A bit of this and that

We have booked the plane and have our hotel reservations confirmed so we are headed to Brazil later this summer to cover the Bridge World Championships.  Meanwhile we have also confirmed our trip to Washington.  I am rather looking forward to that although I am convinced that Colin and I are not nearly ready to play the forcing club system in anything serious.  There seem to me to be gaping holes in the system and we have little time to practice.  It is fun though.

Meanwhile Sylvia and I are continuing to practice on BBO.  We haven’t made any chances or additions to the system since Penticton but I am sure we will.  We still plan to play in something in Washington but I am not sure yet what we are going to play in.

We played a fairly long team game yesterday and did quite well I thought.  How would you bid this hand.  You are in fourth chair and North opens 1D which is passed to you.  Your hand is

You are too good for anything else anyway so you double and partner jumps to 2♠.  These were the bids that ran through my head:

a) 3♥  b)3NT c) 4♠ d) 3♦

How do you rate each of these bids?  What would you do?  I thought there had to be a better alternative than 4♠.  I was afraid that 3♥ might suggest a hand that was too good to just overcall hearts and overstate the quality of my heart suit.  Maybe it shouldn’t be that.  I just wasn’t sure.  What do you think?  I decided that the cuebid was most flexible and that is what I bid.  Partner bid 3NT which made please me.  At the other table my hand bid 4♠.

Here is Sylvia’s hand:

3NT was a piece of cake but 4♠ was nip and tuck and in the end the defense prevailed.   Still if Sylvia had three hearts we never would have got to hearts which may well have been the best contract.