Direct negotiations with the hotel for an extension at the PL rate?

Yes I have heard of this happening. But it is a direct violation of the agreement the hotel has with PL. In fact if I knew a hotel doing this I would report them. And I am far from a reporting kind of guy.

Under the agreement the hotel has with PL they are in any way forbidden to have your PL bid made public even to the paying PL guest. In short they cannot even tell you what you paid PL.

This is the sort of slight of hand that honest hotels should not engage in IMO. PL is already a great system that saves many lots of money. And fills many hotel rooms that would otherwise be empty. Why try to gin the program?

Interesting on how long you can extend that PL win with an additional nights stay. I always thought it was until your trip started. Now I have learned something new.

It is in fact though not really an extension. It is a new win, at the old bid price, without having to bid, with a new PL fee added in.

It does save you from the worry of re-bidding and maybe ending up somewhere else.

EDITED: IMO its a short step from this direct negotiations to what happened to my brother when he checked in a hotel on a PL rate. Without asking the hotel said that they would give the PL rate he got plus the PL fee for any further booking he may want do do with that hotel if in the future he would book direct with them.

Borderline crooked and dishonest?

I would take out the word----borderline.