[jillybean]

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matchpoints
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Does a support double or 2nt to showing 18-19 take priority?

[mikeh]

jillybean, on 2026-August-02, 18:45, said:

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matchpoints
....
Does a support double or 2nt to showing 18-19 take priority?

You can always bid notrump later but It may prove inconvenient to show your support if you now bid 2N. Amongst other possibilities, partner may either decide not to check back (perhaps because, reasonably enough, partner thinks you’ve denied 3 hearts) or because he’s too weak to bid over 2N.

This way of choosing between alternatives arises once in a while, including in contexts a little different from this. But it is important to realize that strong hands can double and bid again later. Btw, if it’s close, it’s almost always best to tell partner about your fit. Partners tend to like that since it usually makes their choices somewhat easier.

[mike777]

Agree as usual.

For fun I wanted to add that Versace of Italy does not understand how Americans can play support doubles.
If memory serves me they are a Rodwell convention

He finds them "unplayable"..

Not sure how common they are in Italy..

[jillybean]

I'd be welcome on the Blue Team

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more to come tomorrow

[bluenikki]

mikeh, on 2026-August-02, 20:24, said:

You can always bid notrump later but It may prove inconvenient to show your support if you now bid 2N. Amongst other possibilities, partner may either decide not to check back (perhaps because, reasonably enough, partner thinks you’ve denied 3 hearts) or because he’s too weak to bid over 2N.

This way of choosing between alternatives arises once in a while, including in contexts a little different from this. But it is important to realize that strong hands can double and bid again later. Btw, if it’s close, it’s almost always best to tell partner about your fit. Partners tend to like that since it usually makes their choices somewhat easier.

Having made the support double, will you later be able to suggest strongly that the partnership probably should not be playing the 5-3?

[pescetom]

 mike777, on 2026-August-02, 20:57, said:

Agree as usual.

For fun I wanted to add that Versace of Italy does not understand how Americans can play support doubles.
If memory serves me they are a Rodwell convention

He finds them "unplayable"..

Not sure how common they are in Italy..

They are unusual in Italy, I alert scrupulously both the double and the inference from lack of double.

I might even be partially responsible for Versace's distaste for the convention, as I scored a gratuitous top against him when my partner forgot Support Double in our first days playing it. He smiled with the class of a true champion.

"Unplayable" is an overbid, but they do complicate things a bit (see this example) and I'm still on the fence about them: my idea is to continue to play them at least until we always know what we are doing and can evaluate more precisely.

I seem to remember that Rodwell invented the convention over limited openings, not over an unlimited 1 in a suit like we both play. It can be difficult not to have any strength signal in a competitive auction.

[pescetom]

 jillybean, on 2026-August-02, 23:10, said:

I'd be welcome on the Blue Team

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That's where the rest of the room is, in Italy. Now North probably bids a 3♣ artificial force and you get to expose your 3 card support.

[jillybean]

Good morning

pescetom, on 2026-August-03, 06:14, said:

That's where the rest of the room is, in Italy. Now North probably bids a 3♣ artificial force and you get to expose your 3 card support.

This is where it gets interesting or you could say even more confused.

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[mike777]

jillybean, on 2026-August-03, 07:50, said:

Good morning



This is where it gets interesting or you could say even more confused.

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Again seems easy pass. 4H sets the contract.

See Wolff sign off, or versions...

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Please note playing support doubles and XYZ, responder could show a weakish 2H rebid, 3H=slamish, 2c= artificial invitational values, 2D=artificial gf values after assuming opener has minimum opening values.

[mikeh]

bluenikki, on 2026-August-03, 02:44, said:

Having made the support double, will you later be able to suggest strongly that the partnership probably should not be playing the 5-3?

Why should I be suggesting ‘strongly’ that I want to play 3N when I may have only one spade stopper?

I describe my hand. My partners generally know how to bid. I never mastermind. That’s one of the benefits of having an expert partner. If the auction times out, I will show a balanced 17-19 hcp with three hearts and interest in playing 3N. I expect partner to let me play in 3N if he has help in spades and to play in hearts if he doesn’t. (17-19 because I usually play a 14-16 1N opening…if playing 15-17, I show 18-19).

[mikeh]

mike777, on 2026-August-03, 07:53, said:

Again seems easy pass. 4H sets the contract.

See Wolff sign off, or versions...

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Please note playing support doubles and XYZ, responder could show a weakish 2H rebid, 3H=slamish, 2c= artificial invitational values, 2D=artificial gf values after assuming opener has minimum opening values.

You don’t need xyz when you have a cuebid for the game force and, imo, you need 2C as natural. Imagine holding something like xx Jxxx xx AQxxx. Do you really want to play 2H rather than 2C? Opener holding, say, Kxx Qxx Kxx KJxx. I’d suggest 2C natural, 2D invite and 2S gf. 3H also invite but with 6 hearts.

As for Wolff…check out transfers. Every time I teach someone about transfers, they stop playing Wolff.

[mikeh]

jillybean, on 2026-August-03, 07:50, said:

Good morning



This is where it gets interesting or you could say even more confused.

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Why is this interesting?

[Cyberyeti]

mikeh, on 2026-August-03, 08:36, said:

Why is this interesting?

Because partner could easily have x, AK 7th and a queen or two ? and decided you only have 2 hearts.

[jillybean]

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We both agree we could have done better, I could have used a Support double.
We play wolff, partner thinks it should not apply in a competitive auction, which was good to discover! more to discussion is needed.

[mike777]

mikeh, on 2026-August-03, 08:35, said:

You don’t need xyz when you have a cuebid for the game force and, imo, you need 2C as natural. Imagine holding something like xx Jxxx xx AQxxx. Do you really want to play 2H rather than 2C? Opener holding, say, Kxx Qxx Kxx KJxx. I’d suggest 2C natural, 2D invite and 2S gf. 3H also invite but with 6 hearts.

As for Wolff…check out transfers. Every time I teach someone about transfers, they stop playing Wolff.

Yes with that example I would end up in 2H (4-3) fit or 3 clubs, could not sign off in 2C. However, seems unlikely the opponents or partner are that weak that we end up in 2C.

Dont know transfers and how they work in your example, sounds interesting.

[mike777]

jillybean, on 2026-August-03, 08:54, said:

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We both agree we could have done better, I could have used a Support double.
We play wolff, partner thinks it should not apply in a competitive auction, which was good to discover! more to discussion is needed.

4H is impossible choice...
Tricks more important than HCP

[Cyberyeti]

4♥ should be more like the same shape without the ♥AK up to AK 7th and the odd quack

[jillybean]

yes

[Cyberyeti]

Our auction would go 1♣-(P)-1♥-(1♠)-1N (15-bad 19 spade stop)-2♣(art)-2N (17-bad 19 3334 GF)-3♥(better than 4)-3♠(cue)-5♥(solid hearts, no shortness cue except clubs)-6♥/N

[mikeh]

Cyberyeti, on 2026-August-03, 08:40, said:

Because partner could easily have x, AK 7th and a queen or two ? and decided you only have 2 hearts.

I’d hate to play with you guys. You distort your hand by hiding your support and then, when partner places the contract, you decide that you know more about his hand than he does and you decide that it’s ok to mastermind for a second time.

Look…a fundamental rule of bidding is that you stay on the horse you’ve chosen to ride You decided to bid as if you had a balanced 18 count with a doubleton heart and now you want to change your mind and take another call because maybe your misbid means you may have missed a slam? I definitely couldn’t stand playing with anyone who is so sure that they have to be in charge on every auction.