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Hand Analyses 7th October, 2009
There’s an abundance of links on this page, here’s what they all mean: - Notations such as Bidding Quiz (North) are links to the weekly Bidding Quiz, a selection of the 15-20 most interesting bidding situations of the week. - Each week we pick out two or three hands which are suitable for presentation in problem format, as in Play Problem 203 (West), linking you to a page with only two hands on display. Solve the problem first, then see the solution and the entire deal. - Some analyses contain references to bidding conventions, and you’ll see links to articles in our Convention Library such as Roman Key Card - In BridgeOpedia we have categorized by theme the entire history of the most instructive Wednesday Game hands, two year’s worth. Occasionally you will see a purple arrow, linking to the relevant BridgeOpedia section. For example, in this week’s Board 1, the defense has a chance to make a tricky ducking play. Adjacent to the text for that hand you will see the link >>BRIDGEOPEDIA: “Smooth Ducks”>> which will transport you to the collection of hands with the same theme.
South reasonably guessed to play in 3NT instead of the 5-3 Spade fit. This appears to be a good choice because “normal” defense against 4♠ results in a one-trick defeat (the losers are ♦A, ♦K, ♥K and ♠K).
How does 3NT do? West leads the ♦T to East’s Ace and on the Diamond return Declarer’s Queen is taken by the Ace. Declarer wins the third round, and, as East has shown out, the Heart finesse can be taken into the “safe hand” (the one with no Diamonds left). East wins the ♥K, but now Declarer has 9 tricks (a Spade, 3 Hearts, a Diamond, 4 Clubs) and +400.
Do you see how the defense blundered? Yes, that’s right, East should have ducked the first Heart trick! Now, when Declarer repeats the finesse, East grabs his King and shifts to a black suit (it doesn’t matter which one). Thanks to that clever duck, Declarer is cut off from her Heart winners; she plays ♠A and a low Spade towards Dummy, but West grabs his ♠K and two Diamonds for down one.
Deep Finesse tells us that Declarer can make 3NT anyway. And so she can, at least playing double dummy. After the first Heart finesse is ducked, Declarer plays a Heart to the Ace, cashes her Clubs and throws in West with a Diamond. After the Diamonds are cashed, West is end-played in Spades! 9 tricks the highly improbable way! >>BRIDGEOPEDIA: “Smooth Ducks”>>
2♠ will make 8 or 9 tricks, depending on East’s choice of opening lead: - If East leads a Heart then Declarer can manage only 8 tricks. She gets a Heart ruff in her hand, and can pick up the ♠Q, but must eventually lose the ♠A, two Diamonds and two Clubs. - If East leads a Club then there is only one Club loser, and Declarer can make 9 tricks.
Considering the vulnerability, perhaps E-W gave their opponents too easy a ride. West might have considered a “pre-balancing” Double of 2♠, but would have preferred a 4th Heart, of course. If West had doubled, one of two things would likely happen: - Either, East will play in 3♥ (probably undoubled) and will be struggling to make more than 6 tricks (3 trumps and 3 Aces). That would be a disastrous -150 for E-W, but Declarer might escape for -100 if the defense slips or if an end-play can be organized. A complex hand. - Or, N-S will push on to 3♠, in which case they must pray for an opening Club lead if they are to get a good board.
East’s 2♦ was an Inverted Raise, showing at least game-invitational support and denying a 4-card major. Now, even with (belated) N-S interference, it was relatively easy for E-W to get to the cold slam. It’s true that N-S have a highly profitable sacrifice, but the way that South bid the hand it was far from obvious to North that the enemy slam would make.
Yes, South was surely wrong to pass originally. Some pairs insist on “2 of the top 3” or “3 of the top 5” for their Weak Twos but that is (in our view) too limiting and we couldn’t imagine South not taking some initial action. If South opens 2♠, the auction might proceed as follows: South West North East 2♠ Dbl 4♠ 5♦ 6♦ Pass Pass? Pass Even in this auction it won’t be obvious for North to take the sacrifice. She has the ♥A and Partner may well have the ♠A or a Heart ruff coming.
If South notices the vulnerability, and if she is an adventurous soul, she may well say “Phooey!” to the impoverishment of the Spade suit, and open 3♠! This may look a tad nutty to some people, but it certainly stirs things up: South West North East 3♠ Dbl 5♠! ?? In this auction, North knows she will want to save over 5♣ or 5♦, and is not enough of a dreamer to think that she will be allowed to play in 4♠ doubled, so she goes straight to the 5-level. Now, it’s very difficult for East to find the 6♦ call (he has so much in Spades), and he’ll probably double. West might guess to pull the Double by bidding 5NT (typically showing a two-suiter, not necessarily the minors). To cut a long story short, life is so much more difficult for E-W if South opens a wild and woolly 3♠!
