Bidding over opponent’s 1NT response

When the opponents start the auction 1D – 1NT, in Standard American auctions it is pretty much a given that the 1NT bidder will have a club suit. This observation leads to a couple of neat overcalling possibilities.

First, consider how you are placed when in the “sandwich” position, after (1D) – pass – (1NT) - ?
The BobbyBridge page about Multi-Landy observes that it works here. Since we won’t want to make a simple minor-suit overcall in this position, we can play that 2C shows both majors and 2D shows a weakish overcall in an unspecified major. That lets us specify that the 2H and 2S overcalls are full-value – opening bid strength – so we can intervene relatively cleanly in either (or both) major.

Second, consider where you stand in the re-opening position, after
(1D) – pass – (1NT) – pass; (pass) - ?
On Eddie Kantar’s website, he notes that a re-opening 2D here should be natural, because you may have been silenced by the opening bid (which might only be a 3-card suit). However, it is still true that you won’t want to reopen in clubs with a known suit behind you. So we can (again) use 2C as showing both majors, in this case not strong and possibly only 4-4.

Third, Kantar also remarks on
(1C) – pass – (1NT) – pass; (pass) - ?
He notes that a re-opening 2C here should be natural, because you may have been silenced by the opening bid (which might only be a 3-card suit). However, it is also true that a natural re-opening 2D bid is very unlikely, since any such hand would almost certainly have overcalled 1D in the first place. So we can use 2D, this time, as showing both majors, again in this case not strong and possibly only 4-4.

These may seem like little things to clutter-up your memory, possibly causing more trouble than they are worth. That remains to be seen. Being able to fight for part-scores at the two-level is important at any form of scoring. Allowing the opponents to settle in 1NT too easily is faulty strategy.