Zig Ziglar, an author and motivational speaker who died in 2012, said, “It’s not what you’ve got, it’s what you use that makes a difference.”

We have been looking at the Michaels Cue-Bid and the Unusual No-Trump. There is one important difference between them. If the dealer opens the bidding with one of a suit, and two passes follow, in the fourth position, the Michaels Cue- Bid still applies, but the Unusual No-Trump does not. A balancing two-notrump overcall is natural, in principle showing a hand worth a normal two-notrump opening with at least one stopper in the opener’s suit. (You might also have only 18 or 19 points when you have a respectable sixcard minor to compensate for the shortfall.)

You can see this bid in action in today’s deal. When one spade comes around, South might double, but if North advances with two diamonds, South will have no good call. A 4-4 heart fit is unlikely to be lost after South jumps to two no-trump, because North can use Stayman, assuming he has sufficient points for game. Note also that bidding aggressively is a good idea, because South knows where (almost) all of the missing honor cards lie.

How should South play in three no-trump after West leads the spade queen?

Declarer has seven top tricks: two spades, two hearts, one diamond and two clubs. The simplest line is to win the first trick with his spade king, cash the diamond ace, and lead another diamond to establish two more diamond winners while dummy retains the spade ace as an entry.