Nil Vul W Dealer	♠ Q 8 7 5 2 ♥ 10 5 2 ♦ A 10 9 ♣ 10 2
♠ A J 6 ♥ A 8 7 ♦ J 8 6 4 ♣ K J 6		♠ 10 3 ♥ Q J 9 6 3 ♦ 5 2 ♣ 7 5 4 3
	♠ K 9 4 ♥ K 4 ♦ K Q 7 3 ♣ A Q 9 8

South realised it could be a transfer to Spades from North but thought it had been interrupted by West’s bid of 2♦ so left it at 2♥. Was this correct bidding or should a) North have bid 2♠, leaving it for South to raise if possible OR b) North have bid 2♥ indicating a transfer to Spades and South responding by bidding 2♠.

Hi Lillian,
Thanks for writing in. This is a great question because it’s something that can come up frequently – whenever the opponents interfere over your 1NT opening or overcall.

In general, it’s best to play ‘system off’ when this happens. Without having discussed it with my partner, I would have done what South did and passed. I will add that West’s 2♦ bid is absolutely wild and I wouldn’t recommend it!

After the opponents bid over your 1NT opening or overcall, most people go back to basic, first principles, natural responses. 2-level bids are natural and non-forcing, and 3-level bids are natural and forcing. Therefore, with North’s hand I would bid 2♠ to play there. If North had a game-forcing hand they could bid 3♠ to show five spades, and allow South to choose between 3NT and 4♠ depending on their fit. A double would be takeout with some decent points and very likely both majors, asking partner to bid a 4 card major if they have one.

It’s not applicable on this deal but you could also look into the Lebensohl convention, where North’s 2NT would force South to bid 3♣, over which North can bid naturally. This can help your partnership compete when the opponents overcall and responder has a distributional hand but not enough points to make a game-forcing 3-level response (e.g. a hand that would have transferred to a minor).

As a side note, a common approach is that when the auction begins 1x – Pass – Pass, the fourth seat 1NT overcall is weaker than a direct 1NT overcall – often 11-14 HCP (although I prefer 13-16 HCP). This is useful to support your partnership to get into the auction when the second player (who passed over the opening bid) had a hand with some HCP but an unsuitable shape for an overcall or takeout double. With a strong NT hand, you can double initially then rebid 1NT (or support partner’s suit if you have a fit).

Keep up the good work!
Lauren