Signalling on Lead by Ben Norton

A: ♦2. Partner has raised Diamonds so you should lead a Diamond with confidence that he can win the Ace and give you a ruff. What’s more you must lead your lowest Diamond as a suit preference signal for Clubs. Partner will know that the two is suit preference since it can’t be fourth-highest on the bidding.

Your result so far:

A: ♦9. This time you don’t want a ruff, but you do want partner to shift to Spades, which will work wonders when declarer has the ♠K. You can employ another suit preference lead here, a high one to ask for a switch to the higher side suit. The nine is usually led only from a doubleton, so partner will work out that it’s an unusual spot card, given that you’ve bid and raised the suit.

Your result so far:

A: ♣8. A Diamond lead will give away a trick far too often, with the strong hand on your right, and a Heart around to declarer’s length is hardly attractive. You don’t want to lead the ♠Q either, knowing dummy has Spade length. That leaves Clubs. Normally you’d lead your second-highest from a poor suit, but here the four might be misinterpreted as fourth-highest by partner, and the last thing you want him to do is return a Club. Try the eight, which will certainly convince partner you have no interest in the suit. When he gets on lead he may then find the potentially killing Diamond shift.

Your result so far:

A: ♠3. A Heart lead doesn’t rate to be successful since partner didn’t overcall 1♥. Therefore you’re left with Spades and under normal circumstances you’d lead the ♠7 from this holding, but this is an exception. You can construct a clear plan for the defense, and Spades is your most likely source of tricks. What's more you have two Aces which declarer will have to knock out. In this way you may have enough time to establish and cash the Spades, so long as partner continues the suit at every opportunity. To encourage partner to continue Spades you should feign strength in the suit and lead your fourth-highest, as if you held an honor.

Your result so far:

A: ♥2. When leading partner’s unsupported suit it’s imperative that you give count, to let him know how many tricks to try to cash in the suit and to give him, the stronger hand who will get on lead more often, the information to construct a more accurate blueprint of the hand. Leading your middling Heart might make him think you have a doubleton.

Your result so far: