Unbalanced shapes fall into two categories:

• a) They have a six-card suit or

• b) They have a five-card suit and a four-card suit (or five-five).

The 4441 shape. Luckily 4441 hands are quite
rare — less than three per cent. But they are
tricky, because you’ll have to break a rule.

There’s no perfect strategy for opening but a
simple approach is “Taps” (H and C taps — only
opening 1♥ or 1♣). With a black-suit singleton,
open 1♥; with a red-suit singleton, open 1♣.

Very likely partner will respond in your singleton. What then? Here are my suggestions for telling the littlest lie:

With 13-14 points: rebid your cheapest four-
card suit.

With 15 or more points, rebid your cheapest four-card suit at the one-level; possible, rebid notrumps at the appropriate level to show your strength.

There’s a reason I haven’t included 12-point 4441s: don’t open them. Sometimes, you’ll be able to make a take-out double of your singleton suit, thereby showing in one call what you’d have been unable to show in two bids if you’d have opened.