63 / AKT84 / K9 / AJ65

Is it right to play the Jack of Spades at trick 1?

Obviously if it was AKJx opposite 3 small the safety play for 3 tricks is to cash AK and then play a Spade up.  But here the only holding where you really feel awful if you finesse is stiff Q offside (meaning opening leader has T9852, the 5 not being the likeliest of leads from that holding.)  Against that, your dummy isn't exactly crawling with entries and if you don't take the hook early, then what?  If you play a Club honor, LHO can duck once and then win the 2nd one and you might never see the board again (unless you never take the Spade hook, but you've got to set up a 9th trick somewhere to go with your 2 Spades, 2 Hearts, 1 Diamond and 3 Clubs.)

I think it's right to pay off to stiff Q and take the Spade hook right away.  On the actual hand, that's what I did.  It lost to RHO and he returned a Diamond (from Jack 5th.)  The Club hook was off so I scored the obvious 9 tricks (2, 2, 2, 3.) +400 was a push

LHO

52 / J9532 / A74 / K83

RHO

QT98 / Q / J8532 / 974

1NT on the Jack of Hearts lead on the auction P-P-1S-1N-Float

85 / 84 / 75432 / KQ84

QJT / AK7 / AQJ / J652

Is it right to duck the opening lead (Righty played the 6, if that matters)?

You'd like to duck if you were sure that LHO would continue Hearts.  The 6 looks nebulous enough that that's likely.  Ducking protects against 6-2 Hearts (when you win the 2nd Heart and play a Club up, RHO won't have any Hearts to return.) 

But if LHO switches to a Spade, you're down if Spades are 6-2 (which is not unlikely since there wasn't a Spade lead originally.)

I ducked.  Spades were 6-2 AND Hearts were 6-2.  But LHO had no entry whatsoever (1 count) so the duck wasn't necessary (and would have been fatal if they had found the Spade switch.)  They continued Hearts and I eventually took 7 tricks (I declined the Diamond finesse since in the unlikely event that it lost, I would have been down a couple.)

Conclusion:  On this one, against an expert pair, you win the first Heart and hope the Diamond hook is on (you have 7 top tricks in that case once you drive out the Club.)  Against a not-so-strong pair, I think ducking has a lot of merit.  +90 was lose 1 (I could have made 5 if I had been willing to risk the Diamond finesse after RHO ducked a Spade to me ... sigh)

LHO

93 / JT9532 / T96 / 97

RHO

AK7642 / Q6 / K8 / AT3


3NT on the King of Hearts lead (ducked) and the Jack of Spades switch.  1N - P - 3N - Float

A854 / 85 / AJ432 / 97

KT72 / AJ3 / Q8 / AQ84

Where do you win the 2nd trick?  How do you continue?

I decided to believe my opponent and I won the Ace and started to run the 8, but I hated killing that late Spade entry to dummy, so I continued with a low Spade.  RHO took me off the guess by playing the Queen! and I won the King as LHO followed with the 9.  Now I continued with the Queen of Diamonds, covered, which I ducked.  LHO switched in desperation to a Club and when Diamonds were 3-3, I had 11 tricks.  Fun hand. +460 was win 2.

LHO

J9 / KQT72 / KT6 / K65

RHO

Q63 / 964 / 975 / JT32

3NT on the 6 of Hearts lead (another 1N - 3N auction.)

KJT / J3 / J852 / K952

Q4 / A952 / AKT97 / A6

Do you play the Jack from dummy?  If RHO inserts a cheap honor, do you win or duck?

 

I was really thrown by this suit combination.  Obviously with A852 (or worse) your only chance is to try the Jack and with AT52, you must play low from dummy. 

I eventually concluded that playing low is right.  Obviously playing the Jack gets you a trick and a tempo if opening leader has KQ86 or some such, but if he has KT864 and you play the Jack, you now have to duck when RHO plays the Queen, or down you go if RHO gets in with the Ace of Spades.

It turned out not to matter when RHO showed up with QT tight.  The opponents were unable to attack Hearts successfully, so scored only their 4 obvious tricks (1 Spade, 2 Hearts, 1 Diamond (Qxx offside.) +600 was win 12 (the other declarer couldn't count, or something, he had 9 top tricks on a Spade lead.)

LHO

752 / K8764 / Q64 / QT

RHO

 

A9863 / QT / 3 / J8743

3 Hearts on the 5 of Spades (likely singleton) lead.  1H - 2D (overcall) - 3H - Float

AJ8763 / T63 / - / J942

KQ2 / J9852 / 832 / AQ

Do you draw trumps and risk them cashing the first 6 tricks in the red suits?  Do you try to ruff Diamonds?  Do you take the Club finesse?  Do you 'draw trumps' by leading Spades?

I took what appears to be the 'normal' line of ruff a Diamond, hook a Club, ruff a Diamond, club to Ace, ruff last Diamond, exhale.  I ended up making 3 (I should have made 4 on a misdefense.)  Drawing trumps obviously doesn't work (even though they block, they'll still score 3 trumps and 2 Diamonds.)  Leading Spades doesn't seem to make much sense, but you can get away with it this time on the lie of the cards.  +140 was lose 10 (our teammates lost their way defending 4 Hearts doubled when declarer led trumps after the same Spade lead.  RHO returned a Club when in with the first trump and a Spade when in with the 2nd.  Ouch.)

LHO

5 / K74 / AQT754 / 765

RHO

T94 / AQ / KJ96 / KT83

And finally ... 7 Diamonds on the Deuce of Diamonds lead.  Uncontested 1C - 1D - 2C - 2S - 3D - 6D - 7D

AJ8 / 2 / 974 / AQ9763

K654 / A83 / AQJT3 / 8

Is a Club finesse in your immediate plans or not?  If you don't take the Club finesse, and LHO follows with the JT of Clubs when you play a Club to the Ace and ruff a Club, then what?

I really wanted to make this hand.  Would have earned its own entry if I had.  I played the 9 from dummy and RHO played the King.  First problem solved.  Now what?

My first mistake was not ruffing a Heart right away.  I thought I might as well use the Ace of Clubs as an entry now and save the Heart ruffs for entries later.  I played Club to Ace, Lefty followed with the Ten, ruffed a Club, Lefty followed with the Jack, and played the Ace of Hearts and ruffed a Heart.  The only way to make it now on the actual lie is to draw trumps and take the Spade finesse to run the ruffing Club hook through RHO.

Instead, I ruffed a Club and LHO showed out.

AJ8 / - / 7 / Q97

 

K654 / 8 / QJ / -

 

If I'd ruffed that Heart earlier, I could still make it if Spades were 3-3 with Q onside, but I've managed to block the suit on this line so down I go.  Sigh.

 

LHO

 

Q932 / KJT4 / 652 / JT

 

RHO

T7 / Q9765 / K8 / K542