South’s 2♣ is something of an overbid, but than again she didn’t like the idea of preempting with both an outside Ace and a void, and she hated the idea of passing. And East should perhaps have pushed on to 5♠ instead of sitting for 5♣ doubled.
If East plays in Spades: A routine 11 tricks.
If South plays in 5♣: West will probably lead a Spade and Declarer must use her trump entries wisely to bring home the contract: Spade ruff ♥J run around to East’s Queen (Declarer needs to play on Hearts early) Win the Diamond shift with the Ace Club Ace is cashed Back to hand with a Spade ruff Lead the ♥J (say that West does not cover) Club finesse Cash ♥A (pitching a Diamond) Ruff a Heart Cross to Dummy’s last trump Pitch a Diamond on the long Heart Phew! Making 11 tricks.
How do you play that Redouble by North? Here are three common interpretations: (a) Shows Spade Support: Not a good idea in our opinion. If North has Spades and a moderate hand then she should simply raise to 2♠ (or 3♠ if she has a 4th Spade), thereby preempting the opponents … and if she has Spade support and a better hand then she can cue-bid Opener’s Diamond suit. (b) Shows the ♠A or ♠K or ♠Q: This is the so-called Rosenkranz Double, and some play that it just shows the ♠A or ♠K. The convention has some lead-directing benefit, but is less popular nowadays. (c) Shows Values: This is the obvious and natural interpretation. Presumably the Redoubler does not have 3 or more Spades, with such a hand she would show support one way or another. We suppose that the point range should be 9 or 10 and upwards.
South wisely ran from 3♦ doubled (which makes 9 tricks) and ended up in 3♠. If West leads a Club the hand is over quickly, Declarer making 9 tricks (losing ♠A, ♣AK and a Club ruff). If West leads a Diamond he still gets a second chance to take his ruff when in with the ♠A.
It’s difficult to get overly excited by this deal, so we won’t. The featured auction gets N-S to their perfect 2♦ contract (making 9 tricks because everything breaks so nicely). But we bet that you could come up with a dozen other auctions that arrive at different destinations, this will be a deal with a variety of results.
You’ve heard of the Rule of 15 for players in 4th seat, that’s the one where (after three Passes) you add your HCP to the number of Spades, and if the answer is 15 or more then you have an opening bid. There is a less well-known Rule of 15 which can guide us when deciding whether or not to make a Takeout Double: - Count 6 if you are void in the enemy suit, 4 if you are singleton and 2 if you are doubleton - Add that to your HCP - If the answer is 15 or more (and the hand has a suitable shape) then you have a Takeout Double. By this reckoning East has a Takeout Double but we wonder if using 15 as the magic number isn’t a tad conservative. For example, we would certainly be tempted to Double without the ♣J. Consider adopting the Rule of 14 instead!
North was somewhat stuck for a rebid (3♦ would not be enough) and tried 1NT, showing about 18-19. That contract would make 7 tricks on a Spade or Heart lead, but only 4 tricks if East leads a Club and gets a Spade shift! But E-W will compete in Spades, and North will bid Diamonds to the 3-level. 3♦ makes 9 easy tricks and 3♠ makes a surprising 11 tricks thanks to good fortune in Spades, Hearts and Clubs.
Let’s assume that East’s 2♥ was in the “Two over One” style, which is to say that it is game-forcing. After the 2♥ bid, West immediately is thinking about slam, of course, what is his best way of proceeding? - 4♦ Splinter? We don’t like this choice at all! 4♦ asks the question “How do you like your hand opposite Diamond shortness?”, but even if East were to bid 4♥ now, saying “That shortness does not improve my hand”, West would be reluctant to pass as his hand is so good. There is not much point in asking the question if you plan disregard the answer! - Roman Key Card? You’ll probably use this eventually, but there’s no great urgency to use it immediately. - Raise to 3♥? Yes, as this is being played here as forcing it looks best to us. Now Partner has a chance to express an opinion about his hand. We can always use Roman Key Card later. As it happens, East likes his hand enough to cue-bid 4♦, then Roman Key Card uncovers two Key Cards and the Queen of trumps. 5NT was the King Ask, 6♣ showed the ♣K (playing Specific Kings), and West took a shot at 7♥. From West’s point of view, 7♥ is not guaranteed, as it is conceivable that East has three small Spades and three Clubs, in which case there will be a potential Spade loser. But that seems like a long shot and in all other cases 7♥ will be a fine contract. On the actual layout, it’s 13 easy tricks.
