Free Weekly Instant Tournament - September 29 - Board 8

Board 8
Neither side vulnerable

♠ A K Q  ♥ K 9 6 2  ♦ Q J 8  ♣ K 9 7

Three passes to me. I have a balanced hand with 18 HCP, so I open with one club, planning on rebidding two notrump to show 18 or 19. LHO and partner pass, and RHO balances with a double.

I can now show my 18 to 19 HCP by bidding one notrump. The problem with that call is that LHO might well have a good hand with a club stack. If so, he is well placed to double me. Redoubling might be safer than bidding one notrump. It gets my values across, allowing partner to compete with a long suit. And if partner is broke, we can perhaps find a playable spot at the one-level.

Unfortunately, I haven't had much success engaging robots in complicated auctions. Even with my regular partners, I'm not sure what redouble should mean here. In particular, I'm not sure how prepared I should be to play in one club redoubled if LHO passes. So I'm not about to throw this auction at a robot. If I bid one notrump, at least there is no doubt in partner's mind what I have. (If anyone has a firm agreement about what this redouble shows, please comment.)

I bid one notrump. Everyone passes, and LHO leads the three of hearts.

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

West	North	East	South
Robot	Robot	Robot	Phillip
Pass	Pass	Pass	1 ♣
Pass	Pass	Double	1 NT
(All pass)

Given the small heart lead and East's take-out double, hearts should be three-three. If West has led from jack third or ten third (or even ace third if I guess it), I have three heart tricks. Three spade tricks brings me up to six. LHO probably would have led a diamond with ace-king, so I should have a diamond trick. If the opponents give me the tempi, I may manage one or two club tricks as well.

I start by playing a low heart from dummy. East plays the jack, and I win with the king. The robots sometimes falsecard from equals in the middle of the hand, but I've never seen them do that at trick one. So I'm fairly confident the heart ten is onside.

I might as well set up my heart tricks. I'll have one heart entry to dummy. If I catch RHO with a doubleton club queen, I can set up two club tricks. Or I could play him for the ace and settle for one.

I play the deuce of hearts--ten--queen--ace. The ten? I suppose he was unblocking in case his partner had ace-nine fourth and I had made a curious play.

East shifts to the diamond deuce. Is the jack or queen most likely to induce West to shift after winning this trick? Perhaps if I play the jack, West will place me with AJ10 or KJ!0 and not wish to finesse his partner's queen. I play the jack, West wins with the king, and I unblock dummy's nine, trying to represent a good diamond holding in my hand.

I can't say whether my diamond plays worked or whether West was going to shift anyway. But, for whatever reason, West shifts to the heart four. I win in dummy as East follows with the seven.

East has the ace-jack of hearts and presumably the diamond ace. As a passed hand, he can't have the club ace, but he might have the queen. I lead the club five from dummy--four--nine--queen. West shifts to the nine of spades--three--deuce--queen. If I lead the club king, I assume West will duck it, preventing me from taking two club tricks. But at least I'll have my seventh trick.

I might as well cash my heart first and force discards. On the heart nine, West pitches the club three. I pitch dummy's diamond, and East pitches the club deuce. It appears East was either 4-3-4-2 or 3-3-5-2.

I lead the club king. West, of course, ducks, and East pitches the diamond six. I've made my contract. If I can guess the layout, I can take an overtrick. Here are the two possibilities.

(A)

	NORTH Robot ♠ 7 6 4 ♥ -- ♦ -- ♣ J 10
WEST Robot ♠ x ♥ -- ♦ x x x ♣ A		EAST Robot ♠ x x x ♥ -- ♦ A x ♣ --
	SOUTH Phillip ♠ A K ♥ -- ♦ Q 8 ♣ 7

(B)

	NORTH Robot ♠ 7 6 4 ♥ -- ♦ -- ♣ J 10
WEST Robot ♠ x x ♥ -- ♦ x x ♣ A		EAST Robot ♠ x x ♥ -- ♦ A x x ♣ --
	SOUTH Phillip ♠ A K ♥ -- ♦ Q 8 ♣ 7

In (A), I must cash one spade, depriving West of his exit, then lead a club. West must then lead a diamond up to my ace. If I make a mistake and cash two spades, East will have a spade to cash when he wins the diamond ace.

In (B), I must cash both spades before tossing West in. If I cash only one spade, he will have a spade to exit with, forcing me to lead diamonds out of my hand.

In any event, I must cash at least one spade. I cash the ace--eight--four--five. Now what? Which layout is more likely, (A) or (B)?

Perhaps with four diamonds West would have been more inclined to continue the suit after winning the king. In fact, maybe he would have bid two diamonds over one notrump with four of them. I don't know if he would or wouldn't. But at least he would have the option. With 3-3-3-4, he has no suit to bid. 

Neither inference is especially compelling, but at least they both suggest (B). I can't think of any other clues.

I cash the spade king. Everyone follows. I exit with a club and score my diamond queen in the end. Making two

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

Plus 120 is worth 100%. The overtrick made little difference. Even making one would have been worth 96%.

It's not my declarer play that made the difference, however. Weirdly, almost everyone is opening one notrump with this hand. I have no idea why. But against one notrump--all pass, West chooses to lead a diamond, which beats the contract.

That's also weird. I would do exactly the opposite. After one notrump-- all pass, one leans toward leading a major, since dummy won't have five cards in the major but partner might. But on the auction we had, partner is unlikely to have a five-card major, since he chose to double rather than overcall. If he has a five-card suit, it's probably diamonds. So I would choose a diamond on our auction but not after one notrump-all pass.