[lamford]

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IMPS. Strong NT.

Your options are to transfer to diamonds, when partner will like with 3D or dislike with 3C. If you then bid 3S that is a shortage.

You can bid Stayman and if partner bids 2S then 3D will be forcing with 4 hearts and 5+ diamonds, unbalanced. If partner bids 2H then 3S will either be a splinter or a hand too good to raise to 4H.

3-level bids on the first round are shortages, without a six-card minor, so 3S might be 1-3-5-4 or 1-4-3-5 or 1-4-4-4 for example.

[Cyberyeti]

Strong no trump ? If so I'll bid it as 4♥/5+♦ and pull 3N to 4♦ which has got to be slammish.

[mikeh]

Imps or MPs?

At MPS, I can't afford to play 5D if 4H or 3N are in the picture. Slam is wonderful when it makes, but we need partner to have a good mesh to reach and make 6D, and at mps, it isn't worth risking 400 or 420 in 5D when 420/430/450 may be available in hearts or notrump. So I am going to use stayman and, if he bids hearts, follow up with 3S, to preserve a chance at 6H opposite a good mesh, such as Axx KQxx Ax Kxxx, and even 6D opposite AJxx Kx Axxx KJx or so (after 2S 3D). But I am not likely reaching 6D if he only has Axx or Ax, since he won't usually see that as slam suitable opposite a presumed (on a frequency basis) 5 card suit.

At imps, I ignore the hearts. Yes, one can construct hands where 6H is better than 6D, so long as hearts are 3-2 (or he has 5!), but one can also construct hands where we have heart losers that we can avoid in diamonds: Axx Axxx Ax KJ10x: 6H has very little play but 6D is basically cold absent an early club ruff.

So at imps, I bid my diamond transfer and then show my spade stiff. I am not at all worried about 5D scoring an imp worse than 3N or 4H, especially since one can construct hands where 3N fails and 5D is cold. Q10xx KQx xx AKJx on a spade lead from AJxxx xx Axx xxx

Btw, unlike Cyber, if I were, at mps, to stayman and then show diamonds, I am NOT pulling 3N. My sequence already shows interest in 5D rather than 3N (else why tell the opps about my hand?) so if partner, knowing I have at least (and usually) 9 red cards and a gf hand, thinks 3N is best, I am not over-ruling him.

[AL78]

mikeh, on 2021-February-16, 12:33, said:

At imps, I ignore the hearts. Yes, one can construct hands where 6H is better than 6D, so long as hearts are 3-2 (or he has 5!), but one can also construct hands where we have heart losers that we can avoid in diamonds: Axx Axxx Ax KJ10x: 6H has very little play but 6D is basically cold absent an early club ruff.

I assume you mean Axx Kxxx Ax KJTx. Opener cannot hold the heart ace as you have it.

[Cyberyeti]

mikeh, on 2021-February-16, 12:33, said:

pulling 3N. My sequence already shows interest in 5D rather than 3N (else why tell the opps about my hand?) so if partner, knowing I have at least (and usually) 9 red cards and a gf hand, thinks 3N is best, I am not over-ruling him.

It's only an issue if you're making exactly 9 tricks in NT and not making 5♦ assuming we then get it right whether to play 4N/5♦ (this is a kickback situation so ... 3♦-3N-4♦-4N is to play). What 4♦ says is that ♦xxx is not a turnoff for 6 if the rest of your hand is great, my only concern is that you're likely to be guessing with ♠K a lot less valuable than ♣K.