Any N/S that gets to a Grand Slam here is going to get a free play. I don't think many more experienced players would be able to bid a Grand Slam with East's interference!

If East makes an aggressive 4♠ bid at your table, South's only hope is to double. South hopes to have three tricks, and North opened - so North should have some source of tricks. The question is whether or not you can get six tricks to set East more (+500) than a game for N/S (+420/+450?) if there is one.

Even if East overcalls 3♠, whatever South does, North will still have the opportunity to make a really important bid here. That's a cuebid of the opponent's suit. North's spade bid shows a control in that suit - and forces the bidding one level higher. With North's 4-loser hand, South won't need to have much to have a slam in any of the other suits, and while most slams bid in our Friday morning group may be at the 6-level, it's North's cuebid of spades that will get the pair there.

South's 2NT overcall is what's used to show a regular 15-17 HCP NT opener when the opponents have preempted at the 2-level. If South didn't have NT shape, South could always use a double to try and get North to bid a suit, but by bidding 2NT South shows shape and HCPs. The bonus is that systems are "on" for North, so Stayman and transfers are all available as bids.

How would you open West's hand here? The best choice should be 1♣. Wests that open 3♣ or even 4♣ are showing a weak hand, and West's hand here is not weak at all. Just 4 losers and 15 HCPs is a great hand - and East won't need too much for a game or even a slam with the right card combinations.

North can overcall 1♥ or 1NT when West opens 1♣, but West has a long enough suit to always be able to rebid it. Remember that when you open with a preemptive bid, that is your bid - and you're likely to pass anything else that comes along.

West's hand is too strong to use a preemptive 2♠ bid here; it's true you're in 1st seat, and you only have 10 HCPs, but you have a great second suit (diamonds!) and if you preempt in 1st seat 2♠, that will be your bid - you're likely to pass anything else that comes along.

East would need 16+ HCPs to bid a game across from a 2♠ opener, but the only problem with opening 1♠ here is that East could very easily jump to 3NT. Some West players may decide that East has to have a few diamonds. . .and so 4♦ will be a nice correction. But then again some East players may just make nine tricks in NT.

East has five diamonds, and a club - but needs three more tricks. Two of those could come from hearts, so what it comes down to is snaring a spade trick somewhere. Of course it will be a great help if South leads a club, as finessing North will get two club tricks (and thus another way to make nine tricks in NT).

Many times in bridge, bidding questions and answers help to create partnership agreements. And one of those agreements you'll want to discuss is how disciplined your vulnerable preemptive bids will be. If you're not vulnerable, even in 1st seat, some will open 2♥ to the ♥A♥10♥9 x x x. Or with just 7 HCPs. But when you're vulnerable, many partners prefer that you be more disciplined - especially when in 1st or 2nd seat.

North has a great preemptive bid, with no tolerance for spades (or anything else, really) - so 2♥ is not a bad start with this hand. East's double should show some spades, and South's bid is now - what?

If South can count on North to have 2 of the top 3 or 3 of the top 5 in hearts, then N/S should lose only a single heart trick. South's clubs should come in handy for throwing a loser or two of North's - but with just 10 HCPs it's not likely South can get to a heart game across from a preemptive opener.

As it turns out, E/W have the spade game here. 5♥ down 2 would be a good board for N/S, but you can bet East will double that - and that will result in a bottom board for N/S. South's bid of 3♥ may just be enough to keep E/W OUT of a spade game - and leave it at that.

Vulnerable, some Easts might consider opening 2♥, but that's a matter of partnership agreement and personal style. You've got two of the top three in the suit, but you have nothing else - nothing. . .and you're at the bottom of the preemptive range with just 6 HCPs. You could get in a lot of trouble. But those that do open 2♥ will either see South pass to let North double (and South may just leave that double in for a top score in the room) - or see South bid 2♠ or even 2NT.

You've heard the term "Points Schmoints" before, where even hands with very few HCPs can be very powerful thanks to their shape. Here's an example. Arguably the best hand on the table here belongs to the hand with just 7 HCPs.

Many South players will open 1♦ with this hand, although you may be pressed for a rebid (say, if North bids 1♠. . .vulnerable, ending in 1NT might not be a pleasant prospect if North has just six HCPs and four small spades). Souths that do open 1♦ should find West jumping in with a 2♣ or 3♣ bid, and now it comes to North with the 7-5 hand in the majors.

North can double 3♣ (or 2♣) to show the other suits, but remember that South can pass a double - and convert it to penalty. If North really wants to make South bid another suit, North can cuebid the opponent's suit. By bidding 4♣, North has gone past 3NT (which North wants to do, playing in a major-suit game) and North won't mind which major suit South chooses.

