Winstonm, on 2021-June-14, 11:36, said:
I can’t speak for others but from my experiences a true 4-card major devotee will open 1H holding xx, AJxx, KQxxx, Ax so the issue becomes how to take preference when responder is weak and 2-2 in opener’s suits.
The issue 4-card majors solved is always having as opener a rebid. More often than not a major opener holds 5 even playing 4-card majors. Bergen can be used as long as you realize the occasional 4-4 fit won’t be LOTT protected
hrothgar, on 2021-June-14, 11:47, said:
I prefer to play 4 card majors (and do so with a major's first opening style so we open with a 4CM lots of the time
We happily raise to the 3 level with 4 pieces.
It works out fine.
4-4 fits play really well and, if we're higher than the LAWS suggests, well its not like the opponent's know whether we're in an eight card fit or a 9+ card fit.
Thanks. So there seems to be no reason we shouldn't continue with 1M:3M preemptive, and Bergen style raises. Opener can put the breaks on with a 4-4, as opposed to a 5-4 fit.
"And no matter what methods you play, it is essential, for anyone aspiring to learn to be a good player, to learn the importance of bidding shape properly." MikeH
(still learning)
"At last: just calm down, this kind of disrupted boards happens every day in our bridge community. It will always be an inherent part of bridge until we move to a modern platform, and then will we have other hopefully less frequent issues." P Swennson