grizz: Hi everybody, thanks for attending another in a series of lessons on Defense.  
grizz: Chat logs and hand records are stored in your computer for later review.  For information on how to retrieve them, go the BIL homepage or email me at Grizz@GrizzBridge.com.
whiz->Club: :) :) ty
grizz: I teach private individual, pair, and small group lessons.  If you would like to know more please email me at Grizz@GrizzBridge.com.
grizz: Archives of previous sessions are available at GrizzBridge.com, on the Lessons and Archives page located at:  http://www.grizzbridge.com/Lessons_and_Archives.php
grizz: There will be lots of questions.  I want to address them all, but in a manner helpful to all, so please ask them in open chat.  
grizz: If I forget a question while answering another, please remind me.
grizz: I encourage participation by all kibitzers
grizz: So jump right in with a comment, question, or bid at any time, but please do so in open chat.
grizz: There are only 5 basic types of defensive strategy at the beginning of a hand.
grizz: These concepts are out of the book "How The Experts Win At Bridge" by Burt Hall and Lynn Rose-Hall, the Book of the Year in 1997.
grizz: By way of review, and for those who are new here, the 5 lines of defense are:
grizz: 1.  Force declarer to ruff, and lose control of his own trump suit.
grizz: 2.  Active defense.
grizz: 3.  Passive defense.
grizz: 4.  Reduce ruffing power.
grizz: 5.  Create trump tricks.
grizz: We have looked at Forcing, Active and Passive defense, Reduce ruffing power and Create Trump Tricks for several weeks, and now it is time for us to put that knowledge to work by ...
grizz: choosing opening leads.
grizz: Again, if you need review on the 5 Lines of Defense check out http://www.grizzbridge.com/Lessons_and_Archives.php and scroll down the page until you find those lessons under the ...
grizz: BIL listings.
grizz: Briefly, here are the guidelines for each of these different strategies.
grizz: 1.  Forcing defense - lead your side's strongest suit.
grizz: 2.  Active defense - also, lead your side's strongest suit.
grizz: 3.  Passive defense - top of a sequence, or a worthless suit
grizz: 4.  Reduce ruffs - start a trump
grizz: 5.  Creating trump tricks - lead from your own or toward partner's shortness
grizz: So choosing a lead depends on what your defensive game plan is, referring back to the 5 Lines of Defense.
grizz: When you know WHAT you intend to accomplish, it is easier to decide HOW to get it done.
grizz: In addition to the 5 Lines of Defense the special situations requiring special leads are as follows:
grizz: 1.  Gambling NT - lead an ace, look at dummy and try to locate declarer's weakness.
grizz: 2.  NT slams - if you and partner have not bid, lead top of a sequence or a worthless suit, avoid giving declarer a free finesse or other help.
grizz: 3.  Suit grands slams - a trump is almost mandatory, unless both ops have bid and raised a suit and you have the Ace.
grizz: 4.  Doubled part-score contracts - lead trump, try to kill ruffs in side suits.
grizz: There are also some special rules for lead-directing doubles:
grizz: 1.  If neither defender has bid, ops bid a NT game or slam and partner doubles, lead dummy's first bid suit.
grizz: 2.  If only partner bid and later doubles, lead his suit.
grizz: 3.  If only you bid and later partner doubles, lead your own suit.
grizz: 4.  If both you and partner have bid and partner doubles, lead the suit of the stronger hand - that is where the entries are.
grizz: 5.  If ops have not bid any suits (e.g. 1NT-3NT) and partner doubles, lead your shortest major.
grizz: So this week we are going to look at example hands and auctions, consider defensive plans and choose leads.  
grizz: Shall we start?
ali024: y
sweetepsi: y
grizz: In all cases you are West and must choose a lead, so kib just West if you want the full benefit of this lesson.  
grizz: Otherwise kib all four hands to get a birds-eye view of the layout.
grizz: If you want to kib just one hand, click on the yellow gear at the bottom of the page
grizz: At lower right there is a box where you can check which hand you want to kib
grizz: Here we go.
grizz: Your hand is !S9642-!h842-!d6-!cJ9743
grizz: LHO dealt and passed, and the auction went P-P-1NT-P
grizz: 2!c-P-2!h-P-
grizz: 4!h-P-P-P
grizz: What is your lead and why?
grizz: here is your hand again:
grizz: !S9642-!h842-!d6-!cJ9743
zewzew: can we put hand and bidding on screen pls?
