[Echognome]

Matchpoints is a funny game where you might make certain decisions you wouldn't consider otherwise. What do you do on these hands?

1.

Scoring: MP

(1♥) - P - (P) - ?
Pass or Balance?

---

2.

Scoring: MP

(1♥) - P - (P) - ?
Pass or Balance?

---

3.

Scoring: MP

(1♥) - P - (P) - ?
Pass or Balance?

---

[Miron]

1: pass
2: pass (have bad experiences with 2♠ with 4♥ on first or second seat)
3: ♦Q
Spades are probably(2-4-4-3), hearts (6-1-2-4), so partner has 9 cards in minors, the ♦Q might help him)

[42]

I am not really a fan of matchpoint tourneys... But I try (just have a break at work ):

1. pass, because p didn't dbl nor overcall, so I assume he sits on some ♥s or opener is strong. They are red.

2. I pass again: we are red, I am weak in HCP (I know... no argument for the young and wild and terrific declarers...), the suit is anaemic, I have the other M, the ♠s let me hope to be able to bid later if necessary.

3. ♥ is out because I don't want to play immediately a finesse for declarer who has 4 ♥s. I am too weak to hope for length tricks.
♦ is out because I have a little bit of hope to score the Q.
♣: hmmm, perhaps
♠: yes, because the lead goes through responder who promised the ♠s. Opener has at most 3, so p has at least 4. Since the points of declarer and responder are nearly equally distributed, we cannot really destroy communication but I can try to attack dummy's honours = entries for finesses against my strong p.

[Codo]

1. pass
2. pass. My pd has 3 or more hearts but no 1 NT bid or he is short in H, but too weak for a neg. double. And bidding Spades has another disadvantage: Does PD really know, that you bid a weak two in the pass out seat? I had not...

3. Q of D will help my part.. hopefully :-)

[whereagles]

1. Borderline hand. Depends on tactical factors.
2. Easy 2♠ in my philosophy.
3. Club 9. A spade could be right, though.

[Echognome]

Codo, on Mar 1 2006, 12:16 PM, said:

2. pass. My pd has 3 or more hearts but no 1 NT bid or he is short in H, but too weak for a neg. double. And bidding Spades has another disadvantage: Does PD really know, that you bid a weak two in the pass out seat? I had not...

I think you misread. You are first in hand.

[inquiry]

Hand one: Pass. I hate selling out, but no place to go. I am not doubling with this hand pattern and if I bid 1♠ partner is likely to lead a spade should they buy the contract away from holdnig where a spade lead is not good and cost us a trick.

Hand two: Pass. If you open this junk vul with weak two your partner will never know when to support or not. In third seat i would try it.

Hand three: this is matchpoints, ♦Q is just as likely or maybe more likely to give up a trick as to gain one. I am not trying to beat this thing per se, just beat the other players. How might the bidding go at other tables? West open 1m and looks like East will respond 1♠ and West bid 1NT, followed by 3NT (other tables without weak NT opening). With four hearts in dummy, six in my hand and likely doubleton on my right, I will make a heart lead. At least it should not give anything up.

[luis]

#1: Pass, what else?

#2: Automatic 2♠ I'm very surprised by all the passers too

#3: Spade. Pd has all the high cards but he didn't double 2♣ and he didn't bid 2♦ over 2♣ so a minor can't be right. A heart is only good for declarer so I'm going to lead a spade. I believe this is the only lead that can work unless pd forgot to double 2♣ or bid 2♦.

Luis

[Blofeld]

Can't see what one could balance with on #1.

Would bid 2♠ on #2 even at IMPs.

I've no idea what to do on the third one though. I suppose as it's matchpoints I'm not leading a diamond. Heart safe?

[cherdano]

I lead a spade at whatever form of scoring. Partner likes it when I occasionally lead his 4+ card suit except his singleton.

Arend

[Echognome]

Well at the table, it turns out that the best options were:

Pass, Pass, and lead a black suit.

On 1) Partner chose to balance with 1♠, which then went 4♥ - 4♠, pass - pass - X. You buy:

♠QJxx
♥x
♦Qxxxx
♣KQx

Turns out that RHO had passed his 7 count and the defense had some distribution (e.g. 6-1 diamonds) and set up a crossruff for 1100. -200 against 1♥ would have been a top. Partner said "I'm always balancing at MPs." And "I would never double with a stiff diamond."

On 2) I chose to open 2♠, which was alerted by partner as spades and a minor (which wasn't our agreement, but it wasn't his day either). This goes X - XX - P - P -3♥ (phew) - 6♣! - P - P - X. Partner had:

♠---
♥x
♦AJTxxx
♣AK98xx

Clubs were 5-1 with the doubler and this went for quite a number.

On 3) Here was the full hand:

Scoring: MP

---

The ♦Q was taken by the K and declarer then played the ♣K and a club to the Jack and my Queen. I now thought about this for some time. The only thing I don't know on the hand was the location of the red Js. So I returned a diamond in order to set up the fourth round of the suit as partner surely held the J for his lead. Also since declarer was now locked in dummy if he didn't overtake the ♥K, I only needed partner to have the ♥10 and ♦J for my play to yield us an extra trick. I also knew partner held 6 hearts, so I thought it was quite likely he held the T or J. -660 wasn't a good score.

