From: tnh@sw.stratus.com (Tim Hill)
Newsgroups: rec.games.bridge
Subject: Re: A moderately interesting defensive problem
Date: 7 Jan 1993 18:24:15 GMT
Organization: Stratus Computer, Inc.
Distribution: world
NNTP-Posting-Host: bigbootay.sw.stratus.com

In article <1993Jan7.052144.12321@midway.uchicago.edu>, pynq@quads.uchicago.edu (Jeremy Mathers) writes:
> Playing in a club game (match points),
> against absolutely archetypical Little Old Ladies {tm}.

Gee, the old ladies who frequent club games around here include Ethel Keohane
and Alberta Albersheim (look that up in your Francis and Truscott).  I take
it they're not the archetypes you had in mind?

     dlr:  S        LHLOL
     vul:  NS       S Qxx
     matchpoints    H KJxx
                    D Kxxx
                    C xx
          You
          S xx
          H Qxx
          D Qxx
          C QJ9xx

     You       LHLOL     Partner   RHLOL
                                   1C
     Pass      1H        Pass      2N
     Pass      3N        All Pass

> You decide to try your 4th best club, and dummy hits with: Qxx,KJxx,Kxxx,xx

Please, please post spots!  (If they don't matter and you didn't record them,
then make up some spots that don't matter.  On the last hand you posted, it
turned out the club spots were important.  On this hand, I sure would like
to know the club and diamond spots, among others!)

> Partner produces the club king (thank goodness!) and declarer wins the ace.
> Declarer crosses to the spade queen, then plays the king and a little
> diamond to her jack and your queen (not the best play so far).

Did partner give count on the spade and diamond tricks?  (I assume partner
followed to both diamond tricks.)

> Now, at this point, you can place every high card in the deck except for
> the heart ace (& the spade jack).  You pick up their card, and look at
> the ranges of their notrump openings, and see 15-17 and 20-21 (for 1N
> and 2N, respectively).  So, you sit back and try to count her points.
> She has 7 or 8 in spades, 5 in diamonds, and 4 in clubs, for a total of
> 16 or 17 outside of hearts.  With the heart ace, she has 20-21, which
> should be a 2N opener.  Without it, she has a classic 1N opener.
> And we know how much these LOLs like to open 1N.
> 
> So, which is more likely?  What do you do?

I suspect declarer didn't open notrump because she has a stiff heart.  That
makes her 3145, or possibly 4144.  I might ask dummy which minor declarer would
normally open with 4-4 and whether declarer denied four spades in this auction,
but I don't s'pose your ALOL would be willing and able to give a useful answer.
With AKx,A,AJxx,ATxxx, I think declarer would have rebid 2D, 3D, or 3N.

I think she's got AKx,x,AJxx,ATxxx.  That gives her just seven tricks.  She
can set up a heart trick with a guess, but her only possible remaining entry
to cash it is a diamond spot.  She'll still need at least one more club trick.
Our mission is to exit safely without giving declarer a heart or a club trick.
For now, I'm leading my last diamond.

-- 
Tim Hill
Stratus Computer, Inc.                  tnh@vos.stratus.com
55 Fairbanks Boulevard                  508-460-2232
Marlborough, MA  01752                  fax 508-624-7488