Leaderboard

Almost. The dominant range for splinters is split, either minimum GF or strong enough to force to the 5-level over a signoff. I play my splinters slightly lighter than most, for me the range is (good) 9 to (soft) 13 on the lower range and approximately 17+ on the higher range. Since a splinter takes away almost all of your bidding space, especially if you are splintering in the suit one under the trump suit, it is important that the bid is very descriptive. For that reason it needs to be narrow range, promise 4(+)-card support and also show an approximately three-suited hand (so no 4=1=2=6 shapes, for example). The exact range is up for debate, most people will play 11-14 or so, and then the monster hands as well (but those almost never come up).

I have heard it mentioned on here that splinter bids are limited in strength and with strong hands and a shortage you should go via another route. Have I got this right and roughly what strength range do people here splinter on?

why did you double? I think you are making life far too complicated when you ignore the obvious bid of 3H. I don't know anyone who would dream of playing NFB after a preemptive overcall....so I just don't understand why you'd waste an entire round of a crowded auction misdescribing your hand. If you say that you want to cater to 3D...what the heck are you bidding over 3D? And what do you think it shows? You open 1D with say KQx xxx AKxxx xx Your rebid over the double is what? Plus bidding 3H over 3D is non-forcing and who the heck knows what 4H would be? (In my most frequent partnership it would be keycard, lol). Whatever you think it means, I'd bet that partner would think it something different. Bridge is complicated enough without overthinking simple hands. Yes, 3H doesn't solve every problem....what do you do over 3S or 4H? But at least it tells partner that you have gf values and at least 5 hearts. Consider that compared to double. Put another way...imagine you were opener and saw 1D (3C) x to you....describe the range of hands partner can have. Unless you are completely detached from what most people think of as normal bridge, it will NOT include a gf hand with 7 solid hearts and a club control! whether the 3C derails the auction is a question that cannot be answered until we know how partner responds to 3H. But this is NOT as good a hand as you may think it is, at least for slam purposes. You have a sure club loser 98% of the time (bearing in mind that 83.62% of statistics are made up), so your 5 hcp in clubs are basically the same as Kx...plus if partner has 3 or 4 clubs, there may well be a club ruff coming, and you're going to be on play most of the time (if you can reach and make 6N, then that's not an issue but it's going to be tough to count 12 winners in 6N in most auctions). But this may have been a tough hand to bid to slam without interference...it's hardly a hand that screams 'bid a slam' opposite most opening bids (if it is, for you, you need to revise your approach to slam bidding...this is a good hand but you need to learn a lot more about partner's hand before you drive to slam. I do differ from David here: I don't think the hand is worth another call if partner raises 3H to 4H. Btw, to me he could bid 4C as a 'good raise' without promising a club control. I think that is an important point, which comes up in all kinds of sequence...consider (3D) 3H (P). You need to be able to distinguish between hands that are just enough to warrant 4H and hands that have real extras with heart support, even with no diamond control, so 4D becomes the 'good raise' and 4H is the 'I couldn't pass' raise

3H instead of X is a lot better, you need to start showing where you live. 3S over 3H also denies 3 hearts, in the given seq. this is not the case. 3H is also GF, the X in the given seq. ( and the 3S bid as well) does not generate a GF seq. for most, some play X as GF. Over 3S from partner, you have to decide, if you go low by bidding 4H, or if you try to find a slam. I like to play 5M as a quantitative invite, and I would think, I choosing the bid, ..., but ask me at the table. As it is, this is one situation, where you will feel the cost of opening any dreck in 1st / 2nd seat, if you do, than you should go with 4H, if you play reasonable sound openings 5H is a lot less risky, it is still not clear, if you should risk the 5 level.

You talk about leads in your last post, which is a little different from just giving a signal. On signalling, the most common arrangement is to give attitude, count, suit preference in that order. If a signal is irrelevant you can skip it (though some pairs signal more rigidly than others) so, for example, a common agreement is to go direct to suit preference if the opening lead is an ace and dummy turns up with a singleton in that suit. On declarer's lead it is also common to skip attitude, since that often helps declarer more than the defence. So if partner leads the suit and we give 2-3-4 we are showing encouragement with an odd number. If 2-4-3 it is encouragement with an even number; 4-2-3 is discouragement with an odd number; and 4-3-2 is discouragement with an even number. Whereas if declarer is leading the suit, 2-4-3 is even and prefer higher suit; 2-3-4 is even and lower preference; 4-2-3 is odd with lower preference; and 4-3-2 is odd with higher suit preference. But other arrangements are possible - important is just that you and your partner understand the differences and can explain them to your opponents.

I play my splinters as 8-11ish with anything stronger through J2N

I play J2N as described in various sources which I believe is the original version. Someone once put me on to an improved version but the problem is remembering it when it hardly ever comes up. Is it worth spending hours practicing online for a convention that is very rarely used, or is it better to use that time studying and improving one's judgement and partnership agreements in competitive auctions to try to reduce the number of sub 50% results in mixed club fields?

Good news!

Edit: I misread, I thought you played some artificial opening, not a standard 5-card Precision 2♣ opening. It does not fit, not even close. The below is for an opening showing 5(+)♣ and an undisclosed four card major, not one that may have that but may also be a list of other shapes. Does it deny a 5-card major, but longer clubs are allowed? If so it would fit. The entry point for a specific short two-suiter is 2NT, so that you could play: 2♣-2♦ (GF asking relay): 2♥ - hearts (you could equally well choose to make this spades), 2♠ GF relay asks again, scheme continues as below. 2♠ - does not exist 2NT - Spades with high short (so heart shortage, scheme continues as below) 3♣ - 4=2=2=5 (equal shortage with spades) 3♦ - 4=3=1=5 (generic 5431 with low short and spades) 3♥ - 4=2=1=6 (generic 6421 with low short and spades) 3♠ - 4=3=0=6 (generic 6430 with low short and spades) 3NT - 4=1=1=7 (generic 7411 with spades) 4C - 4=2=0=7 (generic 7420 with low short and spades) This is the symmetric structure. You don't get to ask about min/max and need to be game forcing to try this, optionally you can also decide to throw out some of the 4-7 hand types. Most Precision 2♣ openings also contain hands with long clubs (and no 4cM), as well as hands with long clubs and four diamonds. You cannot fit all of those in, though you could (for example) reserve 2♣-2♦; 2♠ for 'long clubs, no major' and go +2 on those shapes. If your 2♣ opening always promises a 4cM the scheme above works (you may technically wish to include 4=4=0=5 as well). In addition you may wish to have some invitational bids available, these also can't fit in 2♦.