“My partner and I had some words after this deal,” a club player told me, “but I didn’t get to use mine.”

South had opened one heart, and North, my complainant, responded one spade and bid two hearts over South’s 1NT.

“My partner went to game,” North said. "He correctly treated my bidding as showing a hand a bit too strong for a direct heart raise. West led a club, and East took the ace and returned a club (not best). My partner won and tried the spade finesse. When East took the king and led a third club, partner ruffed in dummy. He eventually lost two diamonds. Down one.”

“What were those words about?”I asked.

“Partner said I overbid. He said I should raise one heart directly to two.”

The bidding was acceptable; South’s play wasn’t. When East leads the third club, South must discard from dummy. He wins a diamond shift, takes the ace of spades and ruffs a spade. When East-West follow, South draws trumps ending in dummy and pitches two diamonds on the good spades.

Daily question: You hold: ? 8 4 ? A Q J 10 5 ? A 9 3 ? K 6 2. Your partner opens one club, you bid one heart and he raises to three hearts. What do you say?

Answer: Partner has a hand worth about 17 points, hence unbalanced or semibalanced pattern. A minimum hand such as A 7 6, K 9 7 6, 7, A Q 1 0 7 5 will make a grand slam all but cold. Cue-bid four diamonds to suggest the ace and slam interest. If partner cue-bids four spades in reply, you will bid at least six hearts.

South dealer

N-S vulnerable

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