Re bobman's weak 6-1-1-5 hands...

No. If I can't open this shape 1S, I pass (and anticipate having a chance to make a two-suited overcall later - but we saw from the original hand that that isn't 100% foolproof either.) A preempt shows a one-suited hand. I never ever ever open a weak two with a 6-5, and do not have a 4-card major for a preempt unless I am in third seat.

There are certainly some good players these days who play very undisciplined 2-bids. Not my style.

The removal of the Js is more important really because it weakens the spade suit too much for opening it with a weak two, and a mere 7 HCP is really different from 10 HCP with a singleton Q.
With KJxxxx/x/x/JTxxx I'm happy to open 2S.
(Or actually, in my normal system I open a multi-coloured 2, but that's the same thing really)

My call with the first new hand is "director", because I have fourteen cards. (We know what you meant.) Actually, with both the new hands I choose 2S; it is partly to deal with such hands that my favorite partner and I use a relay method for showing that a 2H or 2S opening was made with a weak 5-5, and for revealing what the other suit is. (Yes, I realize you have six spades, but they suck, and I'll just say I had a spade mixed in with my diamonds.) Without such methods i still choose 2S, but less happily.

As others have noted, weak two style varies a lot. A 2S opening would be very wrong in some partnerships, mandatory in others. There is also a lot of variability in how "one-suited" the hand has to be. I prefer being very aggressive non-vulnerable, striving to open whenever possible; I'm much more traditional when vulnerable. Vulnerable, I'm not opening 2S if you take away my spade jack-ten.

Others may differ, but for purposes of choosing an opening bid I am not giving the diamond queen any weight. But note its potential importance; for example, with your original hand that made passing your partner's weird 5D bid that much easier.

For reference: I'm not an expert player, though I've gotten my name printed in Bridge World for my master solver's club performances a few times. I did used to be an ACBL TD.

Speaking of two suiters...

Partner deals, opens 3d, rho passes, our plan with:

s: AKQ642
h: KJT832
d: 9
c: -

Simple. 3 forcing spades. We're either going to play 4H or 4S.

OK, we bid that. Partner rebids 4c. Now?

I'd probably say 4H, although you're probably badly misfit. Your partner is going to be like 1-1-7-4, so you might as well play in a major suit contract.

You're partner will either pass, correct to 4S, or bid on his minors, when you can happily yell at him for going too high (while passing his 5D bid, or correcting 5C to 5D).

Depends what 4C means.

I think that a new suit is better played as a cue in support of spades. Opener cannot have a playable second suit, in theory, for his opening...

If 4C is natural, 4H to offer a choice. If 4C was agreeing spades, OK, 4S. Slam isn't possible opposite a responsible 3D bid (can't have HAQ, or two aces).

3 is forcing, so I'll bid that first and follow up with 4. I don't mind playing a 6-1 fit.


I'd take that as a cuebid in support of spades. This isn't really that good to hear, since A isn't really worth so much to me. This means I think we won't be able to get rid of my hearts losers, so I bid 4.

You have a few chances of making this, if the Queen finese works, if opener has KQd for double diamond finese, if Clubs or Hearts break 3 3 or if Spades break 4 3.

Opening lead indicates opener has at least t945:clubs:, no joy. It is likely that opener does not have KQ since he did not open K

Your best play here is to lead a low , when you win the return check whether spades break 4 3, clubs break 3 3 just in case and finally hearts. I would not finese because you loose less when you are wrong.

Well, I would start out by winning the lead on the board. Then I'd lead a low spade (in case they break 4-3). If they don't, try and find a favorable discard, and try and count both opponent's hands. You only have one entry to your hand (which be be taken away with a diamond on trick 3).

If your opponents don't play diamonds, you have a good entry to your hand, and can easily get the fourth club. If not, I think you need to take the heart finesse to get up to the hand.

Either way, I think the most important thing is to duck the first spade, and then try and run them, if only to get a better count.

Win ace of clubs at trick one. Duck a spade at trick two, as everyone says. Win the return (if you're lucky it's a diamond from LHO or a diamond honor from RHO, making some of the squeeze possibilities more likely although screwing with your entries; if you're really lucky it's a heart from LHO...). Cross to dummy with the queen of clubs and test spades (pitching diamonds). If they are 4-3, claim. If they are 5-2 or 6-1, the line depends on who has the long spades.

-------

If LHO has spade length and clubs did not break 5-1 or 6-0 with RHO having the length (in which case play as below), play a top heart honor, then hook the heart (assuming IMPS or rubber bridge); making if RHO has the jack or LHO has the singleton jack.

