hrothgar, on 2012-February-27, 07:48, said:
If you're competing over a strong NT, don't waste time trying to bid that impossible slam...
On a practical basis, those hands don't come up often enough to worry about
(For that matter, hands where you want to bid game don't come up often to worry about)
Personally, I want
1. A system where I can overcall frequently
2. The puts maximum pressure on the opponents
3. That is hard to penalize
You guys appear to be totally blinded with the 1NT opening bid. How many times have the opponents opened with 1♥ or 1♠ and 15+ HCP and your side stole the contract via a Michael’s cue-bid? Michael’s also tries to differentiate between weak and strong hands, therein providing responder with enough information to make a game decision or not.
My defence to 1NT caters for strong interference AND competitive interference. My 2♣ bid guarantees at least one 5-card major. However it does not EXCLUDE 4-cards in the other major. In my reckoning, that already places some pressure on the opponents.
If your defence to a 1NT opener only caters for a part score battle, you need to go back and rethink it. There was a thread not too far back titled “Shape First.” With a shapely hand dovetailing with partner you DON’T NEED the normal 24-25 HCP for a major suit game. Additionally, you can make use of the fact KNOWING where the bulk of the missing HCP are located. ANY 1NT defence MUST make provision for game possibilities as well.
If you are happy with your current agreements then NOBODY is going to change your mind!