32519

For the record, please don’t regard the way in which I engage with Richard as a “flame war.” All I’m doing is debating with him in a posting style that he understands.

Ben, I think you should move this thread out of Appeals Forum back to the Non-Natural System Forum. Thank you.

This is my whole argument AGAINST the defence submitted to the ACBL. If North knows my two suits, there is just no way that he will make the 3-level fit jump. It’s just too easy now to see when a game try is on or not. When North enters the bidding over 2♦, East is under no obligation to enter the bidding as well. Say for example, North bids 2M (instead of 3M), West can still compete to level 3 if so desiring. The 2♦ bid has already indicated this willingness. East can allow West to show where his preference is. The original hand showed a 4072 distribution. With that hand, for sure West will bid 3♦. If West becomes declarer in 3♦, the ♠ finesse is a no-brainer. If N/S compete in 3♠, declarer will immediately recognise that the contract is in jeopardy with 4 low trumps in dummy.

When the primary gains from your PPP (Personal Pet Project), the ability of your side to jam the auction in 2M, are threatened with oblivion (or at a minimum, radically reduced) you need to apply the flawless logic of Newt Gingrich: Shout louder!

The way this defence to MOSCITO is continuing to develop, your gains from being able to jam the auction in 2M will soon be cut in half. Your gains will now primarily come when the hand in second seat passes i.e. 1x-P-2y-? Now the pressure is on the player in 4th seat to balance or not. Not so easy now. I bet you a Coke and a hotdog that a defence from the 4th seat can also be developed. All that needs to happen is for your gains to drop far enough below the 50% threshold then you will probably abandon MOSCITO altogether. If there is enough interest to see this developed, it might just be done. So why not start a poll titled: Do you want to see a 4th seat defence to MOSCITO developed? Voting options are YES or NO. And then you cast the first vote.

Thanks a ton for this Frances! The second suit may indeed be the opener’s anchor suit. This will be adequately disclosed in the CC. The defence I am currently working on is aimed at really turning up the heat on the MOSCITO players. If I can sucker them into bidding on level 3 or higher when I have opener’s anchor suit well covered, I can extract a very favourable penalty double for my side. The hand posted in the other thread is repeated here with a slight modification to the E/W hands, changing the West 4072 distribution into a 4252 distribution. The N/S hands are left unchanged. [hv=pc=n&s=skj97ha92d54ckj86&w=saqt2h63dkqt98c52&n=s8653hqj754da3cqt&e=s4hkt8dj762ca9743&d=s&v=0&b=11&a=1h(4+%20Spades)2d(Any%202-suited%20hand)3h(Fit%20jump)p4s(Double%20fit)d(Gotcha%21)ppp]399|300[/hv] Whenever North has an unsuitable hand to make any response to partner’s opening bid, would be an indication that the HCP favour our side. So now our side can start looking for our best spot. Conversely, when North does have a fit with opener (as here) and makes a fit showing jump in 3♥ which opener converts to 4♠ on a double fit, I have succeeded in my goal of suckering them into an unmakeable contract. I can now extract a favourable penalty double from the opponents. These sorts of hands have opened a whole new scope for the defence. I will now dump my 2♥ and 2♠ bids from the original defence and move them into my 2♦ bid. Now I can keep North guessing as to what I really have!

I stumbled across GAstem on the BridgeGuys website, a variant of Ghestem. This is something new to me, never having heard of it or seen it before. Does anybody have any experience playing GAstem? If so, does it work? Do you think it is a good convention?

Does a 4072 distribution qualify as 2-suited? What about a 64xx distribution? Does that also qualify as 2-suited? And finally, while you are at it - what about a 5422 distribution as a 2-suited hand? Which of these distributions survives an Appeals Committee challenge has a huge impact upon a defensive agreement being developed to counter MOSCITO's destructive ability to jam the auction in 2M. Personally I believe that the first two shouldn't be any problem. But I need to know for sure. The last one could prove to be decisive in really turning the pressure back upon the MOSCITO players. If a 5422 distribution survives an Appeals Committee challenge, it opens up a whole range of new possibilities in the defensive agreement being developed. Thanking you in advance for an informed answer.

