[harikannan]

I deal and pass. My partner opens weak 2M, which is passed to me.

What will 2NT by me mean? Is there a case for bidding it? Thanks.

[DavidKok]

A bid for every hand, not a hand for every bid. What hand type would first pass and now has bidding difficulties?

I think the bid doesn't exist, and it's not a good idea to try to find a use for it.

As an aside, if we have a passed hand and partner opens 2M, it's quite unexpected that the opponents are silent.

[harikannan]

I apologise for the error. The bidding was P (P) 2S (Dbl) 2NT. What types of hand would it show?

[pescetom]

I don't think it makes sense as a natural bid, in the circumstances.
It's not easy to imagine a sound conventional use after double, either.

[mycroft]

McCabe uses this after the double as "I think they're passing this for a good score, I have a place to play".

In context, almost certainly a weak 2♣ opener (what other hand would not have preempted in first? Okay, if you play "I don't preempt with a side 4-card major in first, then 0=4=6=3 or 0=4=7=2, maybe).

[johnu]

harikannan, on 2025-August-03, 00:08, said:

What will 2NT by me mean? Is there a case for bidding it? Thanks.

As a passed hand, 2NT as natural makes no sense opposite another hand that isn't an opening bid. If responder had enough to bid a natural 2NT, they would have opened the bidding. Otherwise, partner is contracting for 8 tricks with a likely less than half the deck.

So, 2NT is probably meant as the same forcing and artificial bid that it would by an unpassed hand over a weak 2 bid. Since responder is a passed hand, responder probably has a distributional hand with good major suit support that may make a game with minimal HCP. The infrequency of a sequence like this makes having a different set of responses for passed and unpassed hand 2NT bidders unfeasible in terms of memory and use of time spent on partnership bidding.

[harikannan]

https://tinyurl.com/25xex4sk

That was from yesterday's BEN and friends tournament.

[johnu]

harikannan, on 2025-August-03, 23:38, said:

That was from yesterday's BEN and friends tournament.

There's not much use trying to learn bidding by playing with robots. They do what they are programmed to do, including passing hands that most human players would open.

[harikannan]

I agree. But still wonder why would it be programmed that way.