[jillybean]

mikeh, on 2023-March-10, 17:05, said:

Here’s a tip for everyone thinking of bidding 3C: bid 4C

No, it’s not a splinter, lol. It commits to game while telling partner that we have length and strength in clubs.

Btw, I’m not bidding 4C (and never bidding 3C). Why?

The purpose of 4C is to help partner decide what to do if they bid 4S. Typically we have something like AQxx(x) and want him to bid 5H over 4S with the club king and something in hearts, but to double with his values in diamonds…and lead trump. We know he has nothing in clubs and we have a diamond card, so we are misleading him by bidding clubs. Just bid 4H

If they bid 4S, which they probably won’t (they will more often be on an 8 card fit than 9 or 10) we’ll double.

1H (1S) 2H (P)
4C
Thanks for the reply. You laugh at the thought that 4C could be a splinter, I don't understand why it is obviously the second suit and not a splinter.

[DavidKok]

In competition, if there is shortness it is usually in the suit held by the opponents. In the situations where it is not, partner will usually have length in our short suit and/or there will be multiple poor breaks making slam chances remote. Splinters in side suits are not as valuable in competition as they are outside of competition.
Conversely, showing second suits for identifying possible double fits is more important than ever. That's why "only splinters in the opponents' suit in competition" is a popular agreement.

[jillybean]

Thanks

[pescetom]

jillybean, on 2023-March-11, 11:38, said:

My game try is usually,
2X + 1 asks where partner would accept a help suit game try
3x short suit game try
1H 2H 3H I've opened on 5 to the 10, do you have trump honors?

That's almost exactly what I used to play until I lost the only partner who could really deliver it
Now I prefer a simple long suit trial which occasionally gains more than it loses and at least reminds partner that 1H 2H 3H is about poor trump quality.

jillybean, on 2023-March-11, 11:38, said:

I realise that, and attempted to explain above that I was bidding game over partners 3H signoff hoping that partner would get the message that I was strong in clubs and hearts. As Mike noted, a 4C bid would have shown this but I had the wrong hand to do it.

OK, but that's not the message I would receive? As partner I would assume now you have 2 clubs losers but are strong everywhere else. As opponent too, and that is called a psyche So I can understand partner worrying about what it really means and how to disclose.

BTW, Mikeh's description of the 4C bid is standard and reasonable but not the only way to play it. As I understand from other posts you are trying to evolve towards Italian-style control-bidding, if so then it makes a lot of sense to redefine 2 and 3 level developments in that light: 4C as probable first level clubs control, denying first or second level spades control and whatever 3NT would have meant is a powerful tool here.