minors, positions, balanced hand

[gwnn]

You play a standard 2/1 system with a 15-17 1NT and relevant conventions. It is imps but please specify if pairs would change your treatment.

 

KJT

AKx

JT

AJ87x

 

Depending on position, what would you do with this hand?

 

also is it close? :D

[aguahombre]

thinking is over rated. 1NT always, and no it isn't close. I will save my alleged judgement, if there is any, for some other hand.

[jdonn]

Some will upgrade any 17 with a 5 card suit but I disagree. There are some upgradable features in this hand but my main concern is having a good suit and this one is quite lousy. Additionally a jack is doubleton. I also bid game aggressively after 2NT rebids and don't feel like I want to be in 3NT with this opposite a random 6 count. So 1NT it is.

 

I want to mention I found this a bit close. Having both jacks with the ten of the suit is very big. It's quite unfair to suggest thinking is an overbid on this.

[Lobowolf]

1NT, not particularly close for me, but closer than "automatic." I'd probably do a doubletake. If 10 is a different bid/plan, and 9.9999 is as close as you can get, and 1 is an automatic no-brainer, then it's maybe a 2.5 for me.

[ArtK78]

1NT always is my choice. I can see an argument being made for opening 1♣ at IMPs - not so much because you want to upgrade this hand to more than a 17 count, but so that it will be easier to get to 5♣ or 6♣ when it is right.

[kenrexford]

1♣...2NT for me.

 

17 HCP for start.

 

Good 5-card club suit, tends toward +1.

 

Two 10's, one working. Tends toward +1.

 

6 controls (A=2, K=1). 6 times 3.33 = 20. 20-17=3. 3>2 but 3>6, so +1.

 

So, three different reasons to add +1.

 

Against all of this, I am supposed to downgrade a single Jx? Not for me.

 

Now, I aggressively open 14-count 1NT openings, and 1♣bopenings when balanced could be much lighter, so this affects my assessment. But, this is not close for me.

[jdonn]

Good 5 card suit?

[Ant590]

I would upgrade in all seats, but guess I need to seriously reconsider these things!

[nigel_k]

1♣ and agree with Ken's reasons. I'd say both tens add value because jacks combined with tens are much better than on their own. Obviously the five card suit could be more robust, but it's enough combined with the other plusses to merit an upgrade. I don't see any reason to adjust this based on position.

 

At matchpoints I would open 1NT because it's close enough that I don't want to go against the field.

[P_Marlowe]

1NT, always.

 

The 2nd choice is Pass.

 

With kind regards

Marlowe

[kenrexford]

Good 5 card suit?

Yes. Two honors at the top, and great body. I didn't say "great."

 

AJ87x -- the 8 and 7 and quite useful. Give partner a doubleton with two cards 9 and higher. Like, 10-9, Q-9, Q-10. I like that.

 

Not a bad suit.

[jdonn]

Ah all you need is partner to have two honors in his doubleton. I was worried you were hoping for something very optimistic. :)

[655321]

This is close for me.

 

If it was a question of upgrading this hand into a 1NT opening I would do it for sure. Opening 1NT is a good thing, I would upgrade more hands into a 1NT opening than out of 1NT.

 

Perhaps 1♣, but 1NT seems OK too.

[cherdanno]

I would upgrade for sure.

[mikeh]

This is very, very close for me. I am a frequent upgrader of 14 into 15 and 17 into 18 and so on, and this has a lot going for it. It has a reasonable suit, but not quite good enough to make the choice automatic: AJ10xx is far better, and even AJ9xx is significantly better.

 

It has 6 controls, which is almost the most you can jam into a 1N opener, and controls are under-valued in the 4321 count method.

 

It has some 10's.... and 10's are ignored in the 4321 method.

 

OTOH, it has J10 tight in a suit...this means that this particular 10 may be less valuable than most. It also means that opening 1♣ will make a 2N rebid a major distortion should partner respond in spades or diamonds. This, to me, is a huge factor.

 

And it has jacks rather than Queens...Queens are overrated in the 4321 scale, but I'd rather not hold 3 Jacks.... I downvalue for that almost as much as I upgrade for those delicious controls.

 

So, on balance, I open 1n in all seats, all scoring.

 

As for stretching red at imps...no need...in my partnerships, it is responder who stretches in response to a strong NT in those circumstances....unless we are meckwellian, and I am not, it rarely pays for both players to stretch.

[Jlall]

I would upgrade for sure, don't find it to be that close.

[andy_h]

Close, but 1NT for me.

[gwnn]

nobody opens 1♦? :) i only included that option because somebody I talked to would open 1♦ in 3rd/4th seats

[andy_h]

That person must know how to lose imps pretty well.

[Phil]

Can't argue too much about the comments so far about how this hand should be evaluated.

 

I don't have any strong feelings about 1N and 1♣. At MPs I would probably open 1N and at IMPs, I definitely would open 1♣.

 

Even at MPs, there's a lot to be said for opening 1♣, which doesn't have to do with the strength of the hand. We might get a 1♦ overcall with maybe a raise which can warn us off 3N, especially if pard doesn't have a club fit. We might find a nice 4-3 fit that we will probably won't find (barring some garbage stayman auctions).

 

1N simplifies auctions, and I always feel better upgrading into 1N than upgrading out of it. So with a weaker (or tired) partner, I would open 1N.

 

What's with the genius option of 1♦? :rolleyes:

[mikegill]

At pairs, I would definitely open 1N, not so much because of the value (I think it's on the border), but I think the 2 3-card majors argue strongly for opening 1N, since you will get to your 5-3 fits. Bidding 1♣ -> 2N will get you to 2N a lot when you belong in 1N or 2M.

 

At IMPs it's a closer decision, but I think I would probably still 1N. But the style I favor involves inviting light at IMPs and accepting heavy, so maybe that's a factor. Agree that upgrading into 1N is more frequent than upgrading out.

[the hog]

1NT Unless I play a 14-16 range.

[aguahombre]

1NT Unless I play a 14-16 range.

yep..all this upgrading in the blind before an auction occurs gives me a headache.

[Winstonm]

There is no crime in holding the top end of your range when you open 1N.

[kenrexford]

There is no crime in holding the top end of your range when you open 1N.

Well, actually there might be a crime in holding a hand outside of your range, or in having a range that is too large.

 

A stated range of "15-17 HCP" is a very poor statement of range, IMO. There is a wild difference between QJxx-QJ-QJxx-AQx and Ax-A109-AJ109x-A10x. By my personal evaluation, including both of these in the same range makes little sense.

 

whether you drop the first off, move the second up, or both is a decision as to how bid "15-17" really is meant to be.