[Echognome]

Scoring: MP

(P) - 3♦ - (P) (H) - P
(3♥) - P - (4♥) - 5♦
All Pass

---

The bidding is ugly, but the contract has play. West leads the ♣A which you ruff and lead a heart. East takes this with the 7 and returns a heart. You ruff in dummy and lead a club and East ruffs in with the 9. What now?

T1: ♣A - 2 - 8 - ♦2
T2: ♥4 - 2 - 5 - 7
T3: ♥K - 6 - 10 - ♦7
T4: ♣3 - ♦9 - ?

[Fluffy]

West passed 3♦ with ♣AKQxxx ?

This looks like ♠ fineses won't work nor and endplay would.

I would cross ruff ♥/♣ then cash ♠A and finally try ♠J finese.

[Winstonm]

This is a very odd hand from the play. LHO has AKQxxx, and RHO has ruffed in instead of discarding a heart. Spade position is the puzzler.

O.K. I'm not clear what's going on here but I will over ruff and ruff another heart, cash the Ace of diamonds and ruff another club back to hand. Then, just for the fun of it, I will cash the King of diamonds and and play off diamonds to reach this position:

Spades: AQx
Clubs: J


Spades: 109x
Diamonds:x

I lead a spade to the Queen; RHO wins and will have to return a heart; I ruff this while squeezing LHO in clubs and spades when he started with the Jxx or more of spades. It isn't any better line than the double hook in spades, but one must stay in playing shape, and besides, it gets the bees buzzing around in opponents heads that maybe they should have beaten you, LoL.

WinstonM

[Echognome]

Scoring: MP

P - 3♦ - P (H) - P
3♥ - P - 4♥ - 5♦
All Pass

---

Strange bidding all around. EW were playing strong 2's, so didn't have a weak 2 in hearts available.

The play was strange but interesting. For some strange reason I didn't take the odds on double finesse in spades, but a first round finesse of the Q. (Must have been a blindspot at the time) Luckily the black suit squeeze came to the rescue in the end.

Was surprised that no one commented on the bidding other than West's pass!

[Echognome]

Since West is known to hold the club guard, the 2nd finesse and squeeze are equivalent in the end game. Mine had the added bonus that for some reason West discarded his club guard.

[Fluffy]

Actually you added also that East had KJ bare, everything is so rare that it could be.