------

If RHO has the spade length: Cash the rest of the top spades (pitching diamonds). Assuming clubs did not break 6-0 or 5-1 with length to your left (in which case finesse the heart ten): play a heart to the queen. If the jack drops, claim. If RHO is void, run the heart ten, cash the remaining top club, reenter your hand with the diamond ace (assuming the ten was covered), cash the club king, and finesse the heart 8.

If nothing good happens on the play of the heart queen, you need 3-3 hearts, doubleton jack, or an unlikely squeeze. Entries are tricky unless the club T9 dropped, in which case your can overtake the club jack with the king. If RHO has both spade length and extreme club length, and the T9 of clubs did not drop you play as above, running the heart ten and the hooking the 8. If no one showed out in clubs but the club T9 dropped, cash the heart ace. If the jack drops doubleton, claim. If LHO shows out, you're screwed, as the major suit squeeze fails because dummy must discard before RHO. If RHO shows out you need a red suit squeeze, and if only small cards fall on the second round you need 3-3 hearts or the same red suit squeeze (against LHO). Unblock clubs (overtaking) and cash the last club. If LHO holds both diamond honors, he'll be squeezed on this trick.

If the club T9 didn't drop I think you won't have the entries for the squeeze unless clubs go 3-3, and it's not safe to test this for a fairly slim chance, so play for hearts to behave.

If your diamond ace is knocked out at trick three, you pretty much play for behaving hearts or a red suit squeeze against LHO. Be sure to unblock the clubs at the proper time -- it'll be clear if you're careful.


There may be some improvements available (it's late, and my thinking is fuzzy), but I think this picks up most of the chances.

To whoever said the vast majority of bridge hands are boring: even if that were true, hands like this one (which isn't even terribly complicated) make up for it.

There's no double finesse in diamonds: dummy only has one, and any thinking East with both honors would cover your lead.

The opening lead indicates almost nothing about the lie of the clubs against competent opponents.

I agree that opening leader probably doesn't hold both diamond honors, making the red suit squeeze I discuss unlikely. But if you're playing Zia, you never know.

The heart queen is an entry if LHO has spade length or if RHO does and you otherwise decide to eschew the finesse (which I would do if RHO plays a diamond honor at trick three, playing for 3-3 hearts or a now likely red suit squeeze against LHO). You also have to consider doubleton T9 of clubs. Really, entries aren't the problem you think they are; you're probably being blinded by the QT combo, thinking you need to have it available for a finesse.

6NT hand:

Eleven tricks off the top, so need one more.

Obviously, the best chance is for the 4-3 spade break (about 62.2%), but
when they don't break, you have to be careful with entries since a diamond
return is likely when your opponents get in so you don't want the K of clubs
to be "stranded" (only if you are lucky enough that the T9 of clubs is a
doubleton).

I'd cash out all the clubs in dummy, play AK of spades and duck a spade to
find out if they break; if not, then you can get a count of all the black cards
so you may be better off hooking the ten of hearts (you can't cater for a
stiff jack in LHO though).

Key numbers: 3-3 heart break or 4-2 with doubleton J9 of hearts ~ 37.1%, so
if the finesse of the T of hearts is higher than that, you take it. There are
thirteen red cards outstanding, so 13 x 0.371 ~ 4.8 so you simply need RHO
to have five or more to take the finesse (yes, LHO could have eight red
cards!).


If you don't cash out all the clubs, and opponents return a diamond, you don't
get a complete count of the black cards.

Nobody vulnerable; LHO deals and passes; your partner opens 2C, and you are off to the races (the auction at my table was 2C-2D, 2S-2NT, 3H-6NT, but other auctions are possible) and here you are declaring 6NT.

AKQ43
AK87
T
AQJ

2
QT5
AJ962
K876

Opening lead is the 4. All you have to do now is make it. What's your best chance?

------------------------------------------------------------------------

My post concerning whether to finesse after cashing three clubs in dummy
and playing off AK-small of spades is incorrect (I also forgot about the Jack
of hearts dropping singleton)!

Intuitively, taking a finesse with LHO holding eight red cards seemed to be
incorrect so there is a correction when LHO has exactly eight red cards. The
distributions are then out of C(13,5)=1287 combinations, since RHO has only
five red cards:

LHO-RHO hearts

3-3 heart break: C(6,3)C(7,2)=420
4-2 with doubleton J9: 1xC(7,3)=35
2-4 with doubleton J9: 1xC(7,1)=7
5-1 with stiff J: 1xC(7,4)=35
1-5 with stiff J: 1xC(7,7)=1

total 498

So the probability of a 3-3 break, the J9 falling doubleton or a stiff jack WHEN
LHO has precisely eight red cards is then 498/1287 ~ 0.386946387. When
multiplying this by 13, one gets about 5.03, so finessing is worse than playing
the queen of hearts, etc. (finesse is 5/13 when LHO has eight red cards).