Oops! Sorry, misinformation after Hrothgar’s post. So now the CC is updated and says “any 2-suited hand willing to compete to level 3” without specifying the expected length in each suit. So I repeat the question: Would a 4072 distribution survive an Appeals Committee Ruling as a 2-suited hand? What about a 5422 distribution? Or would this be declared as semi-balanced? If a 5422 distribution qualifies as 2-suited it opens up huge possibilities in the defensive agreements that were being discussed.

An overcall on a 4072 distribution alerted as “any 2-suited hand willing to compete to level 3” was challenged as being “dubious.” The 4-card suit was the suit shown by overcaller’s RHO. In the explanatory notes on overcaller’s convention card it clearly stipulated that “one of the 2-suits could be the opponents suit.” So my question is straightforward and simple: Would the 4072 overcall pass an Appeals Committee Ruling based on the circumstances described? Or would an adjusted score be awarded? This didn't actually happen at the table. It took place in one of the forum threads.

Having a defensive agreement against MOSCITO such as DOOM can have positive spin-offs. On the hand posted, and N/S having suffered a heavy penalty double, on a different yet similar hand may now err on the side of caution, stopping in a part-score when an easy game was on. The whole objective of my defence is to transfer pressure back onto the opponents. Your 2M bid is destructive, attempting to jam the auction. Now the pressure is on the opponents whether or not to balance. Regarding some of your questions: My 2♥ and 2♠ bids are descriptive and destructive at the same time. If your side is prepared to risk playing in 2M on a possible 4-3 fit and minimum values, what’s preventing me from taking a risk of playing on level 3 on a 5-2 or better holding in the other major. Balancing pushes the auction to level 3 anyway (over 2♠). So I want to make a very descriptive bid on my actual hand strength and holding. More often than not, my HCP will be concentrated in the 2 majors. Knowing that and the fact that I am sitting behind the player who opened one of the majors, increases my chances of any needed finesse in the suit. The assumption that the hand posted contains 5/5 in the minors is wrong. Most likely it would then have been opened 2NT (unless really low on HCP). A really low holding in HCP then promises extreme distribution according to the definition. With extreme distribution, West would most likely have pulled 4♠ to 4NT indicating a willingness to sacrifice. I take you calling my 2♦ bid insane as a compliment. All your questions indicate a growing interest in this defence. When you decide to adopt it, the least you can do is acknowledge where it originated. I think I will send a detailed write-up of DOOM to BridgeGuys for placing on their website. Then it is available for everyone, not just the members of the BBO Forums. This is my last post on DOOM. I am the first to admit that I thoroughly enjoyed this polite exchange of ideas. Over and out. Andrew Lee (alias 32519)

Who decided that my 2♦ bid needs to be 5/5? The definition says “a hand willing to bid to level 3.” What is stopping me from setting a trap for the MOSCITO players? Back to BBO’s deal generator, this interesting hand was dealt: West has a 7-card ♦ suit and openers ♠ suit covered from every conceivable angle. Out comes the 2♦ bid from West over Souths 1♥ bid, alerted as a 2-suited hand willing to compete to level 3. Whatever North does N/S are DOOM(ed). Count how many tricks you are down. West is going to X a possible 4♠ contract for penalties (pulling 4♠ to 4NT would show a hand looking to sacrifice). East sitting with a singleton ♠ may be the only person who knows what is going on. [hv=pc=n&s=skj97ha92d54ckj86&w=saqt2hdkqt9862c52&n=s8653hqj754da3cqt&e=s4hkt863dj7ca9743&d=s&v=0&b=11&a=1h(4+%20Spades)2d(2-suited%20hand)]399|300[/hv]

What has happened to all the other MOSCITO posters? I found 49 MOSCITO threads in the Forums. Or are you fearful of seeing your gains from jamming the auction vaporise? I think I will retain the acronym DOOM for my suggested defence, but now standing for this “Deadly Overcall Obliterating MOSCITO.” :P

