[blml] Executive Summary of changes between 1997 Laws and 2007 Laws - Part Two

[Adam Beneschan]

Alain wrote:
 
> richard.hills at immi.gov.au a écrit :
> > For example:
> >
> > WEST           EAST
> > 2NT (natural)  2C (Stayman)
> >
> > Provided the partnership agreement of 3C over 2NT is
> > also Stayman, East may correct 2C to 3C without
> > barring West from the auction.  But if 3C unluckily
> > happens to be the somewhat different Baron convention,
> > then West is barred and East has to punt their best
> > guess.
> >
> >   
> I don't understand this. The meaning of Stayman AND Baron is "please 
> describe your hand further", unless you're of the very old school who 
> would always have one major to bid 2C.
> IOW, 3C Baron doesn't teel anything about the hand that 2C Stayman does, 
> for the reson that the latter doesn't tell anything.

A couple comments off the top of my head:

(1) I don't think it's possible for an asking bid to convey no
    information at all.  Even if an asking bid doesn't tell anything
    *specific* about one's hand, it does convey the information that
    the asker has the kind of hand that believes that making that
    particular asking bid is the best way to determine the correct
    contract.  And the sets of hands for which 2C Stayman, 3C Stayman,
    or 3C Baron are the best approach are all different.

(2) Even 2C Stayman over 1NT and 3C Stayman over 2NT aren't quite the
    same convention, IMHO; over 1NT, many partnerships have to go
    through 2C to show certain kinds of hands (e.g. some hands with a
    long minor).  [Which means that 2C isn't quite the "pure" asking
    bid Alain makes it out to be.]

So technically, the "incorporates the same information" criterion of
Law 27C1 is probably never satisfied.  In fact, it's probably never
satisfied even if the intended meaning of the insufficient bid and the
meaning of the lowest legal sufficient bid in the same denomination
are boring natural bids.  Obviously, the definition of "information"
can't be very strict, and (as Eric said later) is going to be a matter
of interpretation.

                                -- Adam