->zewzew: sry, bbo won't let me put up a partial hand
juve: 4!c   long suit
grizz: Does any lead stand out?
ali024: 6!d
ali024: maybe
sweetepsi: 6D
gypsy1308: 4!C longest suit
Miksa: Partner didn't ask !c lead
foxylives: 6!d possible ruff
grizz: Here is one possible layout:
cdt: 4!C
grizz: we got lucky, pard was able to win the !D
grizz: now pard must work out that it was singleton, and give you a ruff
Miksa: All small !ds are seen - must be a singleton !d
grizz: which card should East lead back for the ruff?
ali024: 9
panim: 3
grizz: :)
tmortada: 9
gypsy1308: not looking :(
grizz: the !d9 was a critical signal
grizz: it showed West where East's entry was for another ruff
grizz: high card = high suit
grizz: low card = low suit
grizz: excepting the ruff suit and trumps, there are only 2 left
grizz: likewise, the small !d here shows a !c card
grizz: and even though S knows that E has the K, he must take the hook here - there are not enough winners in the hand
grizz: So this is a Create Trump Tricks hand
grizz: and a lucky layout, true -
grizz: but over the long haul if you give your side chances on hands like this, sometimes it will pay off
grizz: and will almost never cost anything
grizz: E is marked with some points here
grizz: any questions on this hand?
whiz: no ty
grizz: For the next hand you hold !SQT932-!hKQT9-!dQ5-!cA6.
grizz: You opened 1!s and the auction went:  1!s-2!c-P-2NT-
grizz: P-3NT-X-all pass
grizz: What is your lead and why?
grizz: I will show the hand in just a minute
tmortada: !CA
ali024: !cA
tmortada: dummy's 1st bid suit
bjh346: ur own suit
Miksa: !s, your suit bid
foxylives: !hK
grizz: we have 2 conflicting rules here:
grizz: 3.  If only you bid and later partner doubles, lead your own suit.
grizz: 1.  If neither defender has bid, ops bid a NT game or slam and partner doubles, lead dummy's first bid suit.
grizz: but notice the caveat in Rule 1:   this applies only if neither defender has bid!
grizz: so Rule 3 applies
grizz: you may kib all 4 hands now
grizz: to see what this auction means
grizz: Without the double, W has a natural !h lead
grizz: and savvy players would lead the Q from this sequence, asking pard to drop the J if he has it
grizz: but the X shows a !s card, and says it's safe to lead W's suit, !S
grizz: lucky here to catch E with 2 honors
grizz: only 1 would have been necessary
grizz: now W has another chance for a signal
grizz: but it's pointless now, E can't possibly have another entry
grizz: a kib asked:  why not simply 4th best without thinking of K or Q !H?
grizz: and the answer is that the Q lead is a special lead vs. NT, asking for pard to unblock the J if he has it
grizz: we covered leads for several weeks last year, and those lessons are in the archives
sweetepsi: always?
grizz: every single one  :)
sweetepsi: ok
grizz: 40+ to date
grizz: and it may seem odd that we are still on Trick 1 after all this time, but I have a lot to say on that subject   :)
juve: why 3!S? ty:)
tcyk->Club: if you have QJ9 xx you know partner isn't goint to throw away the jack
grizz: true
grizz: and you don't need to worry about pard tossing a 3rd round winner
grizz: but from KQT9(x), the Q says the suit is solid except for the A and J
grizz: but the real point of this hand is the X
grizz: which says it's ok for W to lead his own suit
grizz: guaranteeing an honor, or exceptional length
grizz: in either case knocking out a stopper
grizz: without the !S lead, S has plenty of time here to knock out the !CA and collect his tricks
tcyk: often south's NT call warns you against leading your suit
grizz: right - especially from a bad suit, the lead often runs right into a tenace and gives up an extra trick
grizz: so the X here says that if ops have a stopper they have only 1, 2 at most -
grizz: and the lead is correct to set up long tricks while W still has outside entries
grizz: and the negative inference is also available here -
grizz: in such an auction where pard does NOT X, that suggests the lead doesn't work so well
grizz: and then on this hand we go back to the !h lead
grizz: any questions on this one?
