34 Terry’s Two Clubs after 1NT (part 1)

In my personal system, 2C doesn’t mean what most people mean. There are two different situations involving two different meanings: 2C after opponents’ 1NT, and 2C after partner’s 1NT.  I offer them for your consideration because I have always found them valuable: feel free to reject them if you are happy with what you have.

Roche  (pronounced Rosh or Roash)

Opponents  -  1NT – you 2C. (I think this bidding has already got more possible meanings for the 2C than any other bid in the game. You probably know Landy.) My meaning is “Best suit, please, partner.”  In other words it is a take-out double offering four suits instead of the usual three, and therefore a balanced hand with the usual opening-bid strength that take-out doubles should have. In yet more other words it resembles the very opening bid it is following. Yes, the requirements for Roche are the same as the requirements to open the weak NT. (Actually 12-15 because with 16+ I would double for penalties.)

Don’t worry if this hand includes a doubleton, as 1NT openings can), it is not a perfectly efficient bid, just a very useful one. If partner replies with your doubleton suit she has probably got 5+; if not then you may sometimes go down 50 as against the 90 or more the 1NT would have made. And again, if your partner is really weak, the opener’s partner will probably come to life and make a bid. Why do I think Roche is better than Landy? Because you pick it up far more often than Landy or any of the other more accurate conventions. Using Roche, you’ll be picking up a positive score against their 1NT whilst other competitors are wondering what to do with their balanced hand. By the way, normally don’t raise partner’s response bid.