BRIDGE MASTERCLASS

South ♠ J97 ♥ 10 8 6 5 ♦ KJ 10 2 ♣ 83

WHAT, if anything, do you bid here after partner has opened with a ‘pre-emptive’ 3NT?

FIrST you’ve got to understand the opening 3nT bid. It shows a long, solid minor suit — as good as A-K-Q-J-x-x-x, and virtually nothing outside.

It is, of course, intended as highly pre-emptive, but it is important for responder to know what to do.

on the responding hand shown, 3nT, if the defence is up to scratch, could be disastrous.

It happens that you know for certain which minor north has — it can’t be diamonds, can it? So it must be clubs. As, for the sake of your score, you can’t allow north to play in 3nT, take him out into 4♣.

He should not get confused by this, as he will know that, fearing 3nT, you think he will fare better in clubs.

When ‘rescuing’, always make your bid 4♣. opener can convert to 4♦ when that is his suit, and using this conventional 3nT opening and its responses, 4♦ has quite a different meaning, which we shall come to later this week.