Some East’s might overcall that putrid Heart suit, we are not sure it’s such a great idea. South has a maximum 3♦ and we predict that some N-S pairs will stumble into 3NT going down one or two tricks. But 3♦ is a cozy spot, making 9 tricks if West scores a Heart ruff and 10 tricks otherwise.
Most pairs today seem to play DONT or Cappelletti but let’s suppose instead that North is one of the few left who can bid a natural 2♦. What should West do here? The general rule in these situations is: - An over-double is for penalty. - An under-double is for take-out. It makes a lot of sense, of course. There’s a better chance of extracting a penalty if we have Diamond strength is sitting over their Diamonds, and here, where West has only a doubleton, he wants to compete.
After West’s Take-out Double, East bids 2♠, and North will probably push on to 3♦, which makes 9 tricks when the Diamonds behave (they were likely to, considering the auction) and when the Clubs are onside (also likely on the bidding).
Some intrepid Easts might compete to 3♠ and they will have to end-play North just to escape for down one: Diamond to the King and Ace Trump shift and three rounds are drawn Cash ♦Q Run the ♥T, losing to North’s Jack Now, North can cash the ♥A but is now forced either to lead a Club or to concede a ruff and sluff in Diamonds. Either way, it’s 8 tricks for Declarer. >>BRIDGEOPEDIA: “Elimination Play”>>
South has 17 HCP and shortness, which might seem like enough to jump to game, but the hand has some flaws … a (probably) wasted point in Clubs … and the ♦KQJ is not an inspiring holding. So South decides to invite game, perhaps using these methods: - A new suit is a short-suit game-try - 2♠ is a relay to 2NT after which South would bid a second suit (after 1♥ 2♥, 2♠ 2NT, a bid of 3♥ would say “My second suit is Spades”) - 3♥ is a general game-try (the benefit here being that it reveals the least amount of information to the defenders). In our auction, South decides to make her game-try by showing her Club singleton and North dredges up a 4♥ bid.
4♥ is a so-so contract. West actually makes Declarer’s life easy by getting a Spade ruff, and an opening ♣K lead would be more challenging. Now, because of the lack of entries, it may look as if Declarer needs the onside ♥K and 3-3 Spades. But Declarer can bring home 4♥ with this line of play: ♣K won by the Ace Spade to the King ♦K to West’s Ace Club ruff Cash ♦Q Ruff the winning ♦J! Now Declarer runs the ♥Q: - If East covers with the King, then the ♥10 provides an entry to the board for a Spade lead. - If East does not cover with the King, then Declarer reverts to Spades and is able later to bring down the now-singleton ♥K without getting back to the board. But that’s all a bit double dummy, we expect most Declarers to fall short of 10 tricks unless they are lucky enough to receive an opening Spade lead.
In the featured auction, South used the Forcing No Trump after which the auction screeched to a halt in 3♠, which was just as well because there is a loser in each suit (provided that West shifts to a Diamond at his first opportunity). 9 tricks and +140 for N-S.
There are also 9 tricks available in No Trump and “standard” bidders may well do better on this board, perhaps with this auction: 1♠ 2♣, 2♦ 2♠, 2NT 3NT. With the Spades behaving and the ♦K onside, it’s 9 easy tricks. It would still be a good board even if South were to pass 2NT.
It’s possible for West to construct a 15-17 1NT opening which can make slam opposite his own hand, but we don’t see a good way to pursue any long-shot slams, so the practical bid for West seems to be a simple raise to 3NT.
South leads a Spade against 3NT. Declarer will play on Diamonds and the percentage play with that holding is to finesse the ♦T on the first round, as opposed to running the ♦T around. But, either way, Declarer scores three Diamond tricks and 10 altogether.
Here’s another Weak Two (see also Board 3) that will meet with disapproval in some quarters, but again it makes life difficult for the opponents. We wouldn’t blame North for trying 3NT here but that turns out to be an atrocious contract. The play might develop as follows: Spade to the Jack and Declarer’s Ace ♦A is cashed Diamond is lost to West Heart shift won by East Spade won by Declarer At this point, Declarer can count only 6 tricks, and East still has a Heart entry and four Spade winners. Down three! Declarer can do a trick better by ducking the first Spade, and might even get up to 8 if West attacks Clubs instead of Hearts. But one way or another, she’s going down.
