Any way to prevent this from happening?

[barmar]

I have nearly given up trying to guess what most people do.

You must have a really hard time when you use the partnership desk. Or do you only play with your regular partner?

[aguahombre]

You must have a really hard time when you use the partnership desk. Or do you only play with your regular partner?

Never used one. If I did, I wouldn't try to guess what most people do..just what that person would do. There are ways of doing that without taking a poll of the entire world of Bridge and taking into account all players' levels of experience and competence, rather just that one's.

[Vampyr]

I have nearly given up trying to guess what most people do.

 

1C-1S

2C...I will stick my neck out and suggest pass is non-forcing and 2S is non-forcing for most people (Although the 2S rebid actually has a G.F. contingent). We happen to choose 2D as the forcing alertable noise similar to NMF, but 2H natural and passable.

 

Yes, if you play 2♦ artificial then you can play new suits as NF. But since that is not a majority treatment, a sizeable portion (a large majority IMO) of people who don't have this available will play all new suits as forcing.

[Bbradley62]

That's my understanding as well. The other way to read it is that the new minor is the ONLY forcing rebid by responder. So better names might have been "New Minor Artificial" or "Only New Minor Forcing". But it's too late, the name we have is what everyone knows these days (just as "Unusual 2NT" is not very unusual).

Funny... I just came across this in a 1982 NYTimes column by Alan Truscott:

Playing North was Esta Van Zandt of Houston, who recently captured the National Mixed Pairs title. She had a difficult bid on the second round, and employed a device usually referred to, rather ambiguously, as "fourth-suit forcing." Since everyone plays such a bid as forcing, a better name would be "fourth-suit artificial."

[gwnn]

YOU might play this as forcing. MOST people don't. 3 cards? Never!

OK I know that 2001 BWS is kind of outdated but at least I don't use that many caps (added emphasis+changed © to c) ).

After a one-level suit response and opener’s simple same-suit rebid:

 

a) a third-suit bid that is a reverse or a three-level bid is forcing to game;

 

b) a third-suit non-reverse at the two level is forcing for one round, and responder may pass if opener bids two of responder’s first suit or three of opener’s suit;

 

c) a non-reverse jump to three of a third suit is natural (five-five or more) and game-forcing (to invite with the same shape, responder bids two and then three of the third suit);

 

d) a bid one level above a game-forcing third-suit bid is a splinter.