A friend of mine sent out this hand a few days ago, it's a very cool ending that I hadn't seen before... Figured I'd share. Apparently it came up in a BBO robot tournament around 7AM. It's a very fun four card ending, fast forward in the handviewer diagram to check it out. Enjoy!
On a separate note, I have been exceptionally bored lately, so I am going to try to keep this blog updated for real!
No, this isn't another one of my "I will post more" posts, that winds up in no more posts for several months/years. Hopefully not, at least. I'm playing a fair amount online, and working on some new relay systems with Owen. Orlando is coming up in a couple weeks, and I will post some cool hands and bidding problems from there as well. Then I have some time off before a cruise with the family, and lots more bridge.
Showing posts with label Squeezes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Squeezes. Show all posts
Thursday, November 11, 2010
Thursday, December 24, 2009
Christmas Eve Squeeze
So, with not much better to do on Christmas Eve, I was playing against some friends online when this hand came up. As usual, I overbid a little, and partner put me someplace dangerous.
After I had upgraded my 18 count, I had to justify myself by making 6NT. The lead was the S9, 3, J and I won with the ace. Basically I needed something to work for me. Based on the lead, I was fairly sure my RHO had the SQJ, and if the club honors were split, I was very well placed for either a squeeze or if they were 3-3 then it would be easy. The other option was the heart finesse. The heart finesse was obviously 50%, and the club position was interesting. 3-3 clubs with the honors split makes it easy. 3-3 or 4-2 clubs with the honors with LHO makes it easy. 5-1 clubs presents squeeze options. If the clubs are split and 4-2, then I only have trouble when LHO has four, since I can pick up 2-4 clubs. Anyway, I figured this rated to be roughly 70%, and clearly a better line.
So, I played the Jack of clubs and let it ride, losing to the king. Back came a diamond, which I won in hand, and led a club to the 8. When that held, I cashed the CA pitching a heart from my hand. Next I ran the diamonds except for 1 and cashed the SK, coming down to this end position:
When I cash my last diamond, there are two possibilities:
1: LHO has the HK. On my last diamond, LHO will be squeezed in Clubs and Hearts. If they pitch a club, I have a club winner in dummy, and if they pitch a heart then I win the last 2 tricks with the HA and HT without a guess.
2: RHO has the HK. On my last diamond, LHO can safely pitch a heart. Now once again, RHO either has to bare the HK or pitch the SQ. Either way I have the rest. What if RHO bares his HK... How do I know? Well, since I know LHO has 1H and 1C remaining, if the HK doesn't show up when I lead a heart up to dummy, then I know that RHO has bared the HK. I'm not exactly sure how to classify this one... 3 suit showup squeeze maybe? Either way, it was fun and looked good for all the specs ;)
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After I had upgraded my 18 count, I had to justify myself by making 6NT. The lead was the S9, 3, J and I won with the ace. Basically I needed something to work for me. Based on the lead, I was fairly sure my RHO had the SQJ, and if the club honors were split, I was very well placed for either a squeeze or if they were 3-3 then it would be easy. The other option was the heart finesse. The heart finesse was obviously 50%, and the club position was interesting. 3-3 clubs with the honors split makes it easy. 3-3 or 4-2 clubs with the honors with LHO makes it easy. 5-1 clubs presents squeeze options. If the clubs are split and 4-2, then I only have trouble when LHO has four, since I can pick up 2-4 clubs. Anyway, I figured this rated to be roughly 70%, and clearly a better line.
So, I played the Jack of clubs and let it ride, losing to the king. Back came a diamond, which I won in hand, and led a club to the 8. When that held, I cashed the CA pitching a heart from my hand. Next I ran the diamonds except for 1 and cashed the SK, coming down to this end position:
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When I cash my last diamond, there are two possibilities:
1: LHO has the HK. On my last diamond, LHO will be squeezed in Clubs and Hearts. If they pitch a club, I have a club winner in dummy, and if they pitch a heart then I win the last 2 tricks with the HA and HT without a guess.
2: RHO has the HK. On my last diamond, LHO can safely pitch a heart. Now once again, RHO either has to bare the HK or pitch the SQ. Either way I have the rest. What if RHO bares his HK... How do I know? Well, since I know LHO has 1H and 1C remaining, if the HK doesn't show up when I lead a heart up to dummy, then I know that RHO has bared the HK. I'm not exactly sure how to classify this one... 3 suit showup squeeze maybe? Either way, it was fun and looked good for all the specs ;)
Friday, June 5, 2009
The Three Suit Squeeze
Playing on BBO today with Jakob, I found the oppurtunity for a rare, but extremely fun techinque: A Three Suit Squeeze. It's not often that you are able to squeeze the opponents in 3 suits, since usually you need more than 1 suit to reduce and strip down their guards in several suits. However sometimes you find a position where you squeeze one opponent in 2 suits, one if he pitches, it's easy, and if he pitches the other, his partner gets squeezed in 1 of the same suits, and another one also. Here is the hand (Played in 3NT):
I received the 6 of Spade lead, which I ducked in dummy, RHO playing the 8 and I won the Ace. I led a Diamond to the ten, and RHO won, played a spade to LHO's King and the Jack of Spades back, won in dummy pitching a small heart from my hand, I now ran all my diamonds, and the position with 1 diamond to go from my hand, was:
When I play my last diamond from my hand, LHO can pitch whatever he wants, but RHO is stuck. He can be squeezed, or he can create a squeeze on his partner. If he pitches a club, my 9C sets up. If he pitches a heart, it at first doesn't seem so bad, after all, he still has the club guard. But when I now cash all my clubs, LHO can bare himself down to the Ten of Spades and the KQ of Hearts, but on my last high club, LHO is squeezed also. If he pitches his spade, my 9 is good in dummy, if he pitches a heart, because his partner was squeezed into letting go of a heart, dummy's 9 of Hearts is now good. Squeezes are so much fun!
