[masonbarge]

I just watched an "Expert" misplay this hand. I think an advanced player should get it right. The opening lead of ♦J goes to the King on the board, E playing the ♦3. What's your plan?

Please use spoilers, this should be a good hand for Intermediate/Advanced players.

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[manudude03]

It takes quite a lot of effort to go down on this hand. Is it matchpoints?

[billw55]

 masonbarge, on 2015-February-13, 09:25, said:

Please use spoilers, this should be a good hand for Intermediate/Advanced players.

Perhaps you made an error in the diagram? Otherwise it is really a beginner level hand, even at matchpoints as mancitydude suggests.

The ♦J lead is also peculiar.

[ArtK78]

After the opening lead, there are 11 easy tricks by just knocking out the ♦A. To get a 12th trick, you can either take a heart finesse or play for a major suit squeeze. But the first thing to do is knock out the ♦A before the opps attack spades. Then you can decide what you want to do in an attempt to get a 12th trick.

If the ♦J lead was a singleton (or from AJxxx - very strange), the opp with the ♦A may refuse to take it on the first 3 rounds. Assuming that it is East that has the ♦A, you can take the heart finesse safely if you want. Or you can try for some more complex squeeze chances, as East did not let you correct the count for the squeeze, but there are now 3 threats - diamonds, hearts and spades.

Also, if East refuses to take the ♦A and you take the heart finesse and it loses, the count is now correct for a spade-diamond squeeze against East. It would be hard to believe that East would refuse to take the ♦A if he was the sole guard of spades as well, but I have seen stranger things.

[masonbarge]

 ArtK78, on 2015-February-13, 11:45, said:

After the opening lead, there are 11 easy tricks by just knocking out the ♦A. To get a 12th trick, you can either take a heart finesse or play for a major suit squeeze. But the first thing to do is knock out the ♦A before the opps attack spades. Then you can decide what you want to do in an attempt to get a 12th trick.

If the ♦J lead was a singleton (or from AJxxx - very strange), the opp with the ♦A may refuse to take it on the first 3 rounds. Assuming that it is East that has the ♦A, you can take the heart finesse safely if you want. Or you can try for some more complex squeeze chances, as East did not let you correct the count for the squeeze, but there are now 3 threats - diamonds, hearts and spades.

Also, if East refuses to take the ♦A and you take the heart finesse and it loses, the count is now correct for a spade-diamond squeeze against East. It would be hard to believe that East would refuse to take the ♦A if he was the sole guard of spades as well, but I have seen stranger things.

Hah. You hit every base except the point of the hand. Don't forget, this is the Intermediate/Advanced Forum.
If you lead diamonds the opponents will take the first round you lead and return another diamond. I think West shows out on the third round - I'll check later and correct this if not.

[billw55]

 masonbarge, on 2015-February-13, 14:45, said:

Hah. You hit every base except the point of the hand. Don't forget, this is the Intermediate/Advanced Forum.
If you lead diamonds the opponents will take the first round you lead and return another diamond. I think West shows out on the third round - I'll check later and correct this if not.

OK, I'll bite.

Spoiler

Cash out diamonds, then the ♠A, then four clubs, pitching spades from hand. This will squeeze either defender holding both ♠KQ and ♥Jxxx. Presumably nobody will pitch the ♠KQ with the jack visible in dummy. So now I play a heart back and either the jack drops or it doesn't. Making either 5 or 6.

How many matchpoints did I get?

[masonbarge]

 billw55, on 2015-February-13, 15:11, said:

OK, I'll bite.

Spoiler

Cash out diamonds, then the ♠A, then four clubs, pitching spades from hand. This will squeeze either defender holding both ♠KQ and ♥Jxxx. Presumably nobody will pitch the ♠KQ with the jack visible in dummy. So now I play a heart back and either the jack drops or it doesn't. Making either 5 or 6.

How many matchpoints did I get?

Spoiler

80%. The point of the hand was cashing the A of Spades. I mean, if BBO can make it a headline in their news when someone does it in their tournament, it certainly merits a post here.

Your victim was West.

[GrahamJson]

I lead the H10 to tempt a cover. If E plays low overtake and play diamonds then try for a major suit squeeze for the 12th trick.

[ArtK78]

 masonbarge, on 2015-February-13, 14:45, said:

Hah. You hit every base except the point of the hand. Don't forget, this is the Intermediate/Advanced Forum. .