->beggers: hiya!
beggers: hello!
grizz: For the next hand you hold !s5-!hKJ87-!d7-!cJ9743 and the auction gets hot and heavy.  RHO opens 1!d and the auction goes:
grizz: 1!d-P-2!c-4!h-
grizz: 4!s-5!h-6!s-7!h-
grizz: P-P-7!s-X-all pass
grizz: you hold !s5-!hKJ87-!d7-!cJ9743 
grizz: what do you lead and why?
grizz: I will show the hand in just a minute
tcyk: east has a void
tmortada: this bidding suggests a cross ruff, so lead 5!S
grizz: that is one possible explanation
robzim: the!D?
beggers: was that a lightner X?
grizz: yes
sweetepsi: dont know what that is
robzim: opps first bid suit was !D
grizz: asks for an unusual lead
eubulides: lead a club
sascha3: !D
grizz: the usual lead on this auction would be a !h
grizz: that's the suit we both bid
grizz: but pard preempted, so must be really long in !hs
grizz: ergo, short somewhere else
grizz: and can ruff the lead, if pard figures out where the shortness is
grizz: here is the hand -
grizz: this is the Lightner X
grizz: demanding an unusual lead
sweetepsi: ty
sascha3: so ops first bid suit?
grizz: not necessarily
tcyk: usually asks for dummies first bid suit so lead a club
grizz: it does forbid the lead of our suit
grizz: or a trump
grizz: leaving only 2 suits left, and pard must work it out
vallie: !D
tcyk: diamonds look more likely because they are longer
grizz: right
grizz: frequently it does call for dummy's first bid suit
grizz: but that does not relieve W of the mental drudgery of figuring out which lead is best
grizz: and that's it for that hand, over at Trick 1
grizz: So here are the rules for Lightner doubles -
grizz: 1.  they forbid the lead of our suit, or trump
grizz: either of which would be a usual lead
grizz: and they command an Unusual lead
grizz: which is usually dummy's first bid suit, but might not be
grizz: so West must still use bridge logic and work out the puzzle
grizz: nobody ever said that playing expert defense would be easy!
grizz: Pard knew from the bidding that one of the ops must be void, so a !h lead would be futile.
grizz: any questions on the Lightner double?
Miksa: I expected some more tips after 1. (2., 3.... :))
grizz: :)
Miksa: (but you said all at the first one) 
grizz: 2.  and they command an Unusual lead
Miksa: :)
grizz: 3.   which is usually dummy's first bid suit, but might not be
Miksa: :))
grizz: lol
zewzew: and Ws choice of  !D is because he has 5 !d in his hand?
grizz: yes, making it more likely that partner is short
meshmeshaa: how would p know..ur dbling for a "lightner lead" and not a penalty dble?
grizz: experts don't make penalty doubles of slams unless unusual leads are required
tcyk->Club: don't double slams you can set with normal play
grizz: there may be one exception to that, but it's not a lead director
grizz: if ops have bid and raised a suit and play in another, and W has both aces, that's a safe double  :)
meshmeshaa: the hands u showed before wrnt slam hands
grizz: right, Lightner doubles also apply to NT games
sweetepsi: how do u know not for penalty?
grizz: experts expect that other experts, when bidding voluntarily to a slam, expect to make it
grizz: and a 1-trick set is not sufficient upside to offset a huge downside if they make it
grizz: and the X may give away enough information about strength and distribution that declarer will make anti-percentage plays and make it
tcyk: the double might disclose the right line of play to make the bid
grizz: and that is also a good thing to keep in mind -
grizz: if you double a contract, subtract one likely defensive trick for having given away the secret
grizz: because declarer will play the doubler for trump length, and outside values too
Sekmeth: and what if you play in weak field no experts ?