West North East South Pass Pass 1♣ 1NT 2♠ ??
After East’s tame start to the auction, N-S are headed for a plus score: - If South competes to 3♦ or 3♥ (perhaps via Lebensohl), she will make 9 tricks - If South passes then West will bid 3♣ and that is when the doubling will commence!
White versus Red and opposite a passed hand, East should have no qualms about throwing in a Diamond preempt, notwithstanding the moderate suit and the 4-card major. In fact, we wonder if bidding just 2♦ is enough in the circumstances. Anyone for 3♦ here? But it’ll probably make no difference, as South will make a Negative Double and North will wind up declaring 4♠.
Declarer has 12 easy tricks in Spades provided that she remembers to take the safety play in Clubs, cashing a high Club before taking the finesse. This guards against the actual situation of the singleton offside Queen, but that becomes moot if East finds the opening lead of the ♣Q.
We expect most N-S pairs to reach 4♠ and make 10 tricks. Not the most insightful analysis, we admit, but also not the most exciting hand of the set. Moving right along …
Having passed initially, some players (not you, of course) think they have an excused absence for the rest of the auction, unless Partner takes action. Not so, and here North has an obvious first-seat Pass, but the second-time around, with 4-4 in the unbid suits and a decent 10-count, she is good value for a Takeout Double. This pretty much guarantees 4-4 in the majors (perhaps 4 Spades and 5 Hearts is also possible) so South feels free to compete up to the 3-level based on the 9-card Spade fit.
That was sensible Total Tricks thinking by South, even though it turns out that 3♠ is actually down two tricks. The good news is that 3♠ is likely to escape undoubled, which at this vulnerability is just hunky-dory for N-S, as their -100 beats the N-S pairs who were scoring -130 by defending against a Diamond part-score.
South’s hand passes the Rule of 20, but it’s a somewhat marginal opener, with those unappetizing minor suit holdings. However, South does have the Spades and, as nobody seems to worry about the vulnerability these days, we suppose that most Souths will indeed open 1♠ and are likely to end up in 3♠.
3♠ is a decent contract, but the bad news for Declarer is that West can arrange for a Heart ruff by cashing ♥A and crossing to East’s ♦A. For more on this, please see the Play Problem.
Following the trend that was set previously on Boards 3 and 14, we have another instance of a Weak Two which (in our opinion) needs to be made, even though the suit may not meet the purists’ requirements. If your methods don’t allow you to make a White vs. Red preempt here then you are making life far too easy for the opponents!
Do you play Leaping Michaels as part of your defense to a Weak 2♥ and 2♠? Using this gadget, the following bids all show 5-5 hands (or better): - 4♣ shows Clubs and the other major - 4♦ shows Diamonds and the other major - 4NT shows the minors - 4 of their major also shows the minors and is stronger than 4NT To see how Leaping Michaels works when the opponents open 2♦ please follow the link.
What strength is needed for a Leaping Michaels bid? It’s forcing to game but that does not mean that we need game in our own hand to make the bid, that’s not practical. We’d say that the West hand has a bit extra, he’d also bid 4♣ with the same high cards and 1=5=2=5 distribution.
How many Spades would you bid holding the North hand? Considering the vulnerability the answer should surely be “Lots!” 4♠ would be quite feeble and would make it easier for the opponents to bid their slam. 5♠ is a possibility and that will work really well on the actual hand if the opponents double (that’s -500). But the opponents are more likely to bid slam, we think, in which case we’ll be bidding 6♠ for sure. So, perhaps the best ploy is to go straight to 6♠, giving the opponents virtually no chance to reach seven when that is where they belong.
East will double 6♠, of course, and that goes down four and -800 for N-S. That may not be a great board, as some N-S pairs might get doubled in 5♠ and some E-W pairs might not reach slam. Perhaps 5♠ (over 4♣) is the way to go after all, at least if East looks like a timid soul.
There’s not much excitement on this board, we expect East to play in a Diamond part-score making 10 easy tricks.
West’s 2♥ showed the majors (DONT), North’s 3♣ showed some values, and East took advantage of the vulnerability with a leap to 4♠. It’s not surprising that this would be doubled when N-S have such a preponderance of the HCP, and against 4♠ doubled, South should probably lead a trump, the standard lead when a contract has been doubled on power. That gives Declarer no trouble at all, and it’s 10 tricks in a hurry.