Quote: In theory, you can adopted [sic] competitive methods designed to deter us from bidding 2M (this one is pretty hard) This is exactly what I’m trying to address; developing a more “in-your-face” defence transferring the pressure back onto the MOSCITO pair. My 2♥ and 2♠ bids showing a 5/4 or 5/5 hand plus values, not only tells my partner my hand pattern, it also enables an easy cross-ruff situation when partner has a fit with the 5-card suit and an appropriate hand. More often partner will be declarer. Partner’s RHO will most likely also be short in the suit opened. Any ruff can be over-ruffed. Quote: “Your original defence...” The original defence has already been canned (although some of the ideas were borrowed on and reinvented), so going there gains nothing. If a more aggressive “in-your-face” defence to MOSCITO is developed which sees more and more of your gains from jamming the auction whittled away, I’m pretty confident that you will dump MOSCITO altogether.

Seems like you never read my full post. Quote: So I set up BBO’s deal generator again with the constraints already mentioned. On the third deal the hand below came up which typically falls into the above definition. Before considering what North may actually bid on the hand, partner is expected to reply similar to any t/o X – 1. Any non-jump bid showing 0-8 HCP 2. A jump bid showing 9-11 HCP 3. 1NT showing 6-10 HCP 4. A cue-bid of the oppositions suit as game forcing 5. etc East would therefore respond 1♠ to the t/o X (0-8 HCP). Now West will show the single suited hand in ♣. [hv=pc=n&s=sat2hkqt52da943c9&w=sq4ha7d86caqjt765&n=sj853hj8dkjt2c842&e=sk976h9643dq75ck3&d=s&v=0&b=11&a=1d(4+%20Hearts)d(3%20suit%20or%201%20suit%20t/o%20X)p1s(0-8%20HCP)2h3cppp]399|300[/hv] The t/o X in my scheme allows more hand types. I'm just waiting for Glen and some other posters to get involved here as well and before long MOSCITO's gain when the auction can be jammed will be eaten away.

