Author Topic: Your morning puzzle  (Read 1612 times)

kenberg

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Your morning puzzle
« on: June 03, 2020, 12:23:09 PM »
Some days nothing goes right. But there is always a bright side. I'll give you my hand, tell you what happened, and then show all four hands.

My hand, everyone vul, imps, playing with and against bots:

!S K32
!H A97
!D AK952
!C Q5

Looks like a 1NT opener to me, so I opened 1NT.  The uncontested auction:
1NT - 3 !D (alerted as a splinter, 4-4 in the majors and 4 or maybe 5 clubs.
3NT - 6NT.

The opening lead is the !D 4.

Both hands:

!S AQT4
!H KQT5
!D J
!C AT64

!S K32
!H A97
!D AK952
!C Q5

I suppose pard has his bid but this is a truly lousy contract. If, a big if, I can bring in both majors then that gets me to 11 tricks. Ok, I assume both majors come in. Now what? Maybe the !C K is on my right. If the !C K is on my left, maybe the !c j is also on my left. So, if the majors come in then all I need is some decent luck in !C to bring this in. Well, both of the majors are 3-3 but the !C K is on my left, the !C J is on my right, off 1. Gob says I can make it. Gib is right, he always is, but it took me a while to see it. That's the puzzle I give you, double dummy, same as Gib. So: Are you smarter than a robot?

                        !S AQT4
                        !H KQT5
                        !D J
                        !C AT64
 
!S 765                                   !S J98
!H 542                                   !H J83
!D T864                                 !D Q73
!C K98                                   !C J732


                     !S K32
                     !H A97
                     !D AK952
                     !C Q5

After !D: 4 - J - Q  you have to make a plan. It seems to me that hoping for the majors to come in and then hoping for a decent break in clubs is a reasonable line when only the NS cards are seen. But now, like Gib, it's double dummy. How to do it?
Enjoy!
Ken

wackojack

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Re: Your morning puzzle
« Reply #1 on: June 03, 2020, 05:12:31 PM »
Looks like you can put in West with K !C to lead from  !D 108 into A9.

So cash all your major suit winners discarding down to  !D A9  !C Q5.  West must keep  !D 108  !C K9.  Then A  !C and another.
 
I think this has to be DD as it looks natural to play for East to have the K  !C

kenberg

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Re: Your morning puzzle
« Reply #2 on: June 03, 2020, 05:45:15 PM »
The problem is that after the initial diamond and cashing all of the majors, you are on the board with nothing but clubs.
W can keep the !D T and the !C K98. So now you could drop the !D T if you could get to your hand, but you can't.
E holds on to !C J73.
If you lead A and a small !C then the A takes the Q and leads to the J.
Nothing can be done, I think, if you come to that ending.


The solution, surprising I think, is to cash only 7 of the majors ending in hand. Let's say you cash all of the spades, throwing a !D from hand and then cash three !H ending in hand.

So 8 tricks have been played.


!S
!H 5
!D
!C AT64

!S
!H
!D K95
!C Q5

How about W?

Maybe W keeps

!S                                   
!H                                   
!D T86                                 
!C K9

Maybe W keeps

!S                                   
!H                                   
!D T8                                 
!C K98

In the first case you play A and another !C, W is in and must lead a !D and after you take your two !D you go to the board in !C and cash your !H
In the second case you play A and another !D, W has to lead a !C, and whether small or large you get the two clubs and you have the transportation to collect both the !D A in hand and the !H 5 on the board.

It's a fun hand. Certainly against the odds to play it that way, even if the possibility occurred to declarer,but it does work.

« Last Edit: June 03, 2020, 05:54:06 PM by kenberg »
Ken