Now consider what might happen if South decides to start with Diamonds instead. Check out this unsuccessful line of play and see if you can figure out what went wrong: ♦A and ♦K are both cashed ♣A is cashed Club is ruffed on the board Trumps are drawn in two rounds ♥A is cashed Heart ruff Diamond ruff Heart ruff Diamond ruff Heart ruff After all those ruffs, Declarer and Dummy are now out of trumps. Declarer has scored 9 tricks already and has finally established Dummy's 5th Heart for the 10th trick. Well, not exactly! The lead is now in Declarer's hand and there is no way back to Dummy to enjoy that winning Heart. So, what went wrong? Yes, Declarer needed to use his trump entries to better effect. After winning at Trick 4 with the Club ruff, he should cash ♥A, ruff a Heart and cross back to hand with a Spade. Ruffing a Heart early, before touching trumps, gives Dummy an extra entry and allows the long Heart to be enjoyed later in the play. >>BRIDGEOPEDIA: “Entry Management”>>
North has the values and the stoppers for a natural 1NT overcall, but that would be a poor bid when the hand is the perfect shape for a Takeout Double. Assuming that E-W are playing Support Doubles, East’s raise to 2♠ showed 4-card support. When the dust has cleared we’d expect West to be Declarer in 3♠. 10 easy tricks.
Would you pass in first seat with the South hand? It’s only 10 HCP and it’s only 19 on the Rule of 20 scale. Nonetheless, give serious thought to opening this: - There is a singleton (the Rule of 20 considers 5=4=2=2 and 5=4=3=1 to be equal, which they clearly are not) - All the cards are working - The hand has some useful-looking fillers, especially the ♠T. - South’s suit is Spades which gives an opening bid some preemptive value.
Anyway, let’s say that South wimps out and passes. The next question is “Would you open the West hand?” Many would, as they make it a rule always to open those “Ace-King, Ace” hands. Well, open if you must, our own preference is not to, or at least not this particular one which, thanks to it’s square shape, registers a less-than-seismic 18 on the Rule of 20 scale.
If South passes and West opens 1♣, North will overcall 1NT. Most pairs play “systems on” in this situation and, in the case of our N-S, this meant a Smolen auction to 3NT.
There is not much to the play of 3NT. East leads a Club and Declarer has 10 easy tricks when the Diamonds break.
Back on Board 7 we discussed the Rule of 15. Not the Rule of 15 which is used in 4th seat but the one which is used when we are considering making a Takeout Double. To reiterate: - Count 6 if you are void in the enemy suit, 4 if you are singleton and 2 if you are doubleton - Add that to your HCP - If the answer is 15 or more (and the hand has a suitable shape) then you have a Takeout Double. By this reckoning, East should not double, his hand scores only 14. But we know that we would double and, as we did back on Board 7, we suggest that the magic number be downgraded to 14!
However, all this is academic on the actual hand, expect East to declare 2♦ making 9 tricks.
After South’s 4♠ preempt, what does 4NT by West mean? It’s not to play, nor is it Ace-asking. Some play it as showing the minors, but a more flexible treatment is for it to show any two-suiter. Well, it’s not really an issue here because West happens to have the minors, but flip those red suits and we’d still suggest 4NT.
As it happens, E-W have no safety at the 5-level, and if they get doubled in 5♦ they will be down 500, more than the opponents’ non-vulnerable game. But how was North to know that? He had very little defense against 5♦, perhaps just two Club tricks and maybe not even that. So North guessed to bid 5♠ (not necessarily expecting to make it), and we must doff our chapeau to West for not doubling with those three Aces. Yes, 5♠ is cold, 11 easy tricks.
Back to the Bidding: How do you like South’s leap to 4♠? Our own preference is for that bid to be purely preemptive in which case we’d say that the South hand has altogether too much in the way of defense. Some partnerships use the following useful gadget: With 5-card support for Partner’s major-suit opening, bid 4♠ with a weak hand that has little or no defense, and bid 3NT with a hand that has a modicum of defense (typically an outside Ace or King). This agreement works rather well on the actual hand, because now North, expecting defensive help from South, will have no compunction about doubling 5♦ and collecting +500.
