Double Trouble

5th August – Board 7: Game All. Dealer South.
North:
S K 10 7 3
H 9 8 6
D Q 9 6 2
C 9 7
West:
S A J 6
H Q 7
D A K 10
C K J 8 4 2
East:
S 9 8 2
H A J 4 3 2
D 8 7 3
C 10 6
South:
S Q 5 4
H K 10 5
D J 5 4
C A Q 5 3
It was heartening to see that at every table but one – where South mysteriously forgot to open – the contract was 1NT doubled, after the simplest of auctions.
West
North
East
South
1NT
Dbl
All Pass
The double is strictly for penalties and although partner can take-out they would really only do so if they were very weak but with a long suit. Similarly for the partner of the opener who on this occasion can only grin and bear it. The results ranged from two down, which seems about right, to making with an overtrick, but I can only assume in this latter case that the defence panicked, as so often happens when defending a doubled contract. Surely West would start with the four of clubs, and although this gives declarer an extra trick, the rest of the suit can easily be established due to declarer’s poor impletion. Declarer would probably play the queen of spades next, ducked by West, and it is imperative in these situations that East should give a count signal by playing the two. Remember that LO-Hi shows an odd number in the suit, HI-LO an even number. Anyway West would know to win the third round and knock out the ace of clubs. A small diamond from declarer would let West back in, who could cash his clubs and exit with the queen of hearts. (West knows that declarer started with eight points in the black suits and cannot have both the top two hearts.) So in all declarer would make two spade tricks, a heart and two club tricks for -500. Opponents of the weak no-trump can sneer, but in the long run its preemptive value makes it a winning gambit, although I have to say that those of us have been playing for far too long tend to play a strong no-trump when vulnerable……

4 comments:

  1. Are you recommending that we should play strong NT when vulnerable then? Can you briefly set out the point ranges which partner should have to respond to a strong NT opener?

    From: Always optimistic to do better next week!

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  2. Unfortunately it's not quite as simple as just making all the responses a few points lower. You would for example raise 1NT to 2NT with 8 or 9 points instead of 11 or 12, that is easy enough, but you have to ask yourself how you would cope with a balanced 12 count if you can't open 1NT. In other words there is a huge knock-on effect. If you want the whole kit and caboodle 'always optimistic' I can give it to you, but first I would have to know who you were......

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  3. We were that 'but one' table so I can solve the mystery. South cleverly managed to 'lose' the HK, so didn't open, and I ended up in 2NT as west. South equally cleverly held up the HK when I led the HQ, so I couldn't set up dummy's hearts. I just about scrambled 2NT for +120, then saw that just about every other E/W had +500, as you said. We woz robbed!

    jill

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  4. Having had a bottom on the previous hand we were allowed to make 3 spades, 2 hearts, 1 diamond and 2 clubs on this hand.

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