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Show Modern Contract I Bridge By Letia Hattersley I) No. 21 Redouble of a Take-Out Double WI1EN your partner's original bid of one has been doubled, you may sometimes be Justified In answering answer-ing the opponent with a redouble. Such a redouble signals to your partner part-ner that you hold the remaining balance bal-ance of honor strength and that your side is In a position to exact a profitable prof-itable penalty because the fourth hand must be practically a blank. The announcement of strength conveyed con-veyed by such a redouble is never based on distributional tricks or on assistance for the suit partner has named. It has to do solely with a holding of exceptional honor strength, at least 3 honor-tricks. When you have 3 honor-tricks and can account for at least 2i in your partner's hand, (the 2 required for his original orig-inal bid) It becomes apparent that the 3 honor-tricks shown by the dou-bler dou-bler must be practically the only strength which his side possesses. In the main, redoubles of this type work to best advantage only after partner has opened with a no trump, and of course they are most profitable when the opponents happen to be vulnerable. vulner-able. Rebidding After Making a Take-Out Double When you have forced your partner's part-ner's bid with a take-out double, unless un-less his response Is higher than necessary, nec-essary, regard It with extreme pessimism. pes-simism. Keep in mind that his bid, being merely a compulsory response to your own double, means nothing at all. As you have no means of knowing whether or not your partner's part-ner's response was made on strength just short of a jump response or on a "bust," you are nsually in a dilemma after receiving a minimum response to your take-out double. It Is unsafe un-safe with a really strong hand to pass such a response, and equally unsafe un-safe to raise it unless reasonably sure of your ground. To give even one raise after a partner's minimum response re-sponse to your take-out double, you should have exceptional trump support sup-port with about 5 assisting tricks 8 is a better margin of safety when vulnerable. When Your Partner Has Been Doubled When your partner's suit bid has been over-called with a take-out double dou-ble by the next opponent, If you have normal trump expectancy with a total of four or more assisting tricks, give the maximum raise which your hand affords. A thoroughly sound bid at no trumps, or in some other suit, can of course be shown. But do not venture a weak take-out, which might be doubled dou-bled and fare badly in this position. If your partner's bid was at no trump and you hold about 2 honor-tricks, your best recourse lies in a redouble, as previously explained. When a player has made a bid which has been doubled by the adversary adver-sary on his left, passed by his partner part-ner and by the next adversary (foi a penalty) he can, if in serious difficulties, diffi-culties, send out an S O S to his partner. This call for help is made with a redouble, which his partner must never read as a strength signal but as a cry: "Rescue me from this predicament." The rescue redouble is seldom used when a player has opened with a suit bid, but is often resorted to by a no trump bidder to call for his partner's part-ner's help. The partner should bid his best suit. Penalty Doubles It Is most important that the penalty pen-alty double should never be confused with the take-out double, because the latter calls on the partner of the dou-bler dou-bler to make a bid, whereas the former for-mer says : "Partner, leave me in. I am sure that I can set the bid or I should not have doubled. We will collect extra penalty points for every trick that our opponent falls short of his contract." con-tract." Rarely should you interfere with your partner when he makes a penalty pen-alty double. Remember that a bid of more than one no trump can never be doubled except for a penalty, but that a suit bid of one or two may be doubled for a take-out. There is but one type of penalty double which the less experienced player should use with any degree of latitude. This is what is known as a "free" double. The free double occurs when an opponent's bid, if successful, would give him the game whether or not It was doubled. Because a bid is rated as "free," however, is no reason why it should be rashly or injudiciously doubled. On a doubtful double of any bid, the percentage per-centage is against you owing to the increase of trick values. When the outcome is a close question remember that the odds are greatly in favor of the bidder should he redouble. To safeguard the doubler, the forcing forc-ing system provides the two trick rule: Any penalty double must be based on the expectation of setting the opponent op-ponent two tricks. (. 1932, by Leila Hatteraley.) WNTJ Sen-Ice |