The Verdict Is Nix On The Negative Double

In the perpetual feud between opposing schools of bridge bidding, there is something to be said for the wildly liberal "Hatfields" as well as for the hidebound conservative "McCoys." Is it better to conduct a scientific exchange of as much information as possible, knowing that the enemy is listening in? Or should you bid your values—passing when you lack them—and let the opponents try to find their best course with as little help as possible?

To get down to cases, consider the negative double. This gadget has been adopted by a large number of American experts, and I do not deny that, when conditions are precisely right, it can perform yeoman service. In its simplest application, the negative double works this way:

Opener bids, say, one diamond. Opponent on his left bids one spade, and opener's partner has a hand with some values, including, especially, four cards in hearts. For example, a hand like:

[4 of Spades]
[3 of Spades]
[2 of Spades]
[Queen of Hearts]
[10 of Hearts]
[4 of Hearts]
[3 of Hearts]
[7 of Diamonds]
[6 of Diamonds]
[Ace of Clubs]
[King of Clubs]
[9 of Clubs]
[8 of Clubs]

What is he to do? Even an overbidder who wished to stretch a point or three and bid something would be giving a false impression of his suit length if he said two clubs or two hearts. Yet if he does nothing at all, there is the danger that the opponents may buy the contract and that his side will have "lost" the heart suit. Change responder's hand so that instead of the king of clubs, he holds the king of diamonds:

[4 of Spades]
[3 of Spades]
[2 of Spades]
[Queen of Hearts]
[10 of Hearts]
[4 of Hearts]
[3 of Hearts]
[King of Diamonds]
[7 of Diamonds]
[6 of Diamonds]
[Ace of Clubs]
[9 of Clubs]
[8 of Clubs]

Now he would be justified in raising to two diamonds, though even this is not without danger if partner has opened with a poor, four-card diamond suit. But the best suit still will have been bypassed if opener holds four hearts and isn't strong enough to bid them. For example, opener might have:

[Ace of Spades]
[5 of Spades]
[Jack of Hearts]
[9 of Hearts]
[7 of Hearts]
[6 of Hearts]
[Ace of Diamonds]
[Queen of Diamonds]
[10 of Diamonds]
[9 of Diamonds]
[5 of Diamonds]
[King of Clubs]
[7 of Clubs]

Barring bad breaks in both red suits, the partnership has a reasonable play for four hearts, but is most unlikely to reach that contract if, after the spade overcall, the responding hand either passes or bids two diamonds.

The negative double guards against this calamity. Instead of the old meaning of a double in this situation—"Partner, I think we can set them"—the negative double says, "I have at least four cards in the other major and a moderate amount of strength—from as little as seven points up to about the strength of a minimum opening bid. If you also have four cards in the other major, bid it, but in any case bid something. My hand is not especially well suited to defense against their suit."