[NoEmotions]

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We play 1 NT in a pairs tournament (MP scoreing), lead is a small club, we play 9 from dummy, east plays the Q we take the ace
How do we go from here?

[mgoetze]

I would play 3-4 rounds of hearts and then a small diamond to the 8.

[akwoo]

I would lead a small diamond from hand, hoping to duck the 9 to RHO but covering if LHO plays high. RHO might give me a helpful lead. Even if RHO doesn't give me a helpful lead, the club spot he leads might clarify the club situation and let me know if I'm in for 3 club losers or only 2. I can always take the hearts later, and I might need them as entries to hand.

I don't have a plan. Especially at MPs, where the contract is basically irrelevant and the goal is to take as many tricks as possible, it's not worthwhile to make a plan this early at a 1N contract.

Also, it really can matter here what small club, because we may need to evaluate the probabilities of LHO having 4 or 5 (or even 6) clubs. Unless opps lead small cards at random, the spot will tell us something even if it doesn't say everything.

[fourdad]

Does this not look like a hold up play in clubs? I agree with earlier comment that which low club is led matters.

[mgoetze]

fourdad, on 2015-February-07, 11:40, said:

Does this not look like a hold up play in clubs? I agree with earlier comment that which low club is led matters.

No, it seems likely that West has the ♣K, in which case we can take 2 club tricks by winning but only 1 by ducking.

[daffydoc]

two legitimate plays in diam - KQ tight or Tx in RHO hand - seems reasonable to play heart to ace and then diam to 8 - might give you a clue how to proceed and costs little. The only alternative is to try and cash out hearts and diam ace for down one or still make if opp give u a black trick. daffydoc

[ggwhiz]

I would play a small heart to the Ace and then a diamond from dummy so they can't signal. They clear clubs (instead of a spade switch), I unblock hearts and clear diamonds hoping for ♦HT on my right is my hope.

[mikeh]

How can we answer this without knowing the auction? I guess we can assume 1♦ 1N, with the opps passing throughout, but even that tells us something, since the opps hold 8 spades and some hcp and neither overcalled nor balanced.

In addition, at the table we'd know that the lead was not 'a small club' but, presumably, the 2 or the 6 and we'd know their methods.

Forgive the rant, but even if a poster thinks that these sorts of things don't matter, please include them.

[Povratnik]

akwoo, on 2015-February-07, 02:14, said:

I would lead a small diamond from hand, hoping to duck the 9 to RHO but covering if LHO plays high. RHO might give me a helpful lead. Even if RHO doesn't give me a helpful lead, the club spot he leads might clarify the club situation and let me know if I'm in for 3 club losers or only 2. I can always take the hearts later, and I might need them as entries to hand.

I don't have a plan. Especially at MPs, where the contract is basically irrelevant and the goal is to take as many tricks as possible, it's not worthwhile to make a plan this early at a 1N contract.

Also, it really can matter here what small club, because we may need to evaluate the probabilities of LHO having 4 or 5 (or even 6) clubs. Unless opps lead small cards at random, the spot will tell us something even if it doesn't say everything.

Completely agree with this. I'd just like to additionally emphasize the convenience of putting East into hand (by diamond, of course). Just imagine East's possible returns and West's possible returns...

[keithhus]

I know this is not for me (beginner) but could you tell me why you played the Ac, whereas I would play the A on the second round of clubs - I.e. Rule of 7. ( keep it simple!) thanks

[wank]

keithhus, on 2015-February-07, 16:39, said:

I know this is not for me (beginner) but could you tell me why you played the Ac, whereas I would play the A on the second round of clubs - I.e. Rule of 7. ( keep it simple!) thanks

because you have the jack in dummy which is likely a trick if the queen and ace go together on the first round. you're left with jx in dummy over lho's hoped king.

[kenberg]

As mentioned by mikeh, the bidding probably went 1D-1NT.


On the lead of the club deuce to the Q and my ace, I am leading another club. I trust lho to have exactly four clubs and a lead from Txx2 is not very attractive if there was another choice. I think I am making this. I have three hearts, I fully expect to get two clubs. I think the lead from a not so great four card club suit ups the chances of a 3-3 heart split, since if lho had four hearts he might have led one, and if he only has two hearts then he might have four spades and might have led one. Even if this is wrong, the spade ace does not have to be offside, and in fact the lead from xxx is more attractive than from Axx so this is also some (maybe weak) evidece that the spade ace is onside.

Here is a matchpoint consideration: Not all tables will start with a club and those declarer's will not be getting two clubs. I think that after this lead, two club tricks are there for the taking, so I will go after them.

Of course this could be wrong, but I take my ace and lead a club.

If the lead was the club 6, this, as again said by mikeh, it's a different story. Lho would lead from Txx62 so placing him with the k is riskier.

Added: While of course the club lead can go wrong, so can ducking diamond. You might lose a diamond, a club, and five spades before you regain the lead. Alternatively a diamond may be continued and you lose two diamonds, a club, and four spades. Anyway, I go with the club if the lead was the deuce.

[dparish]

keithhus, on 2015-February-07, 16:39, said:

I know this is not for me (beginner) but could you tell me why you played the Ac, whereas I would play the A on the second round of clubs - I.e. Rule of 7. ( keep it simple!) thanks

Please take not of the 9♣ in dummy. Unless E has made a silly play that assures you of a second club trick. Thus a hold-up would be a big mistake. And start ♦ before ♥so you have some entry options later in the hand.

[wank]

dparish, on 2015-February-08, 12:47, said:

Please take not of the 9♣ in dummy. Unless E has made a silly play that assures you of a second club trick.

'assures' is a bit much. you don't know where the king is. if the king is over the jack, you don't have a second trick after all.

[kenberg]

I also was being carelss about that. I agree that sometimes the Q is played from QT but mostly my opponents are not that clever. Still. I think the k is on my left.And probably the T as well. Making the deuce from KTx2 rather than the Kxx2 I said.

[NoEmotions]

mikeh, on 2015-February-07, 13:44, said:

How can we answer this without knowing the auction? I guess we can assume 1♦ 1N, with the opps passing throughout, but even that tells us something, since the opps hold 8 spades and some hcp and neither overcalled nor balanced.

In addition, at the table we'd know that the lead was not 'a small club' but, presumably, the 2 or the 6 and we'd know their methods.

Forgive the rant, but even if a poster thinks that these sorts of things don't matter, please include them.

Sorry about the incomplete information.

You are right, the auction went 1D-1NT

Opening lead: this is a small bridge club I played a few times recently and whenever I asked opponents about their carding and signaling methods, they could not answer my question or sometimes did not even understand, what I wanted to know (and why). I stopped asking, before they take is an insult

[akwoo]

kenberg, on 2015-February-08, 11:26, said:

Added: While of course the club lead can go wrong, so can ducking diamond. You might lose a diamond, a club, and five spades before you regain the lead. Alternatively a diamond may be continued and you lose two diamonds, a club, and four spades. Anyway, I go with the club if the lead was the deuce.

Yes, but if ducking the diamond causes you to lose 7 tricks before regaining the lead, leading a club should allow the opponents to take 7 tricks as long as the hearts don't split for you.

I'd much rather make the opponents try to figure out the hand at trick 3 than at trick 6 or trick 7.

NoEmotions - in this situation, you should assume opponents are playing whatever the standard leads are where you live, and no signals. You also shouldn't care too much about the results, because a small game with not so good players is essentially random.