PITBULLS:

        There is a universal negative inference in Bridge . Why did partner just bid rather than making a double ? The answer of course  is distribution & no extra HCPs. Perry Khakar held ♠x ♥Axxxx ♦x ♣AKxxxx & opened 1♣ vul vrs not. The nv opponents overcalled 1♠ , I passed & the opponents Q bid 2♣. What if Perry was 5-4 in clubs & hearts with a minimum ? He would of course pass . What if Perry had 5-4 in ♥'s & ♣'s with 18 + HCP ? He of course would double . What if Perry held a monster two suiter in clubs & hearts. He may Q bid 2♠ & bid hearts subsequently. Ok with all that out of the way, 2♥ should show a distributional 6-5 . 6-5 come alive. Visualize partner holding a yarborough with a stiff heart & 5♣'s. 5 ♣ is cold. Visualize partner with ♥Kxxxxx & nothing else. 5♥ is cold & maybe 6 if they slop a trick.

        The great Polish philosopher Klimo said "all good hands start with a double". I will add to that , "all distributional hands are shown by bidding". Do not bid because you have a strong hand. Double when you have a strong hand & bid suits or toys when you have a distributional hand. You will keep partner on board more often when you adhere to that simple rule.

When the opponents Q bid openers suit , the old fashioned understanding was lead directing. In the modern game, we feel that understanding is obsolete. With light overcalls & a limit raise or better style of Q bids , we feel a double should just show a good hand. With the 30 HCP’s in the deck understanding in effect quite often , your side does not need much for game. The double also prevents distributional tactical jumps to game by the overcaller to try & steal the contract. Show your good hand at the lowest possible level is more cost effective. In the old days , a Q bid was more likely forcing to game so the double as a lead director made sense. Not anymore , in my opinion anyway.

        Jumping the bidding sometimes many levels does not show HCP strength. We feel that is a silly Goren notion in competition .  The jump bid shows extra length or distribution. The double is the only bid in Bridge other than an ambiguous Q bid that shows strength in the HCP sense. Opening bids & T/O doubles are clarified later in the auction as to strength. Of course , the double does the job rather than jumping or bidding again. Direct overcalls are an exception to this way of thinking Bridge. Experts play heavy overcalls initially as "shape before strength" . There is a valid reason for that approach . This understanding reduces ambiguous T/O doubles which were the norm in the early days of Bridge. In those days,  it was "strength before shape" with every Bridge bid. This approach made the take out double unruly , so the modern approach seems to work best. Getting your suit in early helps when the opponents use pre-emptive tactics against you. This approach rids the T/O double of single suited hands. That alone is worth the price of admission.

        All other bidding is still "strength before shape" especially when NT has been bid. When you bypass doubling their NT bid , you cannot have a strong hand . Simple as that. I find that this is one of the most common missed inferences in Bridge. Remember Klimos  comment , all  good hands start with a double. A double is a depending on context bid. The default understanding of a double is strength measured in quick tricks or a preponderance of HCP's. T/O takes a back seat to this default understanding . The double may only be a light T/O but the first assumption is strength , not the other way around. A double = defense , bidding = distribution & you are well under way to becoming an expert bidder.

        There is no undo in Bridge unless you have kind opponents on the Internet. When you bid with a good hand you have removed one of your options. You have not invited partner to the party nor allow for a penalty conversion .These are two invaluable Bridge options. A double is a very nice partnership Bridge bid as you invite partner to the party for a joint decision. When you are disciplined in that regard , you just bid instead to give partner information on which to make a decent Bridge decision. Ambiguity is removed for partner.