Happy Outcome

19th February – Board 5. North/South Game. Dealer North.

It’s quite rare that you want to play in no-trumps after partner has raised your major suit but sometimes that is the best way of describing your hand.

	North: S A 9 2 H 10 4 D Q 10 5 3 C Q 7 4 2
West: S Q 5 3 H A Q J 9 D K J 6 2 C A 8		East: S J 7 6 4 H 8 6 3 2 D A 8 7 4 C J
	South: S K 10 8 H K 7 5 D 9 C K 10 9 6 5 3

West	North	East	South
	No	No	No
1H	No	2H	No
2NT	No	3H	End

Once East has raised 1H to 2H West has a difficult decision. 4H is too much while 3H is just pre-emptive in a bid to stop the opponents protecting and that clearly is not the case here. 3D would be a trial bid asking East to re-evaluate and although the hand has only six points the good diamond holding and the potential ruffing values in clubs would lead to East bidding game. Or it would me. That is too much as it happens and a better choice for the opener would be to rebid 2NT, showing an essentially balanced hand with 17 or 18 points. Here East would convert to 3H with a happy outcome.