Using BBOs deal generator with South as the dealer and the following constraints – Hand Type 1: 4+ ♥, minor suits = 0-5 cards, 9-14 HCP Hand Type 2: 4+ ♠, minor suits = 0-5 cards, 9-14 HCP (No constraints were placed on the other 3 hands) I then started dealing random hands to see what was spat out. This is the defence to MOSCITO I came up with based on the hands that were dealt: Over a 1♥ opening (unbalanced = 9-14 HCP, balanced = 11-12 HCP, 4+ ♠) • X = 3-suited takeout of ♠, or single suited hand with values not fitting in anywhere else • 1♠ = 4+♠/5+♥, 0-10 HCP, frequency = 2.06% • 1NT = balanced, 15-18 HCP, frequency = 6.91% • 2♣ = artificial, any balanced/semi-balanced hand, 11-14 HCP, frequency = 14.07% • 2♦ = any 2-suited hand that can compete to the 3-level, the lower the HCP count then the more extreme the distribution, a 5+ card ♠ suit possible as 1 of the 2 suits, 0-31 HCP, frequency = 5.64% • 2♥ = 4+♠/5+♥, 11-31 HCP (rule of 20), frequency = 1.61% • 2♠ = 5+♠/5+♥, 10-31 HCP (rule of 20), frequency = 0.50% • 2NT = 5/5 minors, 11-31 HCP, frequency = 0.41% • 3♣ etc are all normal pre-empts, 7-card suit etc depending on level of preempt Over a 1♦ opening (unbalanced = 9-14 HCP, balanced = 13-14 HCP, 4+ ♥) • X = 3-suited takeout of ♥, or single suited hand with values not fitting in anywhere else • 1♥ = 5+♠/4+♥, 0-10 HCP, frequency = 2.06% • 1♠ = Natural, 5+ card suit, 9-14 HCP, frequency = 8.63% • 1NT = balanced, 15-18 HCP, frequency = 6.91% • 2♣ = artificial, any balanced/semi-balanced hand, 11-14 HCP, frequency = 14.07% • 2♦ = any 2-suited hand that can compete to the 3-level, the lower the HCP count then the more extreme the distribution, a 5+ card ♥ suit possible as 1 of the 2 suits, 0-31 HCP, frequency = 5.64% • 2♥ = 4+♥/5+♠, 11-31 HCP (rule of 20), frequency = 1.61% • 2♠ = 5+♠/5+♥, 10-31 HCP (rule of 20), frequency = 0.50% • 2NT = 5/5 minors, 11-31 HCP, frequency = 0.41% • 3♣ etc are all normal pre-empts, 7-card suit etc depending on level of preempt Here are some example hands and auctions which were dealt: 3-Suited Takeout [hv=pc=n&s=sqt87hk72d42ca985&w=s3haj94dk873cq762&n=s652hqdaqjt96ckt4&e=sakj94ht8653d5cj3&d=s&v=0&b=11&a=1h(4+%20Spades)d(3-suited%20t/o)3d(Constructive%20preemp)3h(To%20play)p]399|300[/hv] 4♠-5♥ 0-10 HCP [hv=pc=n&s=sa974h5dkj53cqjt3&w=sqt32ht9762dq9ck8&n=s6hkq4d87642ca542&e=skj85haj83datc976&d=s&v=0&b=11&a=1h(4+%20Spades)1s(4XS-5XH%200-10%20HCP)]399|300[/hv] Without being able to see all four hands, what does North do now? 5♠ 9-14 HCP (equivalent to MOSCITO's opening requirements) [hv=pc=n&s=s98haqt972dj9cat2&w=sq7632hk8da764ck4&n=skjthj654d852c976&e=sa54h3dkqt3cqj853&d=s&v=0&b=11&a=1d(4+%20Hearts)1s(Natural%2C%205-card%20suit)3h(Constructive%20preemp)3s(To%20play)]399|300[/hv] Balanced / Semi-balanced, 11-14 HCP [hv=pc=n&s=sq4haj953dk62c765&w=sat83hq8dqjt9ckq8&n=sk75hkt4da53cjt93&e=sj962h762d874ca42&d=s&v=0&b=11&a=1d(4+%20Hearts)2c(Balanced%2011-14%20HCP)2h(To%20play)2s(To%20play)]399|300[/hv] South can bid on to 3♥ on a known 8-card fit. 3♥ fails by 1. Any 2-Suited Hand [hv=pc=n&s=skq864h872dakq2ct&w=s7hakq93dj8cqj965&n=sj932ht5d7643ca84&e=sat5hj64dt95ck732&d=s&v=0&b=11&a=1h(4+%20Spades)2d(Any%202-suiter)3s(Constructive%20preemp)p4s4n(Looking%20for%20sacrifice)d5cdppp]399|300[/hv] 5♣X fails by 1, where 4♠ makes 5♠-4♥ 11+ HCP (Rule of 20) [hv=pc=n&s=s9764hak52dt4ck73&w=sakjt3hqt64dk83ct&n=sq5h873dqj92cj964&e=s82hj9da765caq852&d=s&v=0&b=11&a=1d(4+%20Hearts)2h(4H-5S%2011+%20HCP)d]399|300[/hv] Seeing all four hands, on the lie of the cards 3NT and 4S both make if East drops the ♠Q. The most likely contract will be 3NT. 5♠-5♥ 10+ HCP (Rule of 20) [hv=pc=n&s=skj974h65dk4ck832&w=sat865hak732dt9c9&n=shqj4daq852cqt764&e=sq32ht98dj763caj5&d=s&v=0&b=11&a=1h(4+%20Spades)2s(5XS-5XH%2010+%20HCP)3d3sppp]399|300[/hv] These were some example hands and auctions which came up. For sure this bidding style has its downsides as well, most notably when the opponents have a fit and the balance of the HCP. It then becomes easy to pick off the overcaller. But that is bridge; you win some and you lose some. This defence is an attempt to "get-in-the-face" of MOSCITO players intent on jamming the auction. This poster is requesting those who regularly play against MOSCITO to give this defence a shot and then come and post some of the hands in this thread. Not only your gains, but your losses as well. Together we can try and develop a more “in-your-face” defence. Thanking you in advance.