After South bids 2♥ and North accepts the transfer to spades, South can further describe South's hand with more than 7 HCPs as follows:

Five spades and 8-9 HCPs (invitational): 2NT
Six spades and 8-9 HCPs (invitational): 3♠

Five spades and 10+ HCPs (game forcing): 3NT
Six spades and 10+ HCPs (game forcing): 4♠

Even if North opens 1♦, South will end up playing some sort of spade partial. There aren't enough HCPs for N/S to bid a spade game, and unless you play Losing Trick Count it will be difficult to find 4♠.

East players may overcall 1♥, or even repeat the suit at 2♥, but East's hand should only make six heart tricks. . .so down 1 (-100) undoubled might be a very good score for E/W. Off two (-200) could be a bottom board. Amazing how one trick can make such a difference in the score!

East's 2♠ bid shows a weak hand; and if it wasn't for the singleton club, I'd recommend that East have at least 2 more HCPs to make a vulnerable bid like this in 1st seat. But that club will hopefully be helpful in a suit contract.

Some South players may overcall 3♥, but doubling will get things going for partner - and show a 7-loser hand or better.

West knows there's a 10-card fit in spades; the Law of Total Tricks means 4♠ shouldn't be a terrible bid, and with the singleton heart West might come to the realization that N/S have a vulnerable game. Jumping to 4♠ isn't just "furthering the preempt", it also may be a great effort at a sacrifice - and certainly it will make it more difficult for N/S to find their correct contract.

What should South bid after North doubles 4♠? That depends on your partnership agreement. In this scenario, many partnerships play this double as a penalty double. Certainly with 23 HCPs, N/S should expect to set 4♠ and get a good score.

The funny thing about that singleton ♣J though is that it helps to make 4♠. Even if East pulls two rounds of trump (or one, and has North lead a spade to pull the rest), East will lose the ♠A, ♣A, and ♥A. As long as South has the ♦K, East can finesse the ♦K and make ten tricks. There might be a +790 on the traveller today.

With East's hand, what would you and your partner elect to bid here? Your partner has opened with 1♣, and North has doubled (which should be for the majors, and a tolerance for the other unbid suit of diamonds). You've got four spades and five diamonds, plus 10 HCPs. Oh - and you do have three clubs.

What should be readily dismissed right away is a bid of 2♣, even if you play inverted minors. You have two suits better than clubs, and partner might be looking for the major fit. With 10 HCPs you might take a chance on 1NT, but again, you do have four spades - and a hand that's more valuable in a suit than in NT.

Bidding 1♠ isn't the best idea either, because over North's double that should promise five in the suit. If you had three honors of four, 1♠ would be a generally accepted response here with just four in the suit but East doesn't have that.

You could redouble, to show 10+ HCPs and imply no fit for partner's clubs (who knows, partner may only have three) but there's no harm in starting out with 1♦. It shows five in the suit, you're still an "unlimited" hand (you could have 20 HCPs for all anyone else knows with that bid), so partner won't pass 1♦, and if the other bidding at the table indicates partner might have spades you can always bid them later. Partner will know your diamonds are longer, and with five spades you'd have said 1♠ right away.

North has enough HCPs (8) to make a second bid here of 2NT, having five spades in the suit and an invitational hand. South has a maximum NT opener, so of course you'll find many South players in 3NT with this hand!

E/W can get a maximum of six tricks defending NT, so 3NT by South should be going down at your table. That may or may not happen - as is the case with so many bridge defenses, it's all in the timing of when the cards are played.

West's lead of the ♦3 must be ducked by South if East plays the ♦J. If South takes the ♦K at trick 1, South can cash five heart tricks, but that's it. East will get back in (maybe five heart tricks later) - unblock the ♦A - and get to West's hand with the ♣A. Now West can cash the rest of the diamonds, saving a small spade for East's ♠A.

Two hearts, doubled, vulnerable, down 5, for 1400 will be a top score for the defenders - and a bottom for declarer - in just about any contract. How does South defend 2♥X here? By passing - and letting North reopen with a double.

Reopening with a double is a perfect bid for North here, because North has mentioned the five spades, has a tolerance for either minor, has a minimum hand, and knows it's possible that South has all East's hearts.

Some South players will bid 3NT, and that will be fine - it's a game that will make for South. But some real thinkers will expect to get a much richer score by passing North's double and converting it to penalty.

Of course, if you and your partner don't discuss this bid, then South will pass and North might pass too! You can't let that happen. North should always have a second bid when opening, and sometimes that bid is a double - if for nothing else, for your partner.

When you're not vulnerable, in the balancing seat for a 1NT opener, and you've got an opening hand, you might be tempted to pass. Would you consider doubling to get your partner to bid something at the 2-level? If you look at the HCPs from the bidding, the 1NT opener has 15-17. You, as North, have 12. It's entirely possible that your partner (South) has a lot of the remaining 11-13 HCPs, since West hasn't transferred or invited or done anything but pass. West could have 0 HCPs.