Thus, if LHO has eight or more red cards, play the queen of hearts, etc.;
otherwise, if LHO has seven of fewer red cards, finessing the ten of hearts is
better.

Now, if opponents are clever and return a diamond on a bad spade break, you
no longer have the option of a finesse of the ten of hearts as your only entry
to dummy is in hearts. OTOH, the natural return on a bad spade break is
another spade, giving you two options to play hearts: either a finesse or
playing the heart queen (first hoping for a stiff jack) and then essentially
hoping for a 3-3 break or doubleton J9 of hearts from one of the opponents.


Conclusion
----------

If you play the three clubs in dummy followed by the A, K and 4 (or 3) of
spades in dummy, and are faced with a 5-2 spade break and you find the
number of red cards held by LHO to be seven or less, finessing is better than
hoping for essentially a 3-3 break (or drop of stiff jack, doubleton J9). If LHO
has eight or more red cards, finessing is worse than playing off the Q of hearts,
etc.

Now, I've read some of the posters like ducking a spade on trick two and I'm
sure that play deserves attention since if LHO is on lead, he could blow it by
giving declarer more chances on a red suit return but I need to be convinced
that it's technically better. Also, is there merit to playing on trick two the
ace of spades first, and THEN ducking a spade?

Bridge is hard! Can anyone determine the optimal play of this hand (say it's
IMP teams, but maybe the original hand was matchpoints)?

Nobody vulnerable; LHO deals and passes; your partner opens 2C, and you are off to the races (the auction at my table was 2C-2D, 2S-2NT, 3H-6NT, but other auctions are possible) and here you are declaring 6NT.

AKQ43
AK87
T
AQJ

2
QT5
AJ962
K876

Opening lead is the 4 clubs. All you have to do now is make it. What's your best chance?

-------

Okay, I looked a few (maybe more than a few!) scenarios.

Best line seems to be win A clubs in dummy (note whether RHO sheds 9/T)
and then A of spades followed by ducking a spade pitching a diamond. When
you get in with a club (defence probably won't open up another suit), cash
top spades whether they break or not; if spades break, claim.

If the spades don't break 4-3, when LHO has length, he's likely to have five
or fewer red cards in which case the finesse in hearts is better (cash A H and
intend to finesse T H). When RHO has length, atakdog's post pretty much
sums it up. In some cases, RHO has to protect hearts OR something like both
diamond honors so he'll get squeezed when you cash out. If there isn't a
likely squeeze, your play on hearts is Ah and lead to the queen of hearts,
intending to play for 3-3 hearts or the fall of the jack.

Also, if you find LHO has exactly 6 red cards, even though the finesse is
about 55% (cashing out Ah in dummy first and includes finding a stiff 9h in
RHO), it's better to play for hearts 3-3 or the drop of the jack in the first two
rounds (59%).

From the carding on the second round of clubs, you almost have a count of
both black suits and thereby figure out your play on the heart suit, so there's
no need to cash out clubs in dummy; besides, you sometimes need an entry
to dummy outside of hearts (e.g., when RHO has stiff 9 H).

Sorry to say, I haven't picked up a bridge hand or book in a few years!

Weird one. RHO dealing, we're vulnerable, they're not. I'm dealt:

s: Q7
h: KQ97632
d: T8
c: 42

Before I can consider whether to pre-empt or not, RHO opens a weak 2h. Now we do what?

Pass.

... And pass your partner's takeout double. RHO has ~1 trick in his hand.

oh well, maybe should have. imo 3nt+2 worked out better

What did you bid?

doubled, hoping partner would interpret it as penalties instead of takeout. as is we got to 3nt via 3d-3h-3s-3nt, partner having AJ98 - 8 - AT8 - AKQ93. Should never come up in practice, every other rho passed

No offense, sixfour, but this sounds like a novice game based on whole the auction you just gave us.

Anyway, given the 2H opening bid, the normal auction wouod have been:

pass pass double (takeout)
all pass

+800 or +1100

Assuming RHO had all of the other hearts, pre-empting with a hand like x - AJTxx - xxx - Jxxx first seat w/r is probably theoretically correct, although disastrous on this deal.

I'm surprised your partner didn't force to slam after your double, I know I would have.