The bidding will deter South from lead “4th best from his longest and strongest”, so expect a Club lead. Dummy’s King wins that and next is a Spade finesse … the bad news for Declarer is that the Queen loses to the King … and the good news is that North has the singleton ♠J, setting up Dummy’s Ten. Later in the play, a bold Declarer will lead towards Dummy’s ♣Q (hoping that a tricky North did not duck the ♣A), ending up with 10 tricks … two Spades, three Hearts, three Diamonds and two Clubs.
Would you open the South hand 3♦? That 4-card Spade suit is a negative, as are the weak Diamonds and the fact that there are two defensive tricks. Our first choice would be to pass, our second choice would be just 2♦, and our third choice would be 3♦. If South does open 3♦ (or 2♦) the Spade fit will be lost and an ignominious 3NT down one might be the final result.
After South’s sensible Pass, she has another choice to make after North’s jump shift to 2♠. As 2♠ is game-forcing, a bid of 3♠ is more encouraging than jumping to game, and 3♠ is certainly reasonable. But we rather like a jump to 4♥ (splinter support for Spades), and that gets N-S to 6♠ via a Roman Key Card auction.
6♠ is a decent slam. It needs 3-2 trumps and a little luck in Clubs, or 4-1 in trumps and a lot of luck in Clubs. East’s best lead is a Heart, and Declarer must decide whether to set up the Diamonds or the Clubs. The Clubs look more promising, partly because of the better spots and partly because of the entry situation. Having decided that, Declarer does best to play on Clubs early, while the trump suit is still available for transportation between the hands: The play might go: Heart lead won by Declarer’s Ace Cash ♣A Run the ♣Q, losing to West’s King Club ruffed by East’s Ten, overruffed in Dummy Back to the ♠A Heart ruff Cash the ♠K, etc. >>BRIDGEOPEDIA: “Entry Management”>>
In an uncontested auction (let’s say 1♦ 1♠, 2NT), standard methods don’t allow East to bail out in 3♦. But, in this contested auction, perhaps it makes more sense for 3♦ to be non-forcing. As it happens, though, West can make no fewer than 9 tricks playing in No Trump. Even if North finds the unlikely lead of a Spade, Declarer can prevail. He wins the ♠A on the board, finesses the ♦Q, cashes ♦A, crosses to Dummy with a Diamond, and finesses a Club. 9 lucky tricks! In Diamonds, there are 10 tricks if West is Declarer.
Some Souths will have a Bergen Raise at their disposal, but either way West will get his Clubs into the auction, even if it has to be at the 4-level. North plays in 4♠ and will make 10 tricks when East obediently leads a Club (and also if he doesn’t!).
East’s Double manages to dislodge South from her cozy 1NT contract and instead North has to labor in the 4-3 Heart fit. This will be down a trick or two.
As East, what would be your choice of rebid? - 3♣? No, the hand is way too good, by about a King. - 2NT? This bid shows 18-19, of course, but this particular 19 is altogether too good, don’t you think? - 3NT? The common treatment for 3NT is not to show 20-21 (that would be a 2NT opening), but to show a hand with a source of tricks. We think that 3NT is a highly reasonable bid here, perhaps even the correct bid. - 2♦? The last choice is to try a fake reverse, and if we are doing that then it’s safer if the fake suit is a minor, so 2♦ and not 2♥ here.
After 2♦ what are West’s options? - 2♥? Nowadays, many pairs play that, after a reverse, a bid of the 4th suit at the two-level is artificial and weak, so, if that method is in use, then 2♥ is not an option. - 2NT? If 2♥ is weak then 2NT would be natural (and forcing). - 3NT? This bid shows values and a strong desire to play in No Trump, in other words a hand with Hearts very much under control. This would be our choice.
Perhaps like yourself, we are far from convinced that 6♣ is a clear-cut bid (for example, give West one less Heart and one more Diamond and 6♣ is a terrible contract) but it’s always easier to find the winning bid when you can see all four hands.
6♣ is a difficult slam to reach (and 6NT does not make on an opening Spade lead). Another possibility is: 1♣ 1♠, 3NT 6♣, this time it is West who makes the optimistic leap to slam.
With 11 trumps it’s easy to see E-W competing up to 4♣, a contract where East has a loser in each suit for down one. If North plays in Hearts, she’ll lose two Hearts and a Diamond, plus one or two Spades. Will she guess the Spades correctly? She certainly should! East will probably lead a Diamond, and after playing Hearts Declarer will know that East started with just two points in the red suits. East no doubt has some Club values, too, but is surely favorite to hold the ♠A to justify his vulnerable two-level overcall. So, 9 tricks in Hearts if Declarer remembers the auction and finesses the ♠J.
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