The following is a very brief description of ‘standard’ agreements about which card to lead from a suit that is not headed by a sequence of honors. That is, from QJ1032 it would be standard to lead the Queen (highest from your sequence) but from Q10732 it would be standard to lead one of the lower cards. For the opening lead, it is ‘standard’ to lead:
- High from two small cards.
- Low from three small cards.
- Fourth best from four or more cards that include an honor.
- With four (or more) small cards, expert pairs differ. Some prefer to lead fourth best, and others prefer to lead the highest or second highest.
During the play, if you lead a low spot card, you are suggesting some strength in the suit. If you lead a high spot card, you are suggesting that it is not safe for partner to return the suit.
For more information, see Real World Bridge 9: Defense.