In the direct seat:

-         A 1NT overcall is usually played as 15-18

-         With a better hand (say, 19-20) we double and then bid No Trump

But South is not in the direct seat, she is in the balancing position, in which case the No Trump ranges are:

-         1NT shows around 11-15 (but the ranges vary considerably, the main point is that the balancing 1NT overcall is made with a weaker hand)

-         With a better hand (say 16-18) we double and then bid No Trump

So, if we are of the mood to play this in No Trump we can either double and bid No Trump, or else bid an immediate (and slightly heavy) 1NT.  We don’t like either!  E-W are vulnerable, and there is the lure of a two-trick set in 1♦, giving N-S the magic +200 on what is likely to be a part-score deal.  Let’s not forget that Partner is likely to be short in Diamonds, and yet could not rustle up a bid over 1♦.  What does that tell us?  That we probably don’t have game on this hand!  So, let’s pass and start counting the undertricks.

How many undertricks are there?  As it happens there are one or two, in all probability, but both +100 and +200 are better than the +90 which will likely accrue if we declare 1NT.

North can see slam in the cards and could go zooming off to some large number of Diamonds.  But it’s matchpoints and 6♥ would score better, so she starts out with a Negative Double.  As usual, the general rule is to explore a major suit fit before committing to the minor suit fit.

Let’s say that the auction progresses as follows:

            North   East     South   West

                        Pass    1♦        2♠

            Dbl      Pass    3♥        Pass

            3♠        Pass    3NT     Pass

            ??

North’s 3♠ was somewhat ambiguous … it could have been looking for a Spade stop … or could have been a cue-bid on the way to a possible slam.  South’s 3NT shows a Spade stop, what next?  North is good enough to insist on slam, and the first question should be “Is a grand slam possible?”  South has something in Spades and would also need ♣A, ♦K, and ♥AQ as well.  All of that adds up to a 1NT opening or stronger South bidding, so any grand slam will require at least a finesse.  So, which small slam?  6NT would be rather optimistic, so let’s bid 6♦ here!  This offers South a choice (otherwise why make that Negative Double?), which she’ll make largely based on trump quality.  For example, with ♥A652 and ♦KJT7, she will pass 6♦ … with ♥AQ52 and ♦J752 (the actual case) she’ll convert to 6♥.

Let’s suppose that you are playing DONT, so North’s Double shows an unspecified one-suiter.  If East had passed, South normally bids 2♣ allowing Partner to bid her suit (or pass if her suit is Clubs).  Once in a while, South will not bid 2♣, for example with a hand such as: ♠8, ♥842, ♦KJT985, ♣K53.  Here, South strongly suspect that Partner has Spades, and will bid 2♦ (instead of 2♣) in an attempt to find a safer spot.

The same basic idea applies over the Redouble, except that it is logical for Pass to be the bid which lets Partner to name his suit, and for 2♣ to show a hand with good Clubs, perhaps ♠8, ♥842, ♦K53, ♣KJT985.  That being so, South simply passes the Redouble and leaves things up to Partner.

North’s 2♥ does not promise much, merely a hand with 5+ Hearts and not enough to double 1NT (less than 9 HCP, in other words).  Anyway, what is your plan with that less-than-magnificent assortment of Queens and Jacks?  If you pass here, it seems likely that 2♥ will be passed out or else that South will bid 2♠.  If 2♥ is passed out will you be a happy camper?  We don’t think so, you’ll be wondering wistfully whether you should have competed to 3♦.  And if South bids 2♠, back to you, you’ll also be tempted to compete, wondering why you didn’t get in there earlier.

So, if you are going to compete, we suggest that you do so right away.  If you are playing Lebensohl in this situation, you’ll bid 2NT, which is a relay to 3♣.  Now, you’ll convert to 3♦ saying “I have a weak hand in Diamonds, I am merely competing”.

Of course, if you are not playing Lebensohl then if you are to compete you will have to bid 3♦ over 2♥, and this is less attractive, Partner might expect more values from you.  If nothing else, this hand is a good commercial for Lebensohl, allowing East to compete while also showing a weak hand.

How about a 15-17 1NT here?  Have we miscounted his HCP?  No, sometimes a nice 14-count is worth upgrading, and this looks like such a hand.  The plus factors are the strong 5-card suit and that working ♥T (we say “working” because it is backed up with another honor and likely to be useful).  Another reason for West to grab the No Trump is that it seems likely that his hand should be Declarer (he wants to protect the ♠K and ♣Q from the opening lead).

West’s 4♥ puts North on the spot.  We are always told to “support with support” and nobody would disagree with the assertion that AK96 is fine support indeed.  But, the North hand is shapeless … it’s minimum … and that ♥KQ is more useful on defense (it’s one trick) than it is on offense where (opposite Partner’s likely singleton) it is likely to be worthless.  But, put those Heart honors in with the Diamonds (somewhere useful, in other words) and we would dredge up a 4♠ bid, being seduced by the magnificent support and undeterred by the minimum values.  So, North passes and is back in the hot seat again after:

            North   East     South   West

            1♦        1♥        1♠        4♥

            Pass    Pass    4♠        Pass

            Pass    5♥        Pass    Pass

            ??

Should North double or bid 5♠?  North’s magnificent Spade support remains undisclosed, but that is the extent of the good news for a Spade contract.  The rest of that North hand is virtually useless on offense, but does have a modicum of defense.  North will remember that Partner did not preempt in Spades and presumably has some stuff outside.  So we suppose that North should double, but she should not be overly surprised if 5♥ makes.  In fact 5♥ is down two tricks (and there are 10 tricks in Spades).

