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I'm not worried about partner jumping to 4♠ because my partners don't jump to 4♠ on this auction.
That may be true, but there's nothing to stop responder from choosing 4
♠ over 3N.
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- I have a neat convention to handle the problem after 1m-1♥-1♠-1NT (as well as handling many other problems)
Please elaborate.
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- I haven't found this positional thing to be a disaster when it has come up. YMMV.
My mileage says its a net loss. Sometimes a disaster. Plus the strong hand is on the table and its easier to defend!
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- I've also found that opponents make pretty decent leads into me when I rebid 2NT etc. because they know a lot about my minor suit holding, partner's heart holding, and sometimes partner bids checkback etc. I'm also pretty sure that 2NT rebid that normally denies four spades is not alertable (negative inferences not alertable, 1NT rebids not alertable regardless of whether they deny four spades, etc).
Of course 2N isn't alertable (?!). So your opponents make better leads when we bid fewer suits?
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- Some pretty good unbalanced hands are rebidding 1♠ right? The only alternative in most cases is a GF 2♠, so whatever hands are not willing to GF (maybe 4153 18-count?) rebid 1♠. I don't think the balanced 18-19 is really much better than those hands. Also, I know you respond 1♥ on total trash with a five card heart suit (so do I) which means getting out in 1♠ is not all that far-fetched.
Fair point, but this isn't exactly argument against 2N. Its an excellent argument to play something like Gazilli to show a near-GF hand I suppose. You will win some partscores when responder has hearts, three spades and trash but thats about it.
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- Every time I have played 1♠ on this auction with this hand it's like an automatic MP top. And sometimes opponents decide to balance and get mauled in 1NT or 2m. Maybe at IMPs it's less of a winner, but it seems to me not that infrequent and a massive source of MP.
This is a poor auction to balance into, since responder usually has three trump. The opponents have an auto lead of a trump versus 1
♠, and you need to get busy establishing that extra trick in spades. I suppose you will have some +80 versus -50 scenarios but that doesn't seem like a big net gain to me, especially when some old-fashioned players are opening 18's 1N.
At IMPs, its Russian Roulette to rebid 1
♠.