Stefan_O, on 2016-May-28, 09:08, said:
But again -- Why?
If you open 4144 with 1♦, the only time you can even have a ♦-suit is the rare 4045.
What you normally are interested to know here is:
- Does responder have 4 or 5 hearts?
- Does responder have extra strength or not?
Wanna play in diamonds? I think (almost) never... Much more likely to only help defenders by bidding 2♦ naturally...
If you open 4144 with 1♦, the only time you can even have a ♦-suit is the rare 4045.
What you normally are interested to know here is:
- Does responder have 4 or 5 hearts?
- Does responder have extra strength or not?
Wanna play in diamonds? I think (almost) never... Much more likely to only help defenders by bidding 2♦ naturally...
It's to allow you to play 5C (or even 4S) when it is right if partner's hearts were particularly weak. If you want to check for a heart fit, then bid hearts. Meanwhile any bid (except maybe 2C) shows extras.