Oh well, I didn't play sparkling either.

[Free]

pass, pass, ♠5

[luis]

Opening or not opening 2♠ has nothing to do with the disaster at your table.
I can't see why opening 2♠ will propel any decent person to 6♣ while passing will make him behave like a human.

[inquiry]

Echognome, on Mar 1 2006, 10:42 AM, said:

Well at the table, it turns out that the best options were:

Pass, Pass, and lead a black suit.

Pass and Pass seem right...

Lead a black suit is not necessary. This hand makes 5NT if they find the diamond Queen and four notrump if they dont. So best lead is anything other than a diamond. If you lead a heart and declarer discovers your six hearts, he is likely to play your partner for the diamond queen (more slots for it). That is also true of a black suit lead. Take a look at the club suit... two nine of clubs. A club lead risk solving a potential club guess for declarer as well.. even a spade lead might give us a two way guess if suit was different. I would never lead a club anyway since partner didn't wack 2♣... so my choice is always a major here..... either is fine.

[Echognome]

Quote

Opening or not opening 2♠ has nothing to do with the disaster at your table.
I can't see why opening 2♠ will propel any decent person to 6♣ while passing will make him behave like a human.

I agree. I stick by my 2♠ opening, just reporting what happened at the table.

Quote

Lead a black suit is not necessary. This hand makes 5NT if they find the diamond Queen and four notrump if they dont. So best lead is anything other than a diamond. If you lead a heart and declarer discovers your six hearts, he is likely to play your partner for the diamond queen (more slots for it). That is also true of a black suit lead. Take a look at the club suit... two nine of clubs. A club lead risk solving a potential club guess for declarer as well.. even a spade lead might give us a two way guess if suit was different. I would never lead a club anyway since partner didn't wack 2♣... so my choice is always a major here..... either is fine.

And as for making 5NT, no other declarer made 5NT (not that it was a particularly good field), so in practice everyone take the club finesse and makes 10 tricks. As you saw our declarer also took the club finesse, so would only have made 10 tricks. So I don't see the relevance of this.

I messed up the club suit somehow, but I can assure you I knew that declarer would be locked in dummy if he didn't overtake the heart. That is all that really matters.

On a more general note, would anyone lead a heart because they figure the field would lead hearts?

Also, I should mention that the field will open 1NT, so Ben's prior analysis of how he thinks the bidding would go is not quite relevant.

[inquiry]

Echognome, on Mar 1 2006, 11:55 AM, said:

Also, I should mention that the field will open 1NT, so Ben's prior analysis of how he thinks the bidding would go is not quite relevant.

Well i did couch my statement if the field wasn't playing weak notrump.. actual wording was"

Quote

West open 1m and looks like East will respond 1♠ and West bid 1NT, followed by 3NT (other tables without weak NT opening).

My reply about why not ♦Q is proven right... now 11 tricks easy (4H, 4D, 2C, 2S.. except have to lose 2S).... And in fact if you lead 9 of clubs and that goes jack-Queen King, declerer is down to ♦ guess again for 5.. on major lead, you give him losing option in clubs as you suggest, but why anyone would hook clubs with 4-3 fit missing QT98, when they can hook in the 4-3 diamond fit missing hust Q9 is beyond me (and that is without the possibilyt of long diamond as squeeze card for showup squeeze should East have Qx of clubs).

[MickyB]

1 - pass at any scoring
2 - It is tempting to pass because it is matchpoints, but I think I would probably bid 2♠ even so
3 - spade at any scoring

[cherdano]

Matt, I think your defense on 3. is right, but only if declarer is weak. I don't think you should play partner for a lead from Qx; however, a good declarer would not waste his ♣K entry if his heart suit is blocked and there is still a diamond finesse to be taken.

(I strongly dislike the ♦Q lead.)

Arend

[joshs]

Echognome, on Mar 1 2006, 05:53 AM, said:

Matchpoints is a funny game where you might make certain decisions you wouldn't consider otherwise.  What do you do on these hands?

1.

Scoring: MP

(1♥) - P - (P) - ?
Pass or Balance?

---

2.

Scoring: MP

(1♥) - P - (P) - ?
Pass or Balance?

---

3.

Scoring: MP

(1♥) - P - (P) - ?
Pass or Balance?

---

1. This one isn't close. Clear Pass.

2. This one is close. I would certainly open 2S white. Red its very close. The issue is not the 4 small hearts on the side, the issue is the spades are kind of weak for a vul 2S bid. I guess I would bid 2S if playing with a partner that tolerates these kind of bids....

3. Well the opps have the majors covered. At IMPS this is a clear diamond lead (partner didn't x 2C). At mps, I have no idea what to lead. Against a good declarer I think I would lead the diamond Q anyway and gamble (but I can be convinced that this is wrong). Against a bad declarer I would just lead a completely passive heart or a club. With the minors reversed (98x of diamonds and Qx of clubs) it would be an obvious diamond lead.