What’s your call?
| 2♠ | 2NT | |||
| 3♣ | 3♦ | 3♥ | 3♠ | 3NT |
| 4♣ | 4♦ | 4♥ | 4♠ | 4NT |
| 5♣ | 5♦ | 5♥ | 5♠ | 5NT |
| 6♣ | 6♦ | 6♥ | 6♠ | 6NT |
| 7♣ | 7♦ | 7♥ | 7♠ | 7NT |
| Pass |
In days gone by, the double by partner in this sequence was pure penalty. Right now, takeout is trending and 3♣ is the crowd favorite.
Let’s listen in on Sanborn’s inner monologue: “I’m thinking that 2NT would show this hand if I had better diamonds. I’m thinking that partner has good hearts and bad diamonds. I would like to do something more positive, but I don’t know what. I hesitate to pass when the opponents are in an eight-card (or more) fit.”
Lee: “I would play partner’s double as takeout-oriented, so bidding my fivecard suit seems normal.”
Stack, too: “Partner’s double is surely not strictly for penalties, is it? More reasonable is that partner has good values with probably three cards in each black suit and wants us to do the right thing. It seems like more and more, that is the way low-level doubles are to be interpreted.”
That’s how the Sutherlins see things, too. “Partner has some cards but not enough to bid initially. He knows we have spades and clubs. His double says he is 3–3 in the blacks.”
3♣ by Colchamiro, “and I’m doubling if they compete to 3♥. I don’t expect partner to have four cards in spades, but if he does, maybe we should have a long talk. Partner should have four hearts but not five (no overcall), so he’s something like 3=4=3=3.”
Robinson: “3♣. I think this should be a responsive double denying four spades.”
Meckstroth bids 3♣. “I have a max, but I can’t bid any more now.”
Surprisingly, penalty-double advocate Boehm has sneaked into the takeout camp. He explains his 3♣: “At a low level, under the gun and in a raised suit, partner’s double is clearly not penalty, and I love penalty doubles.”
Cohen has rules about this sort of thing. “3♣. Partner should have something like:
♠K x x ♥A x x ♦ A x x x ♣J x x.
If this is a penalty double, I would have an easy pass. But my partnership rule is ‘no penalty doubles below 2NT unless it’s in the notes.’ This auction would not make the notes as an exception, especially because they have bid and raised.”
Weinstein has rules, too. Hey, maybe he and Larry should play together sometime! “Double is never penalty when they bid and raise at the two level.”
Lawrence is a penalty passer. “If North’s double is penalty, then pass is correct. I have all that I promised when I doubled. If North’s double was something else, you would have said so.” [Ooh, nice, out Rigal-ing Rigal by transferring the blame to the director rather than partner!]
Korbel passes. “Because I showed the black suits, partner knows my hand type and therefore his double is penalty. Why can’t North have four extremely good hearts and another trick or two?”
Hampson, too, goes for the set: “Pass. I don’t know why this would be anything other than penalty, so I defend.”
Falk tries 2NT. “This cannot possibly be a penalty double. In this era of support doubles, LHO surely has four hearts. Partner didn’t overcall 1♥ and has some values and diamonds, but he is not certain whether I have diamonds along with my spades and clubs – I could be 4=1=4=4. So my 2NT offers partner a choice of minors.”
