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 Lead with Barry by Barry Rigal

RULES ARE RULES

Bridge is not an exact science, and the area that this is clearest is on opening lead, where you have less information than anywhere else, as you haven’t yet seen another hand, and may have to rely on trusting the auction of LHO RHO and CHO (partner). That is why the books make up lists of suit combinations to lead from; but in real life you only get those once or twice as set when on lead. You have to make the best of it, without much to help you. Still, I do have some tips when in doubt and this set deals with some random pieces of advice when on lead.

Question 1

  Your Hand
 K 7 5 4
 A 7 5 4
 9 2
 9 8 3
 
Q: 1 - What do you lead?
SouthWestNorthEast
---1NT
Pass3NTPassPass
Pass


 Your choice:
A: 4: Lead the spade four not the heart four. Yes, you could have four or five hearts to cash off the bat, as opposed to setting up the spades. But you have a better chance of developing spades, with the heart ace as a sure entry, than setting up the hearts and getting in with the spade king as a possible entry. Ace-fourth is my least favorite blind lead; and the French positively prohibit it.

Your result so far:
Open Question

Question 2

  Your Hand
 K 10 6 4
 J 9 6
 Q 4 3
 A J 7
 
Q: 2 - What do you lead against 2?
SouthWestNorthEast
---1
Pass1NTPass2
PassPassPass


 Your choice:
A: 7: Lead a low trump; your expectation is that even if this costs a trick, and it may well not do so, you will get the trick back with interest by preventing spade ruffs in dummy. Whenever dummy passes declarer out in his second suit, or gives preference back to or raises the second suit, you would expect declarer to need to take ruffs in dummy. Sometimes you don’t want to stop him or have something more urgent to do; but not often.

Your result so far:
Open Question

Question 3

  Your Hand
 A Q 7 4
 K 9 5 3
 Q
 A J 6 5
 
Q: 3 - What is your lead against 5 doubled?
SouthWestNorthEast
---3
Dble5DblePass
PassPass


 Your choice:
A: Q: Lead the trump queen. Against sacrifices, which this clearly is, leading a trump makes a lot of sense -- imagine dummy with three trumps and a side-shortage. You want to make sure your side can get two rounds of trump in sooner rather than later, don’t you? The danger on a deal of this sort is that dummy puts down eg a 1-4-3-5 pattern facing a 3-2-7-1 shape. Here declarer threatens two spade ruffs in dummy and leading trumps as soon as you can may kill one of those ruffs. Your logic is that if trumps is declarer’s only source of tricks, leading trumps minimizes that option by taking out two for one..

Your result so far:
Open Question

Question 4

  Your Hand
 9
 K Q J 4
 A Q 5 4
 Q J 10 3
 
Q: 4 - After partner passed your double, what will you lead?
SouthWestNorthEast
-PassPass1
Dble2PassPass
DblePassPassPass


 Your choice:
A: 9: partner’s pass of your take-out double suggests trumps. You want to ensure declarer does not scramble too many tricks on a cross-ruff. You hope to find a way to get partner on play for a second trump lead. As in the previous example, declarer may score his small trumps if you lead a side-suit in which he is short. There are no guarantees here, but your partner’s pass of a take-out double should imply he is willing to hear you lead a trump.

Your result so far:
Open Question

Question 5

  Your Hand
 9 4
 Q 10 8 7 4
 J 5 2
 10 6 2
 
Q: 5 - Partner doubles 3NT. What do you lead?
SouthWestNorthEast
---1NT
Pass3NTDblePass
PassPass


 Your choice:
A: 9: Your partner’s double suggests a good suit of his own somewhere. Looking at your own hand, that seems likely to be spades. Some play that this double calls for a specific lead -- but in the absence of such agreement, a spade looks the best bet. Go for the shortest major in scenarios of this sort.

Your result so far:
Open Question

Overall Results

Your results:   out of    Average: 

What next? You may enjoy playing our prepared hands series.
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