tcyk: There are no weak fields :)
robzim: that's a question for your archives :)  
grizz: good question
grizz: if you tailor your game to a weak field, you will play a weak game
Sekmeth: ok
grizz: the only way to get better at this game is to play with and against better players
grizz: we all strive to be experts
grizz: and the cold, hard reality is that in order to play like an expert, you must think like one
nancyb431: good tip
grizz: so this class has been criticized for being aimed at higher level players,
grizz: but that is intentional
grizz: so that you can see how they think
grizz: this is a thinking game, after all
cdt: Thank you much appreciated:)
grizz: not an "if A, then B, and therefore C" kind of game
whiz: ty   it is right 
Sekmeth: you make it clear to me thx
grizz: :)
whiz: :)  :)  thanks a lot pete
maysie: TY TY TY - now I shall be able to put up with being called 'stupid' - bec. I X and P insists on own suit lead  - -rofl
grizz: you are all intelligent people, very accomplished in other areas of life
nancyb431: great tips which I shall remember at the CWTC in Montreal
tcyk: Weak players will sometimes stumble into a good result but they will be wrong more often than right
robzim: thanks so much Pete -- you REALLY cleared this up for me - and my partner will be eternally grateful :)
grizz: all of you more accomplished than i in most areas of life
zewzew: but aim  being accomplished in this 1 :)
grizz: so i will treat you accordingly   :)
grizz: ok, next hand
Miksa: And we are lucky to have BIL and teachers like you here :)
cdt: Very Lucky :)
grizz: ty  :)
grizz: For the next hand you hold  !s53-!hJT94-!dT754-!C842.
grizz: RHO opened and the auction went 1NT-P-3NT-X-all pass
grizz: What do you lead and why?
tcyk: Fisher double?
grizz: I will show the hand in just a minute
ali024: !s5
Miksa: shorter major :)
barutes: !s 5
tmortada: 5!S
meshmeshaa: yes 5s
tcyk: club
tmortada: shorter major
JShep: shortest major
guyb2: no entries 
whiz: not bid by ops and short suit
grizz: no more calls, we have a winner!
grizz: so why !s and not !hs?
grizz: 5.  If ops have not bid any suits (e.g. 1NT-3NT) and partner doubles, lead your shortest major.
meshmeshaa: since opps r short in s..than p must be long in that suit
grizz: yes
grizz: ops made no attempt to locate a major fit
zewzew: ops did not bid any maj, so my shrt maj shd p long one
grizz: and on this auction, lead your short one so pard can cash out early
grizz: on any other lead S waltzes away with 9+ tricks
grizz: so these special double convey special information
grizz: and i will recap them again
ali024->Club: wats this X called?
grizz: it must have a special name, but it escapes me at the moment
grizz: 1.  If neither defender has bid, ops bid a NT game or slam and partner doubles, lead dummy's first bid suit.
grizz: 2.  If only partner bid and later doubles, lead his suit.
grizz: 3.  If only you bid and later partner doubles, lead your own suit.
grizz: 4.  If both you and partner have bid and partner doubles, lead the suit of the stronger hand - that is where the entries are.
grizz: 5.  If ops have not bid any suits (e.g. 1NT-3NT) and partner doubles, lead your shorter major.
grizz: and of course, the Lightner double  :)
sweetepsi: lots to remember
grizz: That concludes today's lesson, and next week we will have more quiz hands on opening leads.
grizz: BTW, your satisfaction is guaranteed, or the next lesson is free!    :)
Dianne0516: Thanks Grizz :)
Dianne0516: lol
ladygolf: thanks Pete :)
sweetepsi: tyvm
grizz:  If anybody needs help retrieving the hand records or chat log, please email me at Grizz@GrizzBridge.com.   
ali024: tyvm grizz
zewzew: thank you v much, v informative :)
grizz: I teach private individual, pair, and small group lessons.  If you would like to know more please email me at Grizz@GrizzBridge.com.
Edi1: thanks  :)
hpd2000: great lesson
bhr: ty
sascha3: thanks Pete was great as always:)
maysie: TY - now I shall smile when the opps call me stupid - cheers lol
grizz: I am planning three different one-day courses on Defense, Declarer Play and Balancing, so it you are interested in any or all of these topics please drop me a line at ...
grizz: Grizz@GrizzBridge.com
->maysie: :)
LadyStar17: Great lesson, Grizz!!! Thanks for your time and expertise!H!H
grizz: Thanks for your interest and participation, and I hope to see you next week.
Miksa: Thanks, I am never sorry to stay so late for your lessons
Johnnyhilo: thanks so much :)
grizz: Thanks also to Maureen, Rosemary, Fred and the wonderful people at BBO who make this all possible.
grizz: Thanks all for coming, i'll see you in a week
whiz: great as always ty !H!H!H
Campus61: thank you pete
robzim->Club: Thanks a lot Pete :)
->Campus61: !H
->robzim: !H
grizz: Bye now