny both the A of diamonds and spades.  South would have no problem continuing to 6. Alternatively, S might choose to show his diamond shortness over 2NT, but that seems silly to me - the 4C bid is clearly the most descriptive.  There is no reason to play clubs on this hand - you will find hearts first and play in them.  In many of the games I play in, however, you will probably have to decide whether to sacrifice over the opponents almost cold 6S - yes a diamond ruff beats it...good luck there for finding it.  With E's powerful distribution, he will always be in the auction, and W will be very cooperative.

Roger Lord

I cannot believe questioner's statement, "Everyone else played at 4 Hearts."  After all, East-West are cold for 5 Spades or 6 Diamonds, and they would take all 13 tricks in diamonds without a club lead.

One of many plausible auctions might be:

West        North       East        South

P                1C              1S            2H

3D              3H             5D           5H

5S              P                 P             6H

?                 P                 ?

If I were East I would not allow North-South to play 6H.

Tom Oppenheimer

The hand belongs in 6 hearts rather than 6 clubs.  It is difficult to bid without having some tools.  After a one club opener by north, south bids one heart, and north raises.  A 5 diamond bid by south would be exclusion blackwood (asking for aces with the exception of the ace of diamonds.)

When you find out partner has 2 aces, you would bid a slam.  In the real world looking at these hands, it appears the opposition will compete to 4 spades in a flash.  This competition probably will make you guess whether or not to bid slam rather than be scientific about it.  Note:  If you bid 6 H, East west may compete to 6 S which only goes down one.

Nancy Popkin

Rod Van Wyk

Certainly you can bid it, but shame on the opponents if they let you play it. Probable auction:

p - 1c - 2s - 3h

4s - 5h - 6d - 6h

6s - x - p - p

p

You will set it 1 trick.

Karen Walker

Not one table played in spades? EW can make 11 tricks in spades, so if you got to declare 4H, that should have been a great score. It's impossible to construct a scientific auction because all your actions depend on how vigorously EW are competing. If you have any sort of logical auction and bid a confident 6H, EW will surely sacrifice in 6S.

En Xie

I don't understand why opponents were out of bidding with such hands. Without special conventions such as Exclusion Blackwood, that hand is not easy to reach slam. It will become more difficult if opponents get into the auction.

John Burgener

I would have opened the West hand 2S and over 3D(my call by East) rebid of 3S and would pass 3NT by East but wish I had participated in this auction which leads to a very good 3NT. At the table after overcalling 2S, I would pass either 2NT or 3D by partner. This auction to 3NT hit gold but I would not have been in it, my hat is off to opponents when they reach this 3NT against me. Finding both the J of hearts and the K of clubs was most fortunate and West could not expect these cards to be the keys to success.

Mark Boswell

Waiting for clarification on the clubs and diamond - Editor, which never came in.

Tom Kniest

South smells like a thief and didn't get what he deserved.  If W had passed the 1NT, E can balance with a X and Katy bar the door, NS have nowhere to go.  Down 5 with a diamond lead.  However, EW did well to get to their cold 3NT.  I do note that there are 14 diamonds and 12 clubs in the deck, but that should not affect the outcome.

Roger Lord

The question states "12 diamonds and 14 clubs."  However, the hand record has 14 diamonds and 12 clubs... regardless, no answer.

Tom Oppenheimer

Over west's two spade overcall, I would jump to 3 no trump with the east hand.  In the real world...why didn't west open with a weak 2 bid in spades... and why is South bidding one no trump with a 4 count with 4 hearts??????

Nancy Popkin

Rod Van Wyk

It probably doesn't matter who has a club with his diamonds.

I would open 2s. Then partner needs to bid 3d for to me to rebid 3nt.

Karen Walker

West should open 2S. If he chooses to pass (as here), North should open 1C, not 1D. East will overcall 1D, South will pass and West will bid 1S (while kicking himself for not describing his hand at his first turn). East has a nice hand, but it dropped in value when partner bid spades, so a simple rescue to 2D (perhaps 3D, if he really has a 7-card suit) is probably enough.

On your actual auction, West should pass 2NT, very quickly. He has a bare 9 points and no expectation that his awful suit will be a source of tricks.

En Xie

I don't get the bidding either. First, I think West better open with 2s if weak two is your agreement. Second, I would double with your hand as lead directing double and showing good hand.

John Burgener

The auction might go: p 1D p 1NT P 3D p 3NT p here the auction could end (this will score very well at match points), a continuation of 4C could get you to 6D or more likely to the poorer scoring 5D. I think these hands should get to game but do not believe you should expect to get this particular slam. For these type hands 3NT pays off most often.

Mark Boswell

I assume that East failed to overcall 1H from you question although he/she should have done so.  With silent opponents the auction would go 1D 2NT(11-12) 3NT with the north hand being not quite good enough to make a move over 3NT.

