Smolen Practice: 24 Hands with 5-4 Majors After 1NT

How well can you handle five-four major-suit hands after partner opens one no-trump? In this practice video, you will work through 24 complete bidding problems covering the most important decisions with five-four shape in the majors. You will practice: • Weak hands: transfer to the five-card major and pass • Invitational hands after 1NT–2♣–2♦ • Game-forcing Smolen sequences • Choosing between a major-suit contract and three no-trump • Finding five-three and four-four major-suit fits • Keeping the strong one no-trump hand as declarer • Recognizing when Smolen does not apply • Evaluating borderline hands and deciding whether to accept an invitation A useful way to remember Smolen: Responder bids the four-card major at the three level, allowing opener to bid responder’s five-card major first. This practice completes the BridgeLab Stayman mini-series. Previous lessons in the series: Part 1 — Core Stayman Part 2 — Garbage Stayman and Crawling Stayman Part 3 — Smolen and five-four major-suit hands Pause before each answer, decide on the complete auction, and then compare your reasoning with the explanation. If this practice helps you, please like the video and subscribe to BridgeLab for more bridge lessons and practice hands. #Bridge #ContractBridge #Stayman #Smolen #BridgePractice #BridgeBidding