Wednesday, September 29, 2004 11:05 PM
Hand Evaluation - Doubles ( Matchpoints
)
PITBULLS:
The more I think about the trump
stack penalty double in competitive auctions & the misery that
goes along with it , I feel this bid should only apply in matchpoints
& rubber Bridge. The bid is just not needed in IMPs with the IMP scale as a way of scoring. The
IMP scale is a Robin Hood & takes from the rich & gives to the poor
with respect to huge sets. In IMPS, you should be more
conservative with respect to doubling them into game. D.S.I.P. competitive double
theory goes along with that objective as both partners
have input into the decision. .
D.S.I.P. theory & match points
are not a
good mix . There are many bad bidders in matchpoints. In fact , bad bidding is a tactic with many match
point players ! D.S.I.P. competitive double
theory assumes competent
opponents as competitive decisions are based in part on what the
opponents did or did not
do. When the opponents are very bad bidders they might be in a
partial when they should be in game . A D.S.I.P. doubles may push them into a game
they were supposed to arrive at in the first place. Worse ,
the D.S.I.P. double might get converted , so they make it with their preponderance of unexpected HCP’s or unadvertised
distribution.
Conversely , when the opponents bid on bad suits & randomly overbid , penalty doubles rather than D.S.I.P.
doubles are the tool of choice.
Penalty doubles were invented in the early
days of Bridge to punish bad
bidders. There is no shortage
of bad bidders in Match Points.
Some parts of D.S.I.P. competitive theory are transferable
to match points but not much. You do not have the IMP scale to protect you when you are
playing D.S.I.P. competitive doubles in Match Points. Other players in the field are making
penalty doubles in certain auctions so when you do not do the same , a low score
for you is very possible.
“Match Point” doubles are necessary
in this game. When you feel the
opponents are stealing your partial ,
you may make a “match point” double” to protect your +140 . –100 when they go
down two undoubled is a bad score. Again D.S.I.P. doubles are not a tool for these type
of matchpoint auctions. 2Nd doubles after
making a takeout double are D.S.I.P. competitive doubles. In Match Points , I think they
should just be penalty so you have values in their
suits. In D.S.I.P. theory , doubles are showing values rather than a trump
stack. In match points , the reverse should be true as bad players may
have wandered into a hornets
nest.
Frequent penalty doubles in Match
Points are a good
tactical strategy. Declarers are weak so will misplay most
hands. With the psychological pressure
of a double they sometimes even find a way to go down. In a tough IMP match
, frequent penalty doubles are a losing
proposition. The tough opponents will play the hands better so end
up making contracts that should have gone down & make them because you tipped them off .
Yes , sometimes even good players make bad bids in
IMPS but the frequency does not justify throwing out D.S.I.P. competitive double
theory. In D.S.I.P. theory , you have the advantage of converting the double for penalty when either partner makes a D.S.I.P.
double. Any structure that allows both partners to make a competitive
decision has to be better than the single handed penalty doubles. Matchpoints is a very single handed game anyway. The very
best matchpoint players only need a chair as a
partner.
You have ♠KQJ10 ♥Axxx ♦xx
♣xxx , the auction goes
1♦-1♠-X-2♠
P-P-? In match points you double as 2♠ is not going to make & you hope partner reads you for spades. In IMPs , playing D.S.I.P. theory you just pass. Partner did not bid the good bad
2NT , he did not make a D.S.I.P. double himself or
make a free bid. He probably has a minimum balanced hand so a partial is the
limit of the hand your way. You take your plus by not offering them an
opportunity for a better contract or having partner rescue them & move onto the next hand.
You hold ♠KQJ109 ♥x ♦xxxx ♣xxx , the auction goes 1♥-4♠-? In D.S.I.P. theory you pass
. so if partner is too weak to re-open with a
double , you just take your plus ,. In match points ,
you might get a zero if many other pairs bid 4♠ & get doubled. Another example , in D.S.I.P. theory you overcall the heart opener with a spade with ♠AKJxxx ♥x ♦xx
♣AKxx , they bid 4♥ & around to you . You do not
want to play
single handed enforcer doubles in
D.S.I.P. theory , so you double saying you still want to compete & a desire
to bid 4♠. Partner with ♠x ♥QJ10x ♦xxxxx ♣xxx happily passes. The match point field is in 4♠ doubled going for a number. D.S.I.P. wins in these types of auctions , as the D.S.I.P. double brought partner into the picture.
Another hand with a similar theme showing why you
should not play D.S.I.P. doubles in match points. You hold ♠x ♥AK10 ♦xxx ♣AKQxxx , you overcall 2♣
to a heart opener. LHO bids 2♥ ,partner passes so RHO bids 4♥ so now what
? In match points you double saying they
can not make game but with D.S.I.P. theory you must pass & take your plus. You do not want to encourage partner by
doubling to make a pseudo sacrifice. In fact by not doubling
, partner might take that as a cue to sacrifice in 5♣ in the match
point game. With D.S.I.P. theory, when partner wants to sacrifice he
does so by doubling , we convert
at this end. Playing against top level opponents
, these kind of decisions do not come up much when you have game beat in
your own hand. The D.S.I.P. mentality works much better as the opponents are not bad bidders. In fact
, they are very good & accurate bidders.
Tom Gandolfo has modified D.S.I.P. competitive
double theory for matchpoints. He says just play D.S.I.P.
theory when your side is competing
with a fit. This is probably a very good matchpoint
idea. D.S.I.P. theory was designed to apply in every auction in IMPS where you
are just competing when Forcing
Pass theory does not kick in. Limiting D.S.I.P. theory to just
when your side has a fit
& is just competing simplifies things for match points.
D.S.I.P. competitive double theory
was invented for IMPS against good opponents. Sometimes we have had too many good results with penalty doubles
so we forgot our roots.
These doubles often occurred in Match Point games , an
entirely different game from IMPS. IMPS are predicated on getting to games with good high level decisions. D.S.I.P. theory
assists in both those objectives when competing. D.S.I.P. competitive double theory
is a new way of thinking
the game of Bridge.