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I received the 6 of Spade lead, which I ducked in dummy, RHO playing the 8 and I won the Ace. I led a Diamond to the ten, and RHO won, played a spade to LHO's King and the Jack of Spades back, won in dummy pitching a small heart from my hand, I now ran all my diamonds, and the position with 1 diamond to go from my hand, was:
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When I play my last diamond from my hand, LHO can pitch whatever he wants, but RHO is stuck. He can be squeezed, or he can create a squeeze on his partner. If he pitches a club, my 9C sets up. If he pitches a heart, it at first doesn't seem so bad, after all, he still has the club guard. But when I now cash all my clubs, LHO can bare himself down to the Ten of Spades and the KQ of Hearts, but on my last high club, LHO is squeezed also. If he pitches his spade, my 9 is good in dummy, if he pitches a heart, because his partner was squeezed into letting go of a heart, dummy's 9 of Hearts is now good. Squeezes are so much fun!
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
Palm Beach Gardens - Part 1
Sorry for not updating the blog for a while, I have been very busy. I was in Palm Beach Gardens at the regional tournament there for the past week, there weren't too many really wild hands, but one from the Monday Night session was quite memorable! The 2nd board of the entire tournament, playing with a very good partner, who however is playing precision for only his 2nd time, so we were going to have to work through that a little bit. I pick up my hand, in 2nd seat all vulnerable I hold:
So I of course open 1C, and partner makes the expected 1D response showing 0-7 HCP. Now I ran through a lot of options in my hand, but finally decided to bid 1430 for Diamonds, since all I really cared about was the King of Diamonds and the Ace of Hearts. It was a brilliant plan I thought... Partner denied any keycards, and undeterred I bid 6S and earned myself this beautiful dummy:
I was kinda stuck, after all, I had no entries to dummy, and received a club lead. Luckily trumps split 3-3, but even then, there was only one hope... A squeeze creating an endplay. As long as the King of Diamonds is in the hand with the ace of hearts, and I read the cards correctly, I can make. So I ran off 5 spades, and all my clubs, making sure to preserve 3 hearts and diamond in dummy. On these LHO followed to all of the clubs, and pitched 2 small diamonds. RHO followed to 2 clubs, and pitched 2 hearts and 2 diamonds, leaving this ending:
On my last Spade, LHO can pitch a Heart or a Diamond, but RHO is in trouble. If he pitches a Diamond, I drop his now stiff king. If he pitches a small Heart, I exit with my Heart, and he's endplayed into allowing a Diamond finesse. If he pitches his Ace of Hearts, then I exit my Heart, and LHO is endplayed into either leading a Heart into dummy's good Jack, or leading into my AQ of Diamonds... Either way I have 12 tricks. As it was, RHO was not too imaginative, and pitched a small heart. Now I exited the heart, and took the diamond finesse to make 6, the full deal:
This was a complete top, worth all the matchpoints, and lots of bragging rights too! I'll have more from Palm Beach shortly.
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So I of course open 1C, and partner makes the expected 1D response showing 0-7 HCP. Now I ran through a lot of options in my hand, but finally decided to bid 1430 for Diamonds, since all I really cared about was the King of Diamonds and the Ace of Hearts. It was a brilliant plan I thought... Partner denied any keycards, and undeterred I bid 6S and earned myself this beautiful dummy:
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I was kinda stuck, after all, I had no entries to dummy, and received a club lead. Luckily trumps split 3-3, but even then, there was only one hope... A squeeze creating an endplay. As long as the King of Diamonds is in the hand with the ace of hearts, and I read the cards correctly, I can make. So I ran off 5 spades, and all my clubs, making sure to preserve 3 hearts and diamond in dummy. On these LHO followed to all of the clubs, and pitched 2 small diamonds. RHO followed to 2 clubs, and pitched 2 hearts and 2 diamonds, leaving this ending:
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On my last Spade, LHO can pitch a Heart or a Diamond, but RHO is in trouble. If he pitches a Diamond, I drop his now stiff king. If he pitches a small Heart, I exit with my Heart, and he's endplayed into allowing a Diamond finesse. If he pitches his Ace of Hearts, then I exit my Heart, and LHO is endplayed into either leading a Heart into dummy's good Jack, or leading into my AQ of Diamonds... Either way I have 12 tricks. As it was, RHO was not too imaginative, and pitched a small heart. Now I exited the heart, and took the diamond finesse to make 6, the full deal:
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This was a complete top, worth all the matchpoints, and lots of bragging rights too! I'll have more from Palm Beach shortly.
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