This defense of yours doesn’t place enough pressure on your side jamming the bidding, especially when the opener is showing ♠, QUOTE: “Direct raises are powerful preemptive weapons designed to jam the opponent's constructive auctions.” If the ACBL (or any other committee) asked me to submit a suggested defence to MOSCITO, I would have done the same. Submit a defence which on face value is both, credible and workable, yet will not hamper my side from jamming the auction. Having another look at the system notes, it is quite possible for your side to jam the auction in 3♠ on a combined 15 HCP count, 9 HCP with opener and 6 HCP with responder (or sacrifice if necessary at favourable vulnerability). These are some extracts from the system notes: Light /Limited Openings: The MOSCITO opening structure was designed to support a highly aggressive "quick-in / quick-out" auction style. There is a significant advantage to being able to place the partnership in an acceptable contract as quickly as possible. This bidding style consistently forces the opponents to guess whether or not to balance at the three-level. Furthermore, if the opponents are unable to exchange information during the bidding, they will often be poorly positioned when defending hands. MOSCITO achieves this design goal by using a descriptive and constructive opening structure that often allows responder to place the final contract with his first bid. • The range of MOSCITO’s opening bids is limited to approximately 6 High Card Points. Tightly defining opener’s strength allows responder to apply judgment more accurately. • The minimum strength of MOSCITO’s constructive opening bids is extremely aggressive. MOSCITO believes that our limited opening bids are powerful constructive tools. The system is designed to maximize the frequency of these openings without “overloading” the strong club opening. MOSCITO’s “constructive” opening bids typically promise approximately 9-14 HCPs. Major’s First Openings: MOSCITO uses a Major’s First bidding style. Opener is expected to show a four card major in preference to a longer minor. MOSCITO advocates a Major’s First style for several reasons: 1. The Major’s First bidding style facilitates quick and non-descriptive auctions to major suit contracts 2. Major’s First bidding is more preemptive and often prevents opponents from making “cheap” 1 level overcalls 3. Major’s First bidding improves system accuracy during competitive bidding sequences MOSCITO’s designers believe a pressure bidding style yields enough positive results to outweigh the occasional disaster. Playing MOSCITO, you should expect to open: 1. Most unbalanced hands with 9+ HCP 2. Some unbalanced hands with 8 counts 3. Most balanced hands with 11+ HCP 4. With a 4333 hand pattern with a 4-card major, opener MUST open 1NT 5. Holding 4 Spades and a balanced hand: ...(a)Open 1NT with 13 – 14 HCP ...(b)Open 1♥ with 11 - 12 HCP 6. Holding Hearts, competitive bidding becomes a much more important consideration. Here, we face a very real danger that the opponents can outbid us at the two level in a Spade contract. Therefore holding 4 Hearts and a balanced hand (4333 or 4432 or 4423): ...(a)Open 1NT with 11 – 12 HCP ...(b)Open 1♦ with 13 – 14 HCP Direct raises are powerful preemptive weapons designed to jam the opponent's constructive auctions. Our raise structure advocates that responder raise a 1♥ opening to 2♠ holding three-card trump support. Responder’s single raise is a constructive bid promising approximate 6 – 10 HCPs. If responder holds a weaker hand he is expected to pass the transfer opening bid. Responder's 3♠ raise promises four+ card trump support. Don’t count me out yet Boet. I have every intention of looking for something which transfers a lot of the pressure back onto the MOSCITO players, something with a higher frequency of occurrence than DOOM. Watch this space for the next installment.

