Double and plus!

When we make a penalty double, we always aim to record a plus score. Sometimes, the plus may not be huge but any plus is so much better than a minus score.

With that in mind, what action would you take as North here?

♠︎ K J

♥︎ 9 8 7 4

♦︎ J 9 3

♣︎ 10 9 8 5

West	North	East	South
	Pass	1 NT	Dbl
Pass	?

1NT is 12-14 and it is your turn to bid. Your choice is?

It is important to realise here what your partner’s double means. It is not like a take-out double of 1 of a suit. Here, double shows value, 15+ hcp with a view to penalising the opponents. Unless you have a very weak hand (up to about 5 hcp) and a 5+ card suit, you should not bid. Bidding is a sign of weakness.

Here, you do have only 5 hcp but you have no long suit. Thus, pass, confidently, even if you do not feel it, and see if you can defeat 1NT. After all, your side has at least half the high card points, maybe more! No need to panic or be doubtful. Look forward to seeing a weak dummy!

Your partner leads ♥︎2 and dummy is stronger than you would have wished, 8 hcp. No worries. If your partner has 15 hcp, that only leaves 12 for declarer. This may be tight but the opening lead is quite promising.

Note that South led a heart, not a club, choosing a major rather than a minor as we tend to do if we have no clear suit to lead. Declarer plays low from dummy and their ♥︎10 beats your ♥︎7 at trick 1.

Soon, though, you are on lead as declarer leads a low diamond, inserts ♦︎10 in dummy and your ♦︎J wins the trick. No need to change direction. Play back 4, your original 4th highest. Your partner beats ♥︎Q with their ace and exits ♥︎6 won by declarer’s K. Declarer soon takes 3 diamond tricks with your partner discarding a low club (your method is “low like”) and a low spade. You discard a club, perhaps ♣︎10 indicating a sequence of which ♣︎10 is the highest.

So far, declarer has 5 tricks and your side just 2. Hopefully, there are more to come very soon. ♠︎8 is played from dummy and you have a choice. It may well be better here to play ♠︎K perhaps giving a false picture to declarer that you hold KQ, though not today. ♠︎K wins the trick and it is time to play your last heart, the high ♥︎9. Declarer discards a spade from both hands.

Now play clubs and much better that you get to lead the suit rather than South. Play ♣︎9. If declarer plays ♣︎Q, your partner should win and play back their lowest club. If declarer plays ♣︎3, South plays ♣︎6. Either way, the club honour is trick number 6 for declarer.

Hold your breath as declarer plays a spade, from dummy. Your ♠︎J is covered by ♠︎Q and your partner’s ♠︎A and whatever declarer did on that first round of clubs, the final club tricks go to the defence….2 tricks in each major for the defence, a diamond and 2 club tricks, 7 in all, beating the contract by 1 trick, a hard-earned + 100. Mission accomplished.

The defence was not straightforward, especially the play of the club suit. Should then you have tried one of your two suits rather than passing? Bidding either is risky as there is no guarantee of finding a fit. Here, both 2♣︎ and 2♥︎ can make but then so can 2♠︎ by East-West. Generally, without a 5-card suit, it is better to defend 1NTx. The weaker your hand is the stronger is your partner’s..or so the theory goes!

Richard Solomon