[ahydra]

---

Opps are playing Acol (weak NT, 4cM). Perhaps your double is a little enterprising but if you pick the right opening lead you will defeat 4H.

ahydra

[ggwhiz]

Diamond

Feels like north has 10 cards in the round suits and if they have a useful pitch it's in spades

[CSGibson]

I have a trump control, I'm leading my singleton.

[Hanoi5]

 CSGibson, on 2013-December-31, 14:35, said:

I have a trump control, I'm leading my singleton.

Exactly my thoughts.

[nige1]

 ahydra, on 2013-December-31, 13:57, said:

Opps are playing Acol (weak NT, 4cM). Perhaps your double is a little enterprising but if you pick the right opening lead you will defeat 4H.

---

A brave double! IMO: ♦ = 10, ♠ = 9, ♥ = 8, ♣ = 7. A ♠ ruff seems more useful than a ♣ ruff.

[PhilKing]

Had they made a red suit lead against me, that was enough to win.

[FrancesHinden]

I'm another one who knows the hand. My partner had this hand and didn't lead a red suit, that was enough to win...
Personally I think the double is a bit keen but it was successful.

I would also lead my singleton.

[helene_t]

hey Phil, shouldn't you put it in spoiler tags?

[FrancesHinden]

 nige1, on 2013-December-31, 22:25, said:

A brave double! IMO: ♦ = 10, ♠ = 9, ♥ = 8, ♣ = 7. A ♠ ruff seems more useful than a ♣ ruff.

I think a trump lead is dreadful. It's easy to see how any of the other suits could work, but I struggle to construct a hand when a trump is necessary to beat the contract.

[nige1]

 PhilKing, on 2014-January-01, 08:04, said:

Had they made a red suit lead against me, that was enough to win.

 FrancesHinden, on 2014-January-01, 09:14, said:

I'm another one who knows the hand. My partner had this hand and didn't lead a red suit, that was enough to win...Personally I think the double is a bit keen but it was successful. I would also lead my singleton.

Was the auction the same? In expert circles, is "Values" (instead of "Support" or "Honour X") the normal agreement for this redouble?

[FrancesHinden]

 nige1, on 2014-January-01, 09:23, said:

Was the auction the same? In expert circles, is "Values" (instead of "Support" or "Honour X") the normal agreement for this redouble?

Not quite, we bid

1C 1S x xx
3H P 4H P
P dbl

Our xx shows Hx spades, but it also shows values. You are suggesting partner might want to compete to 2S in a 5-2 fit, so it has to show something (we reckon about 9+ HCP)

[nige1]

 FrancesHinden, on 2014-January-01, 09:16, said:

I think a trump lead is dreadful. It's easy to see how any of the other suits could work, but I struggle to construct a hand when a trump is necessary to beat the contract.

This kind of layout, perhaps? But I bow to Frances' superior judgement.

---

[PhilKing]

 helene_t, on 2014-January-01, 09:14, said:

hey Phil, shouldn't you put it in spoiler tags?

Normally, yes, but I think the red suit leaders may be beyond help.

[cherdano]

 nige1, on 2014-January-01, 09:54, said:

This kind of layout, perhaps? But I bow to Frances' superior judgement.

---

4♥? Is that how they bid on the West Coast?
Greeting from Edinburgh

[nige1]

 cherdano, on 2014-January-01, 10:08, said:

4♥? Is that how they bid on the West Coast? Greeting from Edinburgh

Good point. I was beefing up the the North hand a bit when you replied. But it's not hard to construct hands to fit anybody's bidding theories, where a ♥ lead works.

BTW, I don't think anybody said they'd lead a ♥. Of the 4 suits, it was my 3rd choice.

Anyway Happy New Year!

[jallerton]

 nige1, on 2014-January-01, 10:15, said:

Good point. I was beefing up the the North hand a bit when you replied. But it's not hard to construct hands to fit anybody's bidding theories, where a heart suit works.

BTW, I don't think anybody said they'd lead a ♥ (Amongst the suits, it was my third choice)

Anyway Happy New Year!

Yes, but you gave 8 marks out of 10 to a ♥, presumably meaning that it's considered to be almost as good as your first choice. Do you think that ♥A and ♥2 are equally good?

[nige1]

 jallerton, on 2014-January-01, 10:24, said:

Yes, but you gave 8 marks out of 10 to a ♥, presumably meaning that it's considered to be almost as good as your first choice. Do you think that ♥A and ♥2 are equally good?

Reading expert comments, I accept that my judgement may be wrong (again), but I still feel the decision is close among all four suits.

When I pose a problem, it's usually because I chose what I fear may be an inferior action. I want to know what I should have done. But I would also like an estimate of how bad my action was. "Marks out of ten" is a quick way of trying to provide that kind of feedback.

As explained before, 6-10 marks means I deem that the action is quite likely to work. Marks 0-5 are for actions that I consider but think are unlikely to work.

In magazine competitions, it's amusing when ...

• Player A says "X is the only possible expert action. Y is particularly insane". But for player B, X and Y are reversed
• A and B are world-champions, in a long-established partnership
• After many years, when the same problem is repeated, an expert contradicts his own earlier judgement

FWIW, I reckon ♥A is better than ♥2, although, obviously, you can construct rare hands where the latter is best. In the deal quoted by Cherdano, either would defeat the contract.

Please would one of the posters, who knows the other hands, post the whole deal.

[ahydra]

Full hand was:

---

So as others have said, a red suit lead lets it through and a black suit lead defeats it by one trick.

With "double and lead trumps" in mind it was I who led the HA - North's bidding sounded like lots of shape, so I was hoping to reduce a crossruff. I then switched to the C10 but eventually partner got endplayed in spades to lead into dummy's ♦AQ.

That 4H bid by North was just the beginnings of this pair's aggression. They later overcalled (1D)-2D clubs and spades on ♠T8654 ♥T4 ♦J ♣J9763 (second seat both green) and opened 1D at red on ♠985 ♥KQ54 ♦KQT75 ♣8.

ahydra

[nige1]

 cherdano, on 2014-January-01, 10:08, said:

4♥? Is that how they bid on the West Coast? Greeting from Edinburgh

 ahydra, on 2014-January-02, 06:11, said:

Full hand
So as others have said, a red suit lead lets it through and a black suit lead defeats it by one trick. With "double and lead trumps" in mind it was I who led the HA - North's bidding sounded like lots of shape, so I was hoping to reduce a crossruff. I then switched to the C10 but eventually partner got endplayed in spades to lead into dummy's ♦AQ. That 4H bid by North was just the beginnings of this pair's aggression. They later overcalled (1D)-2D clubs and spades on ♠T8654 ♥T4 ♦J ♣J9763 (second seat both green) and opened 1D at red on ♠985 ♥KQ54 ♦KQT75 ♣8.

---

Thank you, ahydra. Cherdano please note that Glasgow-style bidding sometimes to works If North had held a singleton instead of a void in ♦, then no lead beats 4♥