1NT with a 5-Card Major?

1NT with a 5-Card Major?

Is it ever a good idea to open 1NT with a 5-card major? Some players avoid this like the plague, fearing that they will miss the 5-3 major fit. They have a point, and it could well happen. But, that 5-3 fit is sometimes overrated, often No Trump plays just as well (while scoring 10 points better). And opening 1NT with this type of hand heads off potential problems with a hand such as this:

♠ AKJ52

♥ T8

♦ K84

♣ AJT

If you open 1♠, Partner responds 1NT, you rebid 2♣ for want of better, Partner bids 2♠, and it is your call. With your (rotten) luck, if you Pass, this will be the layout:

♠ AKJ52 ♠ T4

♥ T8 ♥ KQ73

♦ K84 ♦ AT962

♣ AJT ♣ 53

Rats! Why aren’t we in 3NT? Astonishingly, we later pick up the same hand. Learning from our previous misfortune, we now bid 2NT over 2♠, and find Partner with:

♠ AKJ52 ♠ Q76

♥ T8 ♥ Q73

♦ K84 ♦ Q763

♣ AJT ♣ 962

Now, we have just got too high! The point is pretty simple … if we don’t open those 15-17 hands with 1NT we will sometimes be left with a complete guess on our rebid. Here, is another example:

♠ AKQ62

♥ QT7

♦ AJ5

♣ T7

Wow! What a terrific Spade suit! Who would ever want to open this hand 1NT? OK, go ahead, open this 1♠, and see what happens. Partner bids a Forcing 1NT, you rebid 2♦, and this time Partner is the one with the problem:

♠ AKQ62 ♠ 95

♥ QT7 ♥ AKJ82

♦ AJ5 ♦ QT9

♣ T7 ♣ J63

Partner will probably bid 2NT here, which will get you to 3NT, perhaps down on a Club lead. Of course, 3♥ here works better, but that is hard to find with only a 5-card suit. The auction would be so much easier after a 1NT opening.

We won’t beat this one to death. Suffice it to say that you can get into some awkward auctions if you choose not to open 1NT when you have the right point count, a 5-card major, and one of those 5-3-3-2 type of hands.

Finding the 5-3 Fit

Suppose that we decide to open 1NT with just about all of those 15-17 HCP, 5-3-3-2 hands. How do we find our 5-3 major fits (where it is the Opener with the 5)? Let’s look at the main cases:

(a) If Responder is weak we may end up playing in 1NT, which will not always be bad … and if the opponents get into the auction, there is no rule against the 1NT opener competing at the 2-level in his 5-card major;

(b) If Responder is invitational, he may well use Stayman, followed by 2NT; now, if Opener has a 5-card major, he can certainly rebid it at the 3-level on the way to the right game;

(c) If Responder is game-going, there is a potential problem … well, not really, we have a useful gadget for you! Read on!

Puppet Stayman

How do you play 1NT 3♣? There are a multitude of uses for this sequence, many of them quite exotic. If you haven’t actually had this sequence come up in the last few months, then please consider using it for Puppet Stayman. This convention is especially designed to uncover the No Trumper’s 5-card major as well as a 4-card major. Yes, many tournament players use regular Stayman opposite 1NT openings, and Puppet Stayman opposite 2NT openings. What we are suggesting, opposite 1NT openings is regular Stayman (2♣), and Puppet Stayman (3♣). We discuss Puppet Stayman elsewhere, but if you are familiar with the basics you’ll recognize its benefits from these three auctions:

♠ AKJ52 ♠ Q76

♥ T8 ♥ 97

♦ K84 ♦ AQ76

♣ AJT ♣ K854

After the 1NT opening, Responder has game values. His best bet is to bid 3♣, Puppet Stayman. Now Opener bids 3♠ (showing a 5-card suit), and the partnership zips into 4♠.

♠ AKJ52 ♠ Q743

♥ T8 ♥ J7

♦ K84 ♦ AQ76

♣ AJT ♣ Q96

Here, after 1NT, Responder doesn’t care too much whether Partner’s major (if he has one) is 4- or 5-cards long, so he trots out the traditional 2♣ Stayman.

♠ AKJ52 ♠ Q76

♥ T8 ♥ KJ73

♦ K84 ♦ 97

♣ AJT ♣ K642

And, in this example, Responder has an interest in finding Partner with either a 3-card Spade suit or a 4-card Heart suit. So, it’s another job for 3♣, Puppet Stayman.