UI?

[blackshoe]

Yes, they all would have bid 2NT, or at least didn't comment on that. You did notice that I swapped the majors to make the 2NT bid normal?

 

We don't have any indication that the methods are unusual, despite two followups from the original poster. We do know that the person holding the hand that bid 2NT wanted to show a weak hand. Hence the adjustment to my poll.

 

Are you asking if I can find 'peers' of the bidder, by which you mean 'people who want to sign off over a takeout double of 2H and remember a Lebensohl 2NT is a weaker way to get to the three level but forget that spades outrank hearts'? Not easily, and neither can you. So you do the next best thing. I have provided some results of asking others where they would pass on the actual auction (despite thinking the bidding was bizarre) and other results on a largely equivalent auction where a majority would pass 3NT. If you don't think that's valid evidence, I'm curious to see what you do think is valid.

 

I'm just trying to make sure we're making the right ruling for the right reasons.

[Hi_Lali]

The 3NT bidder forgot the Lebensohl convention and thought her partner had a H stopper with points inviting 3NT so she bid 3NT. It was suggested to me that opposite a strong NT hand that bypassed the 2NT, there are some who would be more inclined to bid 4S. My question then is if your partner opened 2NT showing a strong 20-21 flat hand, would you still say you would transfer to S and then bid on to 4S unilaterally with only a 5cd suit? The scoring is mp's and your partner is favored to have the AS so I would be more inclined to pass feeling that there were at least 4 probably 5 tricks in NT which scores better and 3NT partner said she has good stoppers in the preempt suit.

[WellSpyder]

My question then is if your partner opened 2NT showing a strong 20-21 flat hand, would you still say you would transfer to S and then bid on to 4S unilaterally with only a 5cd suit?

If that is the question, my answer is definitely no. But there is a big difference. Over a 2N opening I will be able to show my suit straight away via a transfer, and if partner bids 3N rather than accepting he transfer he is denying spade support. In the Lebensohl case, I haven't shown straight away which suit I've got, and partner can't be denying support for all 4 suits! (Some might play 3N after opening 2N the other way round, as some sort of super-accept with spade support, but either way you have a lot more to go on in knowing whether to bid 4S or not than in the Lebensohl case.)