If you don't have much defense against 1NT, down 1 or even down 2 might be a good score for you in a 2-level partial. If the opponents can make 2NT (-120), then down 2 (-100) will be a great result. This isn't something you'd want to do vulnerable, but non-vulnerable it's a much less risky bid to make.

And of course, there's no such thing as a sure thing in bridge. If North doubles and South chooses spades, N/W will be down 3 with best defense for a bottom board. But if South chooses hearts, it's a top. What would you and your partner do with North's hand - would you be content to defend 1NT?

It's going to be difficult for N/S to stop before a game in the red suits, but this is a hand where you're hoping everyone else is in the same leaky boat.

South's 1♥ will be met by 2♦ by partner; even if East doubles (and with 15 HCPs, some Easts will strongly consider it) South will jump to 3♥ to show such a strong hand. (Note that North's 2♦ bid likely denies spades, so you're not at much risk of missing a spade fit. But Souths that rebid 2♠ instead of 3♥ will be showing the same strength hand - and four spades. Just not the extra heart yet.)

Once the 6-2 heart fit is known, North will be quite excited to find out about keycards or aces, in an effort to maybe be in a red-suit slam. Missing two aces or keycards will allow for the partnership to stop before the 6-level, but it will be too late.

South has an invitational hand to a heart game once the 4-4 fit is revealed. With North at the top of the HCP range for 1NT, all invitations will be welcomed!

Defensively, when there is a 4-4 fit, there's generally not too much harm in leading trump. You want to reduce any ruffing value by declarer, so if East plays the ♥A and a small heart, it will make North's 4♥ result considerably more difficult.

E/W should get the ♥A, ♣K, and the ♦Q to hold North to 4♥.

If you and your partner do NOT play reverse bids, then 1♣ will be North's open - and 2♦ the second bid. But if you do play reverses, you should start with 1♦ so as not to confuse partner that you've got a 17+ HCP hand later.

East also has a couple of bids, with hearts as a second suit. South could have doubled 1♠ to show four hearts, and when North shows both minors, that means West must have at least four hearts. . .so East can bid 2♥ and know there's a good fit. Whether West bids onward or not may vary from table to table, but 3♥ should make, losing two clubs, one spade, and either one more spade or one diamond.

How do you and your partner show East's 5-5 hand? It's not likely that E/W will get to a game in hearts or clubs (unless pushed there by favorable vulnerability and a cooperative N/S pair). But this hand should come down to East's two suits and N/S diamonds. Easts that open 1♥ may have that passed around to North's diamond bid. Now, East can bid 3♣ to show the 5-5 hand, and West may feel better about supporting that suit at some point - but remember it's always better to be in the major than the minor. So if West can confirm the 5-3 fit in hearts, that isn't a bad idea.

When you're 5-5 in the majors, opposite a 1♣/1♦ opener, you should start with the higher suit - spades. When you're 4-4 in the majors, you'll bid "up the line".

Here, a 4=5 hand in the majors should start with 1♥; when South jumps to 3♣, that denies four spades. . .but North's next bid should still be spades. That should show longer hearts than spades in this sequence. South has denied four spades, but South may have three - or possibly three hearts - and this allows South to choose the major that South wants this hand to play in. (It might be a 4-3 or 5-2 fit, but although 3NT makes here it's not likely to be bid with what appears to be one stopper in diamonds and maybe two in clubs.)

Yes this hand is a nice slam for N/S, but it's not likely to be bid. With 27 HCPs between you, 3NT making 6 or a game in spades or diamonds is much more likely.

North's 1♦ open met with 1♠ by South. A repeat of the diamonds should be met with - what? South might rebid spades to show five of them, but don't forget to show those HCPs. Jump to 3♠, and let North bid 4♠.

East's jump to 3♠ shows 10-11 HCPs and good support (hopefully four-card support) for partner's hand. This limit raise is just shy of a regular opener; and that may give some Wests the pause to think about something more than a game. West has 18 HCPs and just 5 losers, and opposite an opener, that shape might bring home a small slam in spades.

Here, Wests that do check for keycards may still not quite get to 6♠, as there will be a keycard (or A), the missing ♥A, but no Ks. And that may get some Wests to get out at 5♠. . .but as is sometimes the case it's just a finesse that makes the difference between 5♠ making 5 and making 6. That's the case here.

With four diamonds, North might be thinking about passing 2♦. But if South has only three diamonds, a 4-3 fit is not quite as good as a 5-2 fit in a major. . .so if you and your partner play 2/1, North's better bid here is to bid 2♠. South will know you don't have three spades, but it's always better to be in the major - just in case they both make the same number of tricks.

