[maris oren]

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How should E respond to W opening bid of 1♥ ?

[DavidKok]

This depends on partnership agreement. Some people reason that they won't bid 'weak over weak', so that 4♥ shows this hand (a GF raise without the values to start slam investigations). In that case 4♦, forward-going with a fit (and some people also demand a diamond control for this call), would be an overbid.

Conversely, if you can bid 4♥ 'weak' (say 6-7 points and a 5-card suit) then it is better to bid 4♦ with a hand like this, to set up a forcing pass if the opponents decide to sacrifice.

There is a treatment that, as far as I know, is gaining popularity at the expert level where 4♥ is a weak raise, 4♦ a sound raise but no slam interest and 4♣ slam-going on this situation. But this certainly needs prior discussion with your partner.

[nige1]

Maris Oren 'How should E respond to W opening bid of 1♥ ?'
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I rank
1. 4♦ = CUE High card raise to 4♥ often 3 cards.
2. 4♥ = PRE THe danger is that partner bids rather than doubles if opponents sacrifice.
3. 4♣ = NAT

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[Stephen Tu]

Normally, a bid of 4H in this position isn't "weak", or "preemptive"; partner is supposed to expect approximately a limit raise hand up to a bare min GF. (You'll also do it on some weaker hands with 5 cd support and shape that have game playing strength, that think 3H will miss game too often, and hope the extra shape compensates if partner has a moose and makes a slam move).

You have to bid 4H on your limit raise hands (slight overbid), because you want to bid 3H on your better single raise hands to give your partner a chance to bid game on good hands and just to compete generally when partner may not have the right hand to reopen. Basically the preempt forces you to pass your worst support hands (bottom end that would scrape up a raise to 2H over a pass), and then overbid the top end of your single raises and limit raises.

4d cue should be a hand that you would have happily GF'd without competition, so should include this hand.