Free Weekly Instant Tournament - December 13 - Board 4

Board 4
Both sides vulnerable

♠ A 10 5 2  ♥ K Q 3  ♦ A Q 6  ♣ 7 6 4

RHO opens with one spade in third seat, and I overcall with one notrump. Partner bids two clubs, Stayman.

Since RHO opened in third seat, he could have a four-card spade suit. It's even possible he psyched, although the fact that he's vulnerable and the fact that he's a robot make that highly unlikely. Still, I hate to be talked out of a trump fit simply because an opponent has bid the suit. I see no harm in showing my four-card spade suit, so I bid two spades. Partner rebids two notrump.

When you hold a strong notrump behind an opening bidder, you can often make three notrump with less than 25 HCP, since you can expect more than half of your finesses to be working. A human partner would have taken that into account already and would have adjusted his ranges accordingly. So opposite a reliable partner, I would pass. But my robot partner probably doesn't know to do that. I suspect he's inviting game with the same hands he would have invited with had I opened one notrump. So it's up to me to make the adjustment. 

I bid three notrump. Everyone passes and LHO leads the three of spades.

	NORTH Robot ♠ K ♥ 10 8 7 6 ♦ 9 7 5 4 3 ♣ A J 2
	SOUTH Phillip ♠ A 10 5 2 ♥ K Q 3 ♦ A Q 6 ♣ 7 6 4

West	North	East	South
Robot	Robot	Robot	Phillip
Pass	Pass	1 ♠	1 NT
Pass	2 ♣	Pass	2 ♠
Pass	2 NT	Pass	3 NT
(All pass)

If East has the diamond king and diamonds break, I have seven tricks. I can drive the heart ace for an eighth trick, but I don't have the dummy entries to take a diamond finesse and lead up to my king-queen of hearts twice, so I may need East's assistance in finding a ninth.

Will I get his assistance? He may have no choice but to offer it. The spade ten, the heart ten, and the club jack are all threats. He will have a hard time preventing me from scoring one of those cards.

East plays the spade eight on dummy's king. I know West led from three, but there is no reason I should let East know that. I play the five, retaining a card lower than the one West led. 

There are 17 HCP outstanding. If East is balanced, then West will have 3 to 5 HCP, so the diamond finesse could fail. Let's hope it doesn't. I play a diamond from dummy--deuce--queen--eight. Now ace of diamonds--jack--three--king. Diamonds split, so I have my seven tricks.

I'm not sure who has the diamond ten. I hope it's East, since I don't especially want West to get in for a club shift. I lead a diamond, and West pitches the five of hearts. The robots play count when discarding. That looks like high from four, making West 3-4-2-4 and East 5-2-3-3. That's a favorable layout for me. If East has the heart ace, I only need one heart lead toward my hand, then I can duck out the ace.

East wins with the diamond ten and shifts to the queen of spades. I play low, West plays the nine, and I pitch a heart from dummy, reaching this position with East on lead:

	NORTH Robot ♠ -- ♥ 10 8 7 ♦ 9 7 ♣ A J 2
	SOUTH Phillip ♠ A 10  ♥ K Q 3 ♦ -- ♣ 7 6 4

East is in trouble. If he continues spades, he gives me the spade ten for my ninth trick. If plays ace and a heart, he gives me a second heart trick. If the plays a low heart from his ace doubleton, I can win and duck out his ace. And if he has king-queen of clubs and leads one, I can duck, leaving him endplayed in three suits.

What if West has a club honor? Then East can exit with a low club. But then I take dummy's ace and cash diamonds, coming down to:

	NORTH Robot ♠ -- ♥ 10 8 7 ♦ -- ♣ J 2
		EAST Robot ♠ J x ♥ A x ♦ -- ♣ K (or Q)
	SOUTH Phillip ♠ A 10 ♥ K Q 3 ♦ -- ♣ --

Now I lead a heart from dummy. Whatever East does, he can score only two more tricks, coming to four tricks for the defense.

East chooses to cash the heart ace and exit with the heart jack. I take my nine tricks for plus 400.

	NORTH Robot ♠ K ♥ 10 8 7 6 ♦ 9 7 5 4 3 ♣ A J 2
WEST Robot ♠ 9 6 3 ♥ 9 5 4 2 ♦ J 8 ♣ K 10 9 3		EAST Robot ♠ Q J 8 7 4 ♥ A J ♦ K 10 2 ♣ Q 8 5
	SOUTH Phillip ♠ A 10 5 2 ♥ K Q 3 ♦ A Q 6 ♣ 7 6 4

Making three notrump is worth 89%. This deal is a good example of why it's right to stretch for game in this situation. Three notrump would be quite a poor contract if I didn't have an opening bid in front of me. 

With ace-jack tight of hearts, there was nothing East could do to beat me. But if he had ace-small, he could try exiting with a low heart instead of ace and another. When my queen holds, I won't be entirely sure where the ace is. East could hold

♠ Q J x x x  ♥ J x  ♦ K 10 x  ♣ K Q x

and West could be ducking the ace. So I must decide whether to lead low, ducking out the ace, or to lead the king, smothering the jack. I rate to get it right, since leading the king is playing for both for one specific distribution of hight cards and for East and West each to have made good plays. But giving me that option is East's only chance.

I said I saw no harm in showing my four-card spade suit over Stayman. Actually, there could be harm if you have an agreement not to show it. Give North the same hand without the spade king or the club ace, for example. If he knows I won't bid two spades, he can bid Stayman to reach a safer partscore. But he can't afford to do that without a specific agreement that you will never bid two spades. I might be persuaded to make that agreement after a first- or second-seat opening that promises a five-card suit. But I can't see making it an unconditional agreement.