Tom Kniest
 Again, it's nice to know who dealt and whether your auction would be uninterrupted.  It looks like both E and W have weak 2 bids. If W opens with a weak 2S, the auction will be up to 4S by the time it's S turn to bid.   Let's say N opens with 1D.  At favorable vulnerability, E might venture 2H; S would bid 2NT and N would happily raise to 3.  If E merely overcalled 1H,  then S would have an invitational 2NT call.  If chicken E passes, S will bid 1H and W will now enter with 1S; over whatever N bids, and I recommend 3D, E should bid at least 3S and S will carry on to 3NT with his sure spade stop and big DK.  Yes, the hand as given only had S with J9x of hearts, but my superior math skills enabled me to arrive at the missing card.  While I can see 6D is cold, it's hard to get there with the opponents active in the auction plus the attraction to play minor suit dominated hands in NT because of the extra trick score.  I'd be happy to play 3NT on this hand, outscoring all the pairs who were pushed around by the opponents into 5D.
   

Roger Lord

no answer; deal has 12 hearts.

Tom Oppenheimer
The "experts" that arrived in 3 no trump would have scored better if they had arrived in 6 diamonds.  North will open one diamond and east may or may not preempt with 2 hearts.  Without the preempt it would be a little easier to reach 6 diamonds. I think you should be exploring for slam on this hand rather than bidding 3 no trump.  Slam in diamonds makes easily if you arrive there.  An auction could proceed one diamond by north, and south will bid either 2 or 3 no trump.  North needs to make a forcing bid such as 4 diamonds to get the ball rolling.  With 2 aces and the king of diamonds south should cooperate with north's slam aspirations.

Nancy Popkin

Rod Van Wyk

I would expect expert pairs to bid and make 6d. Incidentally,south must have 4 hearts.

Karen Walker

No matter what the 13th card in South's hand, he should be focused on steering the hand to notrump, and North should probably cooperate, especially since he has honors in his short suits. If South's 13th card is a heart, the auction might go 1D by North - 2H overcall by East - 3NT by South. If South's 13th card is a spade, he can make a negative double over 2H, then ask for a heart stopper later if North doesn't show a spade fit.

6D is virtually laydown, and you might get there if North makes a more enthusiastic rebid in diamonds (or clubs) and you have room to ask for aces.

En Xie

It seems south missing a card. Assuming South has 4Hs, then the bidding likely goes: 1D-1h-3D-3NT. In match points games, we look for NT first if there is no slam. 5 of minors usually scores poorly. Actually that hand is cold for 6D. To reach 6D, you need to have excellent partnership understanding. As you have seen, most players stopped on 3NT.

John Burgener

Call the director! You have only 12 cards. Maybe the missing card is held by North and it will be even harder for NS to make 4H. If the missing card is a good spade I would bid 4S or if a diamond, I Double, correcting 5C to 5D. These are high risk actions but passing is risky too. Some questions to ask yourself at matchpoints when facing unusual bidding is: What will the field do? Are you facing an aggressive player, or a very disciplined player, what is my game like so far? If you are having a good game, then try to avoid taking a high risk actions. Thankfully these type hands do not come up to often. There is no “right” answer. That benefits us all because if there was easy clear answers bridge would not be the fascinating game that it is.

Mark Boswell

If you were to reopen with a double, the chances of a “disaster” are fairly high.  Even if partner bids spades with 4, it may not be the best spot, diamonds may be better.  Also, if you double, partner may pass the double and the hand will make unless partner has a trump stack.  My bid is 5D.  I don't know who can make what but this hand is too offensive to just sit.  We may make 5-6 or have a good sacrifice against their contract.    

Tom Kniest
Once again, I only have 12 cards, so I'll assume I have another club.  When I first fill out a card with a new partner, one thing I always talk about is that doubles of preempts are for takeout - not "transferable values", whatever those are.  Here I would double and pull 5C to 5D.  If pard passes 4H, I assume he has some defense.  If he has spades - great; I want to play 4S, but I can't bid it by myself.  To pass is not bridge.

Roger Lord

I would double for takeout, planning to pass partner's 4 Spades or, over 5 Clubs, to correct to 5 Diamonds.

Tom Oppenheimer

There is a "high quotient for disaster" here if you don't take any action.  You must bid. What to bid is the question.  Your choices are double (takeout) and 5 diamonds.  If you do not double you may lose the spade suit.  However, my choice is  5 diamonds.  I have a great offensive hand with little defense.  Partner might pass my double, converting it from takeout to penalty, thinking I have more defense. 

Nancy Popkin

Rod Van Wyk

Double. Then pass 4s or raise 5s to 6. If partner bids clubs, convert to diamonds.

Karen Walker

It may be a disaster, but you just can't let the opponents play 4H with this hand. 5D could be right, but I would double with the hope that we have a good spade fit or that partner has a heart stack. If the opponents are red, the argument for a double is even stronger. If partner bids 5C over the double, I'll convert to 5D.

En Xie

I am not sure your agreement on the meaning of double. If it's penalty, I would bid 5D. Otherwise, I would double. If partner bids 5c after double, I would correct to 5D.