15-17 vs 14-16

[firmit]

I play 2/1 alm GF - responder rebidding suit is NF (1M-2C-2M-3C) - and 1x-1NT (5)6-11hp.

Currently we are playing a 15-17hp NT-range. But due to the 1NT response, should this be changed to 14-16hp, so opener can pass the 1NT response even with a 13 count?

 

I am afraid of the 14+11 situation - where we might miss out on 3NT. Any thoughts?

[inquiry]

I prefer 14-16 1NT range. But since I open very light frequently, I only use 14-16 in first three seats and 15-17 in 4th seat. In fact, lately I have been experimenting with 14-16 in first two seats and third seat not vul, and 15-17 in fourth seat and 3rd seat vul.

[awm]

It seems like you want to do away with the balanced invitational range.

 

In order to do this effectively, you need to have a two-point notrump range somewhere. You can do this with a 14-16 notrump opening provided you don't start opening balanced 11s (in which case you still have no problem missing game when responder has 11, but you no longer want to force game when responder has 12). This way your 1NT rebid is 12-13 and responder can force game with 12 or pass with 11 (or bid 1NT to play with 11 and GF with 12).

[cherdano]

You can just decide to upgrade most 14hcp hands with a 5-card major to 1N, so that your 1M opening is always worth 12-13 hcp if balanced. If you move to 14-16, you can upgrade good 13s to 1N and still open good looking balanced 11 counts 1M.

[Gerben42]

14 - 16 by a mile. The good parts for me are:

 

* Simplifies inv. minors

* Comes up more

* Harder to defend (too weak for opps to rule out game, too strong to dbl for penalty)

 

All this stuff about missing and bidding games is not right though. If you are afraid of 14+11, what about 13+12... Same problem, 1 point moved in some direction.

 

But... it doesn't fit well in a Polish Club system.

[kenrexford]

Respond 1NT if you want partner to pass a hand he would not upgrade to a 1NT opening.

 

Open 1nt with any 14-count that would want to play in game opposite an 11-count that is not too strong to respond 1NT.

[mikeh]

I use 14-16 in some partnerships, but the impact is not merely on the 1suit 1N rebid range, but also on the 1suit 2N rebid range, which now accommodates 17-19, unless you lower the 2N opener to 19-20 and so on.

 

There are kludges that can be used, but all such adjustments come at a cost.

 

I like 14-16 because it is more frequent than 15-17, by a significant margin, and (as with most pairs) we have pretty good methods over it.

 

But I wouldn't dream of using it to enable opener to pass after 1M 1N.

 

One reason is that we (as do many pairs) incorporate some major suit raises into our 1N response. If, for example, you start 3 card limit raises with 1N, you can't justify allowing opener to pass with 13 hcp. Not only might you miss game, but (more commonly) you will play in the wrong denomination.

 

We also use semi-constructive single raises, and some players use constructive raises: again, you can't allow opener to pass a forcing 1N if responder could have a weak 3 card raise: such hands almost always play significantly better in the 5-3 fit than in 1N, when the opps have more hcp than we do.