[cencio]

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Don't look at the previous bids. I just wanted to know if it is correct to declare 5 diamond. In addition, the software reports that it is an asking Queen. In this case, how do you respond?

[jillybean]

You are in an auction where spades have been agreed as trump?
5♦ is the Queen ask 5♠, returning to the trump suit, denies the Queen.

I know you said don't look, but I don't understand the previous bids.
You can't have an intelligent auction after that start.

[pescetom]

Just to point out some obvious anomalies:
1) it would be normal to open the South hand 2NT (or 1H if you agreed not to include a balanced 5 card major in 2NT)
2) why is South bidding 2S rather than 2H?
3) why is South bidding 4D? If you agreed Italian style mixed 1st/2nd level control-bidding then fine, but in that case South should pass after 4S denying control of clubs
4) no it's not correct to bid 5D, you already know about the trumps Q.

[mycroft]

You've agreed spades (okay, not sure why, but I'm supposed to ignore that). South cuebid, and then keycarded - for spades. After getting a response that did not specify if the ♠Q was held, you asked for it.

Partner should bid 5♠ denying it. With it, modern standard is to show the cheapest outside King, or 6♠ with the ♠Q and no outside K. Others will have older methods - make sure you agree with partner what they are (and, if you play "cheapest K", what a bid of a suit between that and the trump suit is asking for).

The reason for this is that responder doesn't know if we have all the keycards and partner is looking for the grand, or if we're off one keycard and partner doesn't want to be in 6 off a keycard and the trump Q (which you don't want to be, by and large - at *best* it only makes if you can pick up/guess the Q, and sometimes that's impossible). So, since it's not going to matter much to the defence (especially as more often than not, keycard responder is dummy), pass it in the "5 or 6" case in case it's the less common "6 or 7" case.

However, we should be in 4♠. 100%. Even with the "ignore the auction" rule. You seem to be playing "1st and 2nd" control showing (otherwise South wouldn't show the ♦K), so South has denied first or second round control of clubs. North, looking at ♣J7 now knows something South doesn't - you're off two cashing clubs. It doesn't matter how many keycards you have, or the Q, or outside Kings, 6 can not make. So he signs off in 4♠. South should respect that - remember, "knows something I don't". I know that's irrelevant to the actual question (is this a queen ask and how do I respond), but it is critical to *use of* the queen ask (and Keycard, and 1st and 2nd round cuebidding, and,,,)

[smerriman]

As a side point, can anyone think of any plausible reason for the auction, including misclicks, system misunderstandings, etc? If "the software" states a queen ask, I'm assuming some robot is involved, but not GIB as North is responding 1430. Maybe Argine or Jack. If South misclicked 2♠, often you can try weird tactics to try to get partner to use keycard so you can pass 4nt, but this doesn't seem the case.. I'm baffled.

[jillybean]

Steps?

[thepossum]

Given that North thinks south has 5 spades would you not respond in the positive 5+5=10, positive to Queen ask
Quite pyschy auction for N/B
All a bit sad given two club losers