With the heart singleton open 1C your preferred minor suit, partner responds 1S, you have 4 spade cards so support your partners spade bid jumping to the 3 level to show your strong opening hand points. Partner will not bid to game level if you only respond at the level of 2S. All Pass
Acol Bidding
With the heart singleton open 1C your longest suit, partner responds 1S, you have 4 spade cards so support your partners spade bid jumping to the 3 level to show your strong opening hand points. Partner will not bid to game level if you only respond at the level of 2S. All Pass
Plan Before You Play
Count your losing tricks . 1in spades 1 in hearts maybe 1 in diamonds (KD) and none in clubs. Looks OK so far. Plan is to optimise your Delay drawing all the trumps until you have ruffed the hearts in dummy. Avoid playing diamonds hoping that east has the KD and will be forced to underlead it at some time. If a diamond is lead by east play low.
The Play
Lose the heart lead, ruff the second heart in your hand, draw 1 round of trumps and with a diamond return finesse against the KD being with East. Another round of trumps using your clubs to enter dummy and ruff the last heart, then use clubs again to enter dummy - draw the last trump and then run the rest of your winners for 11 tricks
Comment
With only 23 points this is a hand where South can easily make 11 tricks losing only the AS and AH. The key play with this contract is you play as if the KD is with East, so finesse for the KD.
The above commentary is intended as a guideline only. As with any Bridge hand there are many ways to bid and play any hand.