South has the HCPs but not the shape to open 1NT, but whether you and your partner play 2/1 or not, the bidding sequence here should be the same.

Playing 2/1, North will bid 1NT Forcing, as there isn't a game here as far as North is concerned. South's rebid to describe South's hand is now 2NT. This 2NT bid means "I have NT HCPs but I don't have NT shape." South could have a singleton, or two doubletons, but with 15-17 HCPs North will happily try a NT game.

Playing Standard American, you might bid 2NT unless you play Jacoby 2NT. If you play Jacoby 2NT, then 1NT is as good a bid as any here. South will invite if you're at the higher end of the 6-10 HCPs South thinks North has - and with 11 HCPs, North will naturally try 3NT.

Regardless of what North leads, West has 10 NT tricks right off the top here. Five diamonds, as they break nicely, four clubs, as they break nicely, and the ♥A. If anything OTHER than a heart is led by North, West could even drive out the ♠A with leading a top spade before losing that single heart stopper - and the result would be 11 tricks in NT (+460). There may even be a stopper with the ♥J depending on how the hearts get played and by whom. One thing's for certain - they won't be played by West.

With two players already having passed, and South having 8 HCPs, South can pretty much guess that it's West who has the big hand at the table. In our Friday morning group, there's probably little doubt that most E/W pairs will find the heart game.

South's first bid will likely be a pass, although not vulnerable some players will make a preemptive bid with just five cards in a suit - as in 2♠ here by South. It's a risk, but it does interfere quite a bit with what's happening between East and West's communication. The risk comes in because you may already be sacrificing - which is why this is usually done not vulnerable against a vulnerable opponent (who you think has got a game).

Even if South bids 2♠ the second time around, West won't let that stop 4♥ from coming out. Then it's up to North to determine the sacrifice if 4♠ or defending 4♥.

21 HCPs is not supposed to make a major suit game, but on occasion the shape and of course layout of the hand will help make something special. North should lose two diamonds and the ♥K to make 10 tricks in spades, but it's going to be impossible to bid the game here with two bare aces (North) opposite a minimum opener (South). Look for mostly +170s in the room when the traveller comes out.

Partner has already passed; and you're in 3rd seat with 17 HCPs, a 5-loser hand, and six hearts (including three honors). Where do you expect to be with this hand? Most likely, you'll be in hearts just looking at it - although it is possible South has five spades.

4♥ might be an aggressive bid for North right out of the chute, but would you consider it? All your partner has to have is any one of four different cards: the ♣A, the ♦A, the ♥K or the ♠K and chances are you'd make 4♥. (It might take a finesse, but there it is.)

4♥ is preemptive, but South is probably going to pass just about anything else. And starting with 1♥ may get E/W into a sacrificing contract in diamonds (just looking at North's singleton).

You'll have to play for the drop of the ♥Q in a 3-2 split to make 4♥, but if you do you'll get a top board.

Generally, you don't want to open a hand 1NT with two doubletons - unless one of those doubletons is the A-K of a suit. Here, South is more likely to start with 1♥, and North showing a limit raise will get South to bid 4♥. +620 or +650 should be a common score with this board as the traveler floats around the room.

East's 6-loser hand is one that will have several East players in our Friday morning group jumping at the chance to bid a game in spades. South's double (to show some HCPs and the other major) may give a few East players pause, but it will be a brief pause.

This hand can be set at 4♠ - but to do so, South must lead a diamond away from the ♦K-♦2 doubleton. Is that likely? No it is not. Any other lead and East can pull trump, then play the diamonds to lose just two of them, along with one heart to make +620. The reason it can only be set if the diamonds are played right away is that South can get a ruff on the third diamond trick. . .but it's not a logical play. Look for most East players to be making ten tricks in spades. . .and then possibly hearing some discussion later.

This is one of those hands where you must be able to trust your partner to come through when it counts. North has 15 HCPs, but not the distribution for a NT overcall, and yet North might want to defend 1♥X. The problem is that if North doubles, South will be compelled to bid something. At the 1-level, doubles in our Friday morning group (and out of it) are never for penalty. . .but always takeout.

The agreement you and your partner must have is that if North passes here, South is the one that must double. East's constant passing and South's 8 HCPs mean that someone - either West or North - has a huge hand. Maybe both. And South's singleton heart means that either North has hearts, which will be good to defend, or North has a spade fit for South's four in that suit. So South's doubling really doesn't carry much risk.

Once South does double, it's up to North to try and figure out 1)do N/S have a game here? If so, from the bidding 2)will every other N/S pair be in this game? And finally 3)can West be set three tricks in 1♥X to get a top board? (Remember, if there is no game, or N/S pairs in the room aren't in it, then just setting West two tricks doubled will be a top board!) North will have some figuring out to do, but ONLY if partner can be trusted to double 1♥ when it comes around to the passout seat.