Suggested defences from others: 1. X = Takeout of the suit shown [this doesn’t stop the opponents playing in a 4-3 fit on level 2] 2. X = Shows the suit actually bid [same as 1] 3. Bid of shown suit = Natural [same as 1] 4. Bid of suit shown = 3-suited takeout [same as 1] 5. Bid of suit shown = 4-cards in the other major + longer minor (Raptor) [this has more potential] 6. Bid of suit shown = Michaels [interesting concept which could possibly be expanded upon e.g. 1 of suit shown = the other major and the higher ranking unbid suit. 2 of suit shown = other major and the lower ranking unbid suit] 7. 2 of shown suit = Michaels [standard for many systems] 8. 2 of shown suit = Natural, 6-card suit 9. Other bids = Natural Other Quotes: 1. IMO it's important to have a natural overcall of their suit when it could be 4 cards, particularly if it can be canapé. [someone else agreed with this: Agree 100% - just play that a direct overcall in their suit at the one level is natural and everything else as if they opened the suit they showed. Simple and close to optimal IMO.] 2. If they play transfers against you, it is important to put the extra space to good use one way or another. Now let’s look at your gripes: 1. With the exception of your 1NT overcall (which requires a double stop in the opponent's 4 card suit) you have no way to show a balanced hand with values (OK, so remove the double stop! Most 2/1 or SAYC players bid 1NT as natural and 15-18 HCP over 1-level openings. I don’t see any need to change this). 2. You have no option to show a classic takeout double shape (4441, 5440, 5431 with shortness in the opponent's suit) (I use 2NT to show either, a) a 3-suited takeout with values, shortness in the suit opened, or b) a good 6+ card suit of my own with values. Without a hand prepared to compete to level-3, little is gained (see point 3 below). 3. You can't show a diamond suit below the three level (I have no desire to do this as it does not “get-in-face” of the MOSCITO players who typically have auctions which proceed like this: 1♥ (showing ♠, 9-14 HCP)-2♠. Responder's single raise shows three card spade support and ~8-9 losers. Additionally opener could easily be holding a canapé styled hand and now I fall into the trap of bidding openers minor on level 2. The situation has been reversed. As declarer now I’m dead). Some info on MOSCITO’s minor suit openings: 2♣ = Natural, 6+ ♣, 9-14 HCP 2NT = Bad 3-level preempt in either minor. By bad I’m assuming 5-10 HCP and probably a 7-card suit. Since you are advocating “assumed fit” with your 2♦/2♥/2♠ bids and 4-10 HCP, your 3-level constructive bids could easily be made on a 5-card suit and 11-14 HCP (see 2♣ above and 3♣/3♦ below). 3♣/3♦ = Natural and constructive, 2 of the top 3 honours. Here I am assuming 11-14 HCP (15 would be opened 1♣) and a maximum of 3-cards in either major. 4. The entire structure, start to finish, is one of the worst conceived pieces of crap that I have ever seen. (Then why have you gone to so much trouble to shoot it down? If it doesn’t interfere with YOUR MOSCITO system, you can just ignore it and play your regular system unhindered.) 5. Major’s First bidding is more preemptive and often prevents opponents from making “cheap” 1 level overcalls. 6. How, pray tell, are you disrupting anything? (I don’t want MOSCITO to steal a major suit part score or game form my side. So if I don’t have anything to say, then I don’t say anything). 7. As far as I can tell, you're spending an awful lot of time passing...(Showing minor suits below the 3-level achieves little [see 2 & 3 above]. The opponents can still play in a 4-3 major suit fit and they have more info on the hand layout which will assist them. When the auction proceeds 1x-P-2y-? partner still has a bid. Both opponents have shown limited values. Partners hand strength/distribution will determine whether or not to enter the auction. Without a suitable hand, then hooray! Plus 1 for MOSCITO). 8. You're passing with balanced hands with values, you're passing with unbalanced hands with shortness, you're passing with any hand with diamonds...(Now this is an idea that needs some further consideration – a possible trap pass with a hand containing values that doesn’t conveniently fit in anywhere else. When both opener and responder have shown limited hands, partner should be able to work out what is going on and make some sort of balancing bid. Granted, entering the auction after 1♥-P-2♠-? will be tough. So you will possibly gain here).

