[blml] AI or UI

[David Grabiner]

Gampas at aol.com writes:

> This reminds me of a somewhat different one, where my partner led a club  out
> of turn. The declarer, having been read his options, chose that I led a
> club, but I was void. I therefore led another suit, and the director  seemed
> uncertain whether the fact that I had a club void was now UI to my  partner, 
> as
> that information was not gleaned from the "withdrawn action" but was  gleaned
> from the failure to comply with the penalty, but I think that it  was 
> "arising"
> from the "withdrawn action" so is UI.

I would say that the club void is AI, because it arises from other actions which 
are AI.  The fact that you were penalized, and the penalty, are AI.  You 
complied with the penalty by showing out of clubs.

The same principle applies with many other penalties.  If partner drops the HQ 
on the table and must lead it as a penalty card, it is AI to you that the HQ 
play was forced, and thus you need not assume that he has the HJ, nor that he 
believes that a heart was the best lead.  (However, if he had led the HQ out of 
turn, the fact that he wanted to lead a heart arose from his withdrawn action, 
and that is UI to you.)

Your specific case was an explicit example in the 1975 Law book, but it was gone 
in the 1987 book.  The example was the distinction between direct and indirect 
damage.

Direct damage: East has Jxx of clubs, and North has AKQxxx and no side entries. 
East revokes on the third club trick and wins the fourth.  Declarer goes down 
three but would have made his contract without the revoke.  The penalty for the 
revoke should be three tricks, not the usual two.

Indirect damage: East commits an irregularity during the auction, allowing South 
to require or forbid a diamond lead.  South requires a diamond lead.  West has 
no diamonds and leads something else, and East later gives West a diamond ruff 
which would not have been a normal play otherwise.  The damage was not a direct 
consequence of the infraction, and the score should be allowed to stand.