[blml] claim

[Herman De Wael]

koen wrote:
>>   
> ...sorry to ask again (I agree it is irrational for West todiscard Heart 
> A)...
> Considering that East :
> - played club Q followed by the T after the claim and the discussion,
> - did apparantly not know that West could have Heart A and free diamonds,
> - is not a good player,
> - It is very well possible - even likely - that he did not know that 
> Club J is still in the play.

OK, let that be the TD's decision. What we then need to decide is 
whether it is rational for a player who thinks QT are good to win the 
trick with the 10 or with either.

I say tricks are won with the lowest possible, and led from the top 
(thus 4 tricks to defenders), but others will of course disagree (they 
will give declarer 3 tricks).

> => Is it irrational or very unlikely that he would actually have played 
> the club Q followed by the T if he would not have claimed?
> Is giving 3 tricks to N-S a very bad ruling (I think you either give 
> none or 3 to N-S)?

Indeed that's it.

We will never solve this one on blml. I remember the flack I received 
when I told this list that the highest AC in the EBL had once decided 
on a claim and I dared suggest that this ought to be considered "case 
law". It seems to me as if some of you consider blml as a debating 
forum rather than as a tool to get TD's minds in the same direction.

This ruling can go either way, and I'd like to know which way we're 
all going to rule this. We really ought to have some guidance from the 
WBF on this one.

So, may I ask the WBF to give us guidance on this stripped case:

A player has to take a club trick (let's strip some further and say in 
fourth position) with either of two cards that he believes are high. 
He shall play the other one next (also believing it to win the trick). 
Do we consider that to take the first trick with the higher of the 
two, and to lead the lower to the next trick, constitutes a "normal 
play"? Does it differ whether the two cards are AQ or 86?

> Thanks again,
> Koen
> 

-- 
Herman DE WAEL
Antwerpen Belgium
http://users.skynet.be/hermandw/index.html