[chasetb]

Currently with no partners (see my posts here and here), I decided to try and improve my individual play, especially my declarer play and squeezes. I get everything about the simple squeeze - the one loser, the three types, and so on. I have a basic understanding of triple squeezes, and even pulled one off thanks to an unlucky opponent pre-empting. What currently is tripping up is the double squeeze, and that seems to dash my hopes for more advanced stuff beyond simple endplays and coups.

I understand that you should have only one loser, that there's a R suit, L suit, and B suit, and after running the free suit, you generally run the L suit. However, being able to put it into play is non-existent. I can see hands where it could possibly work, but either I don't properly visualize the squeeze running, or there isn't a double on the hand. Take this hand from tonight. I see it, and actually run it properly, but I confuse the R and L suits, and miss that overtrick I deserved after less than perfect defense.

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I feel like I'm beating my head against the wall, and just want advice on how to improve this aspect (squeezes, not the beating of the head against the wall, just to be clear ), and maybe visualization in general. If I can improve upon this and the partner, then maybe I don't have to give up this game while still in my 20s. Thanks for everyone ahead of time who has anything constructive to say.

[bgm]

I guess for this particular hand the most obvious hint should be the lead of ♣Q indicate E holds ♣J as well.

Under this assumption you need E to hold ♠10 also (if both black threats are sit in front then there is no squeeze) which is consistent with the carding so far.

And thus you have a simple, automatic black squeeze against E.

[manudude03]

In general*, third hand will have a long threat (that both opponents guard) and a short threat (only controlled by second hand) when a double squeeze happens. Here at trick 11, since the heart hasn't become good (the short threat in third hand), it can no longer serve any purpose in the play and so should be discarded. If you do that, the squeeze works.

To use Clyde Love notation, you must assume hearts is the L suit, since if it is the R suit, then any squeeze involving hearts will fail due to either the U requirement for a heart/club squeeze (dummy squeezed first), or the E requirement for hearts and spades.

* In the B2-type double squeeze, the short threat suits may both be in first hand.

[gszes]

If you try and find ONE CARD that is BEHIND the defender guarding that suit a squeeze may be possible. If you do not have that information for sure it may be necessary to IMAGINE such a position. Build your squeeze knowledge from that basic beginning and you will be surprised how much more sense Love's technical jargon makes.

Applying that logic to this hand it appears RHO is guarding spades and your 4th spade is BEHIND the guard. Rho seems certain to hold the club J BEHIND the KT in dummy but that alone is not enough to save them. In the end after 10 tricks your end position is
void x void KT
x void x x

and poor rho is holding T void void Jx. This is a simple squeeze (a Vienna coupe the opps did to themselves). When you play your last dia you need to realize the heart is useless and discard it. When you reduce the dummy to 2 cards KT clubs and your hand to small spade and small club look at what happens to rho they need to hold 3 cards to guard the 2 black suits but they can only hold onto 2 cards. This requires you to count down the suits since you have to be aware when your spade is good or not so watch ALL of the discards. The opps could have easily broken this squeeze up in many ways but that is not your fault just take advantage to what is given to you (actually tougher than planning it from the start).

[lrussell]

Go to www.bridgesqueezescomplete.com
Download and install the program.
Email me the serial number
I will send you the registration code for free
Clyde Love would approve.

[GrahamJson]

There is no squeeze on the hand shown. The entries are too easily destroyed by any half competent defenders.

[GrahamJson]

Which I guess gives you a good chance if they are BBO "Experts".

[PhantomSac]

They are robots. That is in the OP, as well as how the defense went.

[brettnj]

As an experienced player, rather than lecture on "what you should have done and why", there are several good books available on Squeezes. My suggestion is that now that they have re-issued Kelsey's 4 books on squeezes into one paperback, "Kelsey on Squeeze Play", I suggest you purchase it, and begin reading the the two chapters (of four) on Simple and Double Squeezes. Once you have learned how to recognize and play them, your play will adjust accordingly.

[gwnn]

lrussell, on 2015-March-27, 00:18, said:

Go to www.bridgesqueezescomplete.com
Download and install the program.
Email me the serial number
I will send you the registration code for free
Clyde Love would approve.

