Dear Mr. Rigal: You hold ? J-8-6-5-4, ? K-Q-6-3, ? ---, ? Q-8-7-2 and pass as dealer. The next hand opens one diamond, your partner overcalls one heart and your right-hand opponent raises to two diamonds. What say you?

Answer: I would raise to four hearts. The lack of a fifth trump is more than made up for by the void in my opponents’ suit. Even if we cannot make this, the opponents might be able to make something of their own. There is a case for bidding four diamonds to show short diamonds en route to four hearts, but to make that call, you would want more defense. Turn the spade jack into the king, and I go that route.

Dear Mr. Rigal: What does this double mean? You open one diamond, the next player bids one spade, partner passes and fourth hand raises to two spades, back to partner, who doubles.

Answer: It does not make much sense for this to be takeout. Since partner could not act over one spade, he can hardly have enough to force us to the three-level now. Instead, this should be for penalty. Partner was intending to convert your reopening double of one spade for penalty. In general, when partner passes their overcall and then comes to life later with a double, it is because he was intending to play for penalties.

Dear Mr. Rigal: When partner opens with a weak three, how can I show a strong hand with support?

Answer: A simple raise is non-forcing, just increasing the barrage. With enough for game or slam, you can start by bidding a new suit, forcing. This is far from ideal if you just want to set partner’s suit and go on the hunt for slam. So, some pairs play a four-club response to a preempt as an artificial, slam-going raise (or even a modified form of Roman Key Card Blackwood). If partner opens three clubs, the slam-try is four diamonds instead. Losing a natural four-of-a-minor is a small price to pay for this.

Dear Mr. Rigal: How strong should my hand be to make a reverse bid?

Answer: A reverse applies to a sequence where you open the bidding in a suit, partner responds at the one-level and you bid a second suit that ranks higher than your first suit, at the two-level. It stands to reason that because this forces partner to the three-level if he wants to give preference to your first suit, opener should have extra values for the reverse. The minimum is about 16 points, or 15 with real extra shape. The bid is forcing in principle.

Dear Mr. Rigal: Do you like leading from doubletons against suit contracts? My teacher warns against it.

Answer: A doubleton lead can be quite effective. I would not recommend leading from doubleton honors unless you are desperate, but a small doubleton can often strike the right balance between passivity and aggression. After all, there is the upside of a third-round ruff. Trump control in the form of the ace or king makes the lead even more attractive.

Contact Barry Rigal, email him at barryrigal@hotmail.com