Roman 2 ♣ (Two Clubs)

A Roman 2 ♣ opening bid shows any 4-4-4-1 or 5-4-4-0 distribution with 11-16 HCP. Responder is expected to bid his best (longest) suit; with little preference, he bids 2 ♦. With a hand interested in playing a game (or slam) contract, responder can bid 2NT, artificial. This artificial 2NT response is on in competition.

After hearing a simple suit response, opener bids the next-highest suit if responder happened to bid his short suit. Responder is then expected to correct, if necessary, to a better fit.

After hearing a 2NT artificial response, opener bids his singleton/void suit at the three-level. Responder's rebids are natural.

Note that some partnerships use 2 ♦ instead of 2 ♣ for this hand type.