Hesitation
Both sides non-vulnerable.
North's hand is:
S none
H Q853
D AKT9863
C 32
East's hand is:
S 93
H A84
D QJ752
C A74
East dealt and opened 1D
South over-called with 2S (6+ suit and 6-10 points although this was later incorrectly described, after auction complete, as 11-15 points by N)
West passed
North passed after a significant period of "thinking time"
East reserved his rights and passed
2S went 3 down for 150
East said that without the hesitation then he would have bid a re-opening double
This would have been passed out and, again, gone 3 down but for 500
Can someone explain what the ruling should be, please?
Thanks
Comments
I'm not certain it would have been passed out - North might have pulled to 3D, although that may not have been any better - we don't know without seeing all the hands.
But that is probably irrelevant: I'd ask North what he was thinking about, but would expect the answer to convince me that his thought was for a bridge reason ("is there a way for me to get out of this mess?!") in which case East has no recourse.
Laws 73D & 73E are the relevant laws (& in particular the second paragraph of each).
My opinion is that North does have a "demonstrable bridge reason" for thinking, and that therefore it is "at his own risk" that East has based his actions on the hesitation.
many thanks for replies