Double here is usually played as penalty.  How about 4NT?  There was a time when that was played as a three-suited take-out, but nowadays the bid is often made with a two-suiter.  Anyway, we would say that the choices here are 4NT (planning to pass whatever suit East bids) and 5♣.  Either could work, but it’s 5♣ which is the winner on the actual hand.  5♣ is down one, but we suppose that North will bid on to 5♠ and N-S will be down one instead.  If West guesses to bid 4NT, East will bid 5♦, and that will be doubled by North, for down 3.

Someone once said, in reference to bidding after an enemy preempt, “Put your faith in the long suit”.  The rationale here is that, even if you find a 4-4 fit there is a good chance it will get derailed by a 4-1 break and/or by a forcing defense.  That being the case, it often works better to bid your long suit and hope for the best.  Good advice, at least on this hand, where bidding the long Club suit turns out to be the winning action.

East has a big Heart fit and opening values, in other words plenty for a 4♥ contract.  But bidding 4♥ here is usually played as preemptive, so the prescribed treatment for this hand is to cue-bid 2♠ (showing a fit).  Having done that, he’ll bid 4♥ next.

What’s your choice here?  Here are two reasonable approaches:

-         Bid 3♦ (natural and game-forcing), encouraging Partner to play in the 5-3 fit, which is something Partner might choose not to do with a square hand.

-         Bid 3NT, taking a chance on the Spades.  Remember, if Spades actually are the weak link in 3NT, there is still a good chance that South will lead from the Ace or King, allowing the singleton ♠Q to score.

Perhaps this is as much a personality test as anything else.  In a limited poll we got answers in favor of the plunge into 3NT and the scientific 3♦.  So, take your pick.

If West had rebid 3NT then East, with that square hand, East might well have skipped the 5-3 Heart fit and put his faith in No Trump.  But West’s 3♦ bid changes everything.  With all those HCP in Partner’s second suit, surely there is a serious weakness in one of the black suits.  That being so, East will prefer the Heart game even though he has no ruffs coming in his hand.

The N-S methods could play a big role in this one.

-         If N-S are playing DONT: In this case there is no Penalty Double available so North can choose between Pass (feeble), or 2♣ (planning to show a Club-Spade two-suiter), or 2♠ (Spade one-suiter), or Double followed by 2♠ (also a Spade one-suiter, but a stronger hand).  Our choice would be to show the strong Spade one-suiter.

-         If N-S are not playing DONT:  In this case N-S probably have a strength-showing Double available.  Should North use it?  We bet that most would Double here, and perhaps they are right.  But we have a sneaking suspicion that 2♠ might be the winning bid more often than not.  Take your pick.

There is no need for East to let his meager 8-count deter him from bidding a lot on this hand.  “Six-five, come alive” as the old saying goes, so East cheerfully overcalls 2♦ with 2♠.  This is a hand with a lot of playing strength (only 6 losers).  E-W also have the vulnerability in their favor, so West is prepared to introduce Clubs later, if necessary.

As it happens, South cue-bids Spades and gives West a chance to show something in Spades by doubling.  With a known Spade fit, the East hand becomes considerably stronger and 4♠ is surely called for.

Anyone for 3NT?  That might seem tempting with Spades doubly stopped, but a little thought should bring us to the conclusion that 3NT is highly unlikely to make.  Partner will need Clubs to be stopped, of course, and the ♦A, but even that won’t be enough.  Just about the only hand-types that will work for 3NT will be: (a) ♦A, plus a major-suit Ace, plus Qxx in Clubs, or (b) ♦A and QT9x in Clubs.  In the circumstances, we would be thinking about inviting 5♦ (that just requires two Aces).  But how to do that?  Our suggestion is to bid 3♠, and then (if we get a chance) to bid 4♦, hoping that Partner will figure out to bid 5♦ with the right hand.  That’s not much a plan, we grant you, but we cannot think of anything better.

North might have been tempted to preempt the first time around.  True, she has 12 HCP, but the hand is all about Spades, and Partner is a passed hand.  Anyway, let’s say that North declines to preempt and makes a simple overcall instead.  Partner raises to 2♠ and it’s back to North.  There is no chance of game here, and the two questions are “Will the opponents let us play in 2♠?” and “If they don’t, will we want to bid on to 3♠?”  We suggest to you that the answers to these two questions are “No” and “Yes” respectively, and if that is the case then North should bid 3♠ immediately, making it harder for East to compete effectively.  Could 3♠ be construed as a game try?  It shouldn’t, if North has a strong overcall with game interest she can bid anything but 3♠.

Do you pass, open 1♦ or 2♦?  No doubt some Easts will bid 2♦ but our own preference is not to preempt with (a) such a rotten suit, (b) when there is also so much outside stuff.  It’s not a matter of right or wrong so much as it is a matter of personal style.  What’s your preempting style?  And are you and your Partner in sync?

Let’s say that you do not care to open 2♦.  Pass or open 1♦.  This hand does not quite qualify on the basis of the Rule of 20, but it’s a pretty good 19, wouldn’t you say?  The HCP are all in Aces and Kings, and there is that singleton.  Nobody ever said that the Rule of 20 was perfect, and here’s an example.  Note that 1=3=6=3 scores the same as 2=2=6=3, though the former is clearly a more attractive distribution.  We rather like a 1♦ opening here, but many won’t.

As a general rule, we avoid making a Takeout Double with two cards (or less) in an unbid major.  The exception to this is when we have a really strong hand.  Opinions differ as to what “really strong” means, some would say as low as 16 HCP.  But the modern trend is to have a higher upper limit for our overcalls, let’s say 18 or so.  Here, the West hand actually is good enough to double with only two Hearts, and his general plan is to follow up with a No Trump bid, showing a hand which was too good to make a 15-18 1NT overcall, something in the 19-20 range, in other words.