MOSCITO is an acronym for Major Oriented Strong Club - In Trouble Often In its current incarnation, MOSCITO is defined by: 1. A strong club opening 2. Light and limited constructive opening bids 3. A Majors First opening style 4. Frequent use of relays with strong hands 5. Transfer openings Light /Limited Openings: The MOSCITO opening structure was designed to support a highly aggressive "quick-in / quick-out" auction style. MOSCITOs constructive opening bids typically promise approximately 9-14 HCPs Majors First Openings: MOSCITO uses a Majors First bidding style. Opener is expected to show a four card major in preference to a longer minor. MOSCITO advocates a Majors First style for several reasons: 1. The Majors First bidding style facilitates quick and non-descriptive auctions to major suit contracts 2. Majors First bidding is more preemptive and often prevents opponents from making cheap 1 level overcalls 3. Majors First bidding improves system accuracy during competitive bidding sequences With Majors First Openings in MOSCITO, the DOOM(ed) defense was designed to upset the Light/Limited Openings at the earliest option.

I like the DOOM defence, an acronym for Deadly Overcall Obliterating Majors. Playing DOOM, then – 1. X = 5/4 in the majors, 5-cards in the suit shown by the opponents and a full opening hand (12+ HCP). 2. Bidding the major suit shown = 5/5 in the majors and a full opening hand (12+ HCP). 3. 1NT = Natural, 15-17 HCP with a double stop in the suit shown. 4. Irrespective of the major suit shown, 2♦ = 6-cards in the other major, 10 – 13 HCP (sort of Multi style) 5. 2 of the major shown = Michaels 6. 2 of the other major = natural and pre-emptive, 6-card suit and 5 – 9 HCP DOOM has all sorts of continuations including – 1. Dealing with misfits (overcaller has majors, responder has minors) 2. Playing in NT contracts 3. Playing in the major suit shown by the opponents (finessing the suit for any missing cards becomes a no-brainer). This could be a part score battle on the 2-level, playing in a 5-2 fit and responder has a minor suit orientated hand, or, in game with a 5-3 fit and the hands dovetailing well or responder with enough tricks in the minor suits to land the contract.

I can think of one possible situation where the Sandwich NT might still prove to be effective, and that is in a “Trap Pass” situation. The minor suit opened could easily be the real suit of the player sitting in second seat. With a hand not suitable for any other bid, a trap pass may be the best option available. When partner comes alive with a Sandwich NT bid in fourth seat, the hand in second seat with a fit in one of the two suits shown rapidly increases in value. The suit opened is well covered (similar to the situation described in the OP).

Just out of curiosity, does anyone know the age (and names) of the youngest players to become pros? Someone (anyone) who was considered good enough to become part of a sponsor’s team. My guess is that some of these talented youngsters got to play in some bigger national tournaments before they were really well known by the wider bridge playing community. When they started doing well there against the bigger names, others started taking more notice of who they were. Something I’ve seen a few times in my own country is this – A reasonably talented player wants to participate in a national red point event. Obviously everyone wants to do well. So they ask another very good player (not necessarily their regular partners) to partner them in the tournament. The other player agrees to play on condition that his/her tournament entry fees and accommodation is paid for. So is this the first step to becoming a pro?

I have modified the OP for further discussion.

OK, I deleted the hand to discuss whether this is a good convention or not.

Forget the actual hand. Discuss the convention. Do you believe that the Sandwich NT is a good convention or not? If you believe it to be a good convention then tell me why you think so. If you want to employ it, then why not be more aggressive at favourable vulnerability e.g. 1. 1♦-P-1♥-2NT (Equivalent of the Unusual 2NT and showing maybe 9-11 HCP. Not only does it take up more bidding room, but you may also get lucky and opener passes with a minimum or only 3-card ♥ support). 2. 1♦-P-1♥-3♥ (Showing either extreme distribution in the unbid suits e.g. 6-6 or a powerful 2-suiter interested in game in one of the unbid suits. I just see the 1NT bid as whimpish giving away unnecessary information to the opponents as partner is already a passed hand.