I didn't think it was necessary to spell out the play of the hand trick by trick.

[wynsten]

OK, I'll bite: A) What IS the point of this hand and B) How did the "expert" misplay it?

Oops - I see you answered both of those questions in the spoiler above.

Spoiler

For some reason, I think the Vienna Coup is more obvious when the Spade honour is the Queen, maybe because that's the way they always show it in the books.

[PLimprove]

It's easy for a beginner even a novice to play, please. 11-12 tricks.

[masonbarge]

 PLimprove, on 2015-February-14, 21:17, said:

It's easy for a beginner even a novice to play, please. 11-12 tricks.

Well, you are half right.

[msjennifer]

perhaps the contract was SIX NT!

[wynsten]

 ArtK78, on 2015-February-14, 06:38, said:

I didn't think it was necessary to spell out the play of the hand trick by trick.

Sounds like that's the mistake the "expert" made!

[masonbarge]

 wynsten, on 2015-February-15, 09:02, said:

Sounds like that's the mistake the "expert" made!

These forums and all forums can get so weird. A play that BBO will put into a headline in news from its tournament, and a self-styled expert fails to execute, becomes trivial in people's minds when they get to a forum. I was trying to do something nice by providing a lesson for intermediate-advanced players.

Unless W is suicidal or drunk, the diamond lead is from shortness, but it doesn't matter. You play diamonds, East takes his Ace and returns anything. If the ♦J was single - as it was IIRC - the heart finesse looks like a <50% chance for the overtrick.

Just in passing, unintended point #1 is that you are playing for the overtrick. (At MP, it's a very big deal. At IMPs for pairs, NV, I think it's usually worth @ 1 IMP.)

It looks like point #2a and #2b is that the lead was probably from shortness and you are going to find out in the normal course of play. So if you don't assume W is short in diamonds, you need 2 contingencies. Do you really want to finesse E for the ♥J if and when you realize W has a singleton in another suit?

The main point is that (unless you just want to play E for ♥Jxxx(x)) you have to play the ♠A before you run the clubs.

This wins any time the ♥J drops and any time the player with the ♥J has the ♠KQ - most likely, and in the actual hand, West.
In addition, you might get a player with ♠Kx and ♥Jxxx to pitch a heart. This happens often enough to be worth mentioning.

The "expert" I kibitzed when I was finished with the tourny just ran the clubs, baring the Ace of Spades, and then played to drop the ♥Q.

[Free]

 GrahamJson, on 2015-February-14, 02:57, said:

I lead the H10 to tempt a cover. If E plays low overtake and play diamonds then try for a major suit squeeze for the 12th trick.

That's a nice idea but it doesn't work. I don't suppose West's lead is from ♦AJ+ so we have to put ♦A in East. When you play your ♥ before driving out ♦A, East can destroy your communications for the squeeze by leading another ♥ after he won his ♦A.

[wynsten]

 masonbarge, on 2015-February-15, 12:15, said:

These forums and all forums can get so weird. A play that BBO will put into a headline in news from its tournament, and a self-styled expert fails to execute, becomes trivial in people's minds when they get to a forum. I was trying to do something nice by providing a lesson for intermediate-advanced players.

It is tough to present a play problem in this format. If you describe the play up to the critical trick, and then ask "what next", then the unblock or under-ruff or whatever the point of the hand is, becomes obvious. I would play a lot better if a bell rang every time a brilliant play was required. If you just present the hand and ask "how do you play it" people (like me, see my 1st post) miss the point.

[masonbarge]

Yeah, there's a trick to composing hands for teaching. I suppose it would have been a better pedagogical problem, certainly a more focused one, if I manipulated the actual play and had E win the diamond A and return the lowest outstanding heart, then you play a diamond and West shows out - "what now?"

[manudude03]

With diamonds breaking 4-2, the chances of the heart finesse working go down, I accept that. However, is West having Jxxx(+) of hearts and either KQ or 5+spades really more likely than West having 3 small hearts?

[AyunuS]

Seems like a beginner hand to me. Just keep playing the diamonds until you either force the A or you've won your 3 tricks in them. Then get your 8 top tricks in the other suits so you just end with 11 tricks. Only little nuance is potentially trying a little squeeze or finesse for a 12th trick in hearts but I'd only do it if it's absolutely safe.