Dear Mr. Rigal:A friend gave me this problem the other day: yxS0yx K-Q-10-9-8-4, yxH0yx 5-2, yxD0yx 3, yxC0yx A-10-7-2. No one vulnerable, partner opens one diamond, you bid one spade and partner rebids two clubs. What now?

Answer: Instinctively, it looks right to raise to three clubs. I must admit I have a sneaking admiration for a jump to three or even four spades, which should have a chance even facing a singleton as long as the clubs come in — but don’t tell any of my partners. (At pairs, a call of two spades could be a big winner.)

Dear Mr. Rigal: Say partner leads the ace (ace from ace-king) of a side suit against a trump contract. With what holdings should I encourage?

Answer: It largely depends on what comes down in dummy. If it is a doubleton, you should encourage only if you have a doubleton and can overruff the dummy, or occasionally if you cannot tolerate a switch (but beware that partner might give a ruff-and-discard on the third round). If dummy has three cards, by all means encourage with the queen. If dummy has a singleton, switch to suit preference, as the layout of the suit led is less likely to matter to partner.

Dear Mr. Rigal: I have heard mention of “fifth suit forcing.” Please explain what this is.

Answer: This is the name given to a repeat of fourth suit forcing by responder. In an auction such as one heart - one spade - two clubs - two diamonds - three clubs, a call of three diamonds from responder is not natural but merely asking for more information, principally about a diamond stop. By contrast, when opener shows a stopper, repeating the fourth suit is natural and shows five cards.

Dear Mr. Rigal: What is the protocol when arranging a private match? Which team should propose dates and all that?

Answer: It is normally the away team that offers potential dates for the match, but there is no rule against the home team getting in touch first.

Dear Mr. Rigal: I had this hand: yxS0yx A-8-5, yxH0yx A-Q-7-5, yxD0yx A-Q-5-2, yxC0yx Q-J, vulnerable against not, and I opened one diamond. My left-hand opponent bid one spade, my partner passed and my right-hand opponent raised to two spades. I bid two no-trump and caught partner with a 2=4=4=3 shape and 0 points, so we went down in plenty of hundreds. Did I err?

Answer: Two no-trump, showing 18-19, might work — after all, you could still have a game on. However, three no-trump is unlikely to be easy, given you have only one spade stopper and no source of tricks. Four hearts might be in the picture, but partner did not double one spade. I can see a case for passing, but if I were to act, it would be with a take-out double. I expect partner to bid either a scrambling two no-trump (unless he has primary diamond support) or a five-card suit of his own. Over two no-trump, I can bid three diamonds to show both red suits. Here, partner would bid three diamonds.

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