BRIDGE MASTERCLASS

PLAYING Pairs, your RHO opens 1♥. What, if anything, do you bid on this hand? I WOULD never have thought of featuring such a hand had I not watched three players opting to double instead of making the apparently obvious bid of 1NT.

All beginners who take tuition are taught that, with a strongish balanced hand and an opening bid on their right, they should bid 1NT provided they have controls in the opponent’s suit.

The range of the No Trump is three points, normally 15-17 or 16-18 by partnership agreement. It is also sensible to promise at least two stops in the enemy suit, because it is certain to be led, and one stopper will be knocked out straight away.

You will rarely come across a more perfect hand for the 1NT overcall — maximum strength with a double stop in hearts. Those players who doubled had also overlooked that a double of one major promises a good holding in the other one; it also tends to deny holding the opponent’s suit.