LEARNING CENTER

Win in dummy. You need to finesse in spades as soon as you can. The lead is smelly-- it is very likely to be a singleton. If you win in your hand, you can't go to take the finesse. East can get in with clubs or the A to give West diamond ruffs. If you win in dummy, you can immediately take the spade finesse. If it loses (not very likely on the auction, but possible) then it's just not your day. 

The full deal: 

Vul:Both Dlr: E	QJ10  K85  A9872  K4
653  A109  6  1098765		K8  J6432  J105  AQJ
	A9742  Q7  KQ43  32

Should you win trick one in dummy our in your hand?

 Win in dummy. You want to play a diamond towards your hand to take a finesse as soon as you can. You could win in hand and immediately play another heart on this deal, but that kind of wasted communication will hurt you in the long run. You could also win in hand and draw one round of trump, but that's not likely to help and something could go wrong in the spade suit. If you draw two rounds of trump, you will go down as West can win the diamond and draw dummy's last trump. 

The full deal: 

Vul:None Dlr: South	973  A75  73  109872
J64  QJ109  K1082  Q3		8  863  J954  AKJ54
	AKQ1052  K42  AQ6  6

Play the king. 

The full deal: 

Vul:None Dlr: S	QJ10  83  64  KQJ1083
A8652  J54  K103  65		97  K762  J875  A97
	K43  AQ109  AQ92  42

Win in your hand. You need to set up the heart suit in dummy to get rid of your club loser. In order to do that, you need to recognize the importance of the 2. That card is how you will get to dummy and must be preserved. Win this in hand, and play a heart to the ace and ruff a heart with any card that isn't the 2. Now play the 2 to dummy and ruff another heart. You can now draw the remaining trump (throwing a club from dummy), cross to dummy with a diamond and ruff the fourth round of hearts with your last trump. Hopefully, the fifth heart is good (if hearts were 4-3). You go to dummy with the club K and play the heart, pitching a club. Now you are left with winners in your hand. 

The full deal:

Vul: Dlr:	98  A9832  Q7  K832
763  Q1076  1043  Q95		54  KJ5  J9865  J104
	AKQJ102  4  AK2  A76

Win in hand. Those 10s and 9s are important cards. Here, there's no rush to take a club finesse. You have 4 losers: 1 spade (hopefully), 2 diamonds, and a club. You could take the club finesse (50-50), but this lead has given you an additional chance: getting an extra heart winner. Play low from dummy and East plays the J or Q. You can cash one trump and now you can finesse in hearts (play the 9, overtaking with the 10). If this finesse wins, now you can take the A and throw away a diamond, before taking the club finesse. You are hoping to get an overtrick if the K is onside. Even if this finesse loses, you can get back to dummy with a trump and now you have two good hearts to use to throw away diamonds. 

The full deal: 

Vul:None Dlr: South	K6  A1083  10943  543
Q104  Q762  Q5  K976		J5  J54  KJ82  J1082
	A98732  K9  A76  AQ

Win in declarer's hand. You want to take the diamond finesse as quickly as possible. Yes, you could use the A to come back to your hand, but why give away information? You can't afford to draw trumps before playing diamonds because if the diamond finesse loses, the opponents can take three spade tricks with dummy out of hearts. 

The full deal: 

Vul:None Dlr: S	43  KJ  AJ109  109432
AJ82  532  ?543  K7		KQ109  4  ?82  QJ865
	765  AQ109876  Q6  A

note: I didn't show where the K is because it will be in the wrong place if you play it a wrong way.