I got the software yesterday and I can confirm it is very good and easy to use! The interface is a bit outdated for windows 7 but the content is what matters and squeezes still work the same.

[rmnka447]

Double squeezes can be confusing. Love didn't help matters with the way he chose to use his terminology. Love assigns the singly guarded threats (L,R) their designation from the point of view of the single threat hand. That's in the first few sentences of his introduction to the double squeeze chapter, but it's not particularly emphasized. It's easy to see as he discusses type R double squeezes. The R threat is usually in declarer's hand so LHO has the L suit, RHO has the R suit. But when he discusses type B double squeezes, dummy still usually has the B suit but its the single threat hand. What can trip you up is that L and R are now assigned from the B suit hand from its point of view (as if you were sitting there.)

The place to start is the single threat hand. It either has to be the R threat or the B threat. If it's possibly the B threat, it has to be accompanied by one or more winners.

In your example hand, declarer's hand is the single threat hand. The ♠ 6 is a threat against the remaining ♠ 9 after trick 7. So if a double squeeze exists, it has to be a type R double squeeze. If LHO has ♠ 9, your ♠ 6 would be the L threat. If RHO opponent guards ♣ and ♥, no double squeeze exists for lack of a threat behind RHO (i.e. upper hand -- declarer). So if a double squeeze exists, RHO has to have ♠ 9. Assume it's so.

But after trick 7, you're looking at ♥ A986 ♣ K10 remaining in dummy. What squeezes can exist yet? There can possibly be a type R double squeeze with ♠ 6 as the R threat. There could also be a spade/heart or spade/club simple squeeze against RHO. If RHO solely guards ♥ too, then a triple squeeze might exist. There could also remotely be a heart/club squeeze if LHO held say ♣ AJx and the heart guard.

Look at the possible double squeeze first. It looks like either ♣ or ♥ could be the B suit. But there's a problem, dummy still has an L winner and it has to be cashed before the squeeze occurs. With ♥ as the B suit, as a previous poster points out, you can't cash the ♣ winner and get back to your hand. The only way to get back after cashing the winner is to ruff your ♣ threat or cash your ♥ winner and ruff a ♥ eliminating your entry to the board. Both kill the squeeze. So if a double squeeze exists, it has to be with ♣ as the B suit and ♥ as the L threat suit.

You hold ♣ K10 and ♣ AQ have already been played, so only one opponent can guard ♣ with the J. If you play for the type R double squeeze, you're really playing a simple squeeze played as a double.

.

[KurtGodel]

I would recommend David Bird's 'Bridge Squeezes for Everyone' I found it a lot more readable and helpful than Love. If you want millions of examples then I would get Anthony Moon's 'Simple Squeezes' or 'Double and Double Clash Squeezes', but the latter of which is so full of examples and exotic oddments that it might be off putting.

[Aardv]

This ending is a simple squeeze, not a double squeeze. There are technical reasons why a double squeeze can't work, but I think it's better to approach this hand as a card-reading exercise.

East opened 1♣ with a singleton diamond, so he had at least four clubs.

West passed a take-out double of 2♦ with only 10xxx diamonds, so he hasn't got a fair four-card major.

So East was 4414 or 4315, West was 3244 or 3343.

East switched to ♣Q at trick three, and West played ♣A, so East has the guarded ♣J in the ending.

West led a small spade on the third round when he could safely have played a diamond of a club, so he hasn't got ♠10, East has. (Consistent with our reading of the shapes from the bidding.)

So East guards both spades and clubs in the ending. Presumably both guard hearts. There are no two suits to squeeze West in, so no double squeeze. But there is a simple squeeze on East.

For a simple squeeze, one of the menaces has to have an entry. That's clubs. Since East is over that menace, the other menace has to be in the opposite hand (South's). That's ♠6. Then all you have to do is cash winners ending in the hand without the entry. With two cards left, South has ♠6 and ♣9, North has ♣K10, and East is stuffed.

It's well worth reading at least one of the books on squeezes (I read Love many years ago), but I would suggest forgetting about the terminology - just understand the mechanics.