TrampledUF

Interesting, everyone. Thanks!

Ok, so that's 0.25% of hands where someone has a 1H opener and not contested? So that sounds like if I dropped the convention, then each time partner or I opens 1M, there's roughly a 1 in 200 chance we're missing out on a Jacoby path to slam.

I've played duplicate for 5 years with the Jacoby 2NT convention, I obsessively play BBO anonymous hands on my phone, but I can't recall ever seeing a slam contract reached after a Jacoby 2NT bid. Why is it so rare? What is your experience?

What do you mean by #1 and #2? They are contradictory, no?

That's a good point, 1eyedjack. You've correctly inferred that I'm wary of the idea of opening 1NT with 5M. I've never done it, but now I'm considering it because so many good players recommend it. My issue is that modern methods place such great emphasis on finding 8 card trump fits, and yet in this one case, players are willing to miss it. I say this because in my experience, most players who open 1NT with 5M do not use Puppet Stayman or anything else to find the 5-3 fit, they are content not to find it.

In any debate about opening 1NT with a 5 card major, the "rebid problem" is mentioned -- namely, that after 1H-1S, what do you bid if you've got 15-17 points, since 1NT indicates 12-14? Here is what I never see mentioned: what if partnership simply agreed that rebid 1NT is 12 to 17? Would that be so problematic? After all, that's the range that you're showing if you bid 2 of a minor.