Contract Bridge

You are the dealer and bid One Diamond. Partner responds One Heart. What would you bid now with each of the following five hands?

1. Four hearts. It’s hard to imagine losing four tricks after partner responds one heart, so you can’t very well settle for less than game. The leap to four hearts is not a closeout bid; on the contrary, it shows about 20 points because partner’s one- heart bid might have been based on only six points.

It would be a mistake to bid only three hearts because if partner held six or seven points, he might pass. The jump to four hearts is much more accurate for both game and slam purposes.

2. Three hearts. Although your high- card count comes to only 15, your good trump support and singleton spade raise the value of your hand to about 18 points. A simple raise to two hearts would therefore be grossly inadequate.

Partner might pass three hearts, but if he does you should feel that 10 tricks are unlikely and that even nine tricks are not certain. It should be borne in mind that partner would have to have a very weak hand to pass.

3. Two spades. Prospects for game are excellent, so you should not run the risk of partner passing a one- spade rebid, which would not be forcing. The jump- shift to two spades is forcing to game. After partner’s one- heart response, a game or slam in spades, hearts, diamonds or even notrump is possible. Partner’s next bid should help clarify the issue.

4. One spade. Here you obviously have more than a minimum and might therefore feel tempted to show your extra values at once by jumping to three diamonds. However, this is undesirable because you might miss a

4- 4 spade fit. All factors considered, it is better to bid the spades now, intending to take strong action at your next turn.

5. Two notrump. The jump to two notrump indicates 18 or 19 points, as well as notrump distribution. The bid is not forcing but strongly urges partner to continue bidding with anything more than six points.

As usual, the amount of notrump you bid — whether in opening, responding or rebidding — draws a fairly accurate picture of your hand. Notrump is the one area where highcard points and distribution can usually best be described with one simple stroke.