THE BIDDING
South has an absolutely flat, four-triple-three hand with 16 HCP so she opens 1NT. North has a 5-4-3-1 shape: not a notrump shape. But that singleton happens to be an ace, which she hopes will balance out the obvious flaw in her distribution. Anyway, as responder, she’s not restricted as much by shape as opener. So with 11 HCP and 1 LP, she should raise directly to 3NT since 26+ plus points are assured. She must not invite with 2NT, as that bid would show exactly 9 points and express doubt about the right contract.