Pre-Balancing

 

We have all been taught that, in the balancing seat, with shortness in the enemy suit, we should bend over backwards to get back into the auction with a Double.  The same applies when the opponents have found a fit (invariably at the two-level), and we are in direct seat with shortness in their suit.  In such situations, we want to compete, and the danger is that, if we don't double, Partner in the balancing seat will be unable to take action, he'll have 3 or 4 of their suit and no convenient action.

 

 

13th September, 2006       Board 14      Dealer East       None Vul

 

 

South’s hand is a Pass by all the commonly used methods, such as HCPs, Rule of Twenty, Quick Tricks.  But to us it looks awfully close to an opening bid anyway!  Let’s say that South passes nonetheless, and then their 1♠-2♠ auction gets back to us. 

 

Should a hand that could not even open now make a Take-out Double, thereby committing her side to the 3-level?  It may sound rather wacky, but we say “Yes!”.  It’s the so-called “pre-balance” … South knows that Partner will have trouble balancing if West passes, she obviously has too many Spades to make a Take-out Double … so South “pre-balances”, she is the one with shortness in their suit, so the onus is on her to get her side into the auction.

 

Remember this situation, and also remember that technical term, the “pre-balance”, it’s a real winner in the post-mortem, especially after you have just gone for -300 on a part-score hand.  If Partner does not know what a pre-balance is, then she’ll be shamed into silence (well, maybe), and if she does know then no doubt she’ll be suitably understanding (well, maybe).

 

But, seriously, this pre-balancing Double is really quite safe, nothing bad is likely to happen … passing is far more dangerous.

 

28th June, 2006                Board 4      Dealer West        Both Vul

 

 

After West raises to 2♠, would you take a call as North?.  You had a perfect take-out Double of 1♠ earlier on, except that the opponents were thoughtless enough to open 1♦ instead.  Now, second time around, with the opponents bidding and raising Spades, you can make a take-out Double, and should, in our view.  True, the opponents’ strength is unlimited, but they have found their Spade fit, and if they have a game they’ll no doubt bid it.  But if they don’t have game you’d like at least to get them up to the 3-level.  North’s Double in this situation is sometimes called a “pre-balance”, and the classic shape is 1-4-4-4 (the Spade shortness explaining the absence of an earlier Double).

 

 

5th July, 2006                   Board 28      Dealer West      N-S Vul

 

 

If West sleepily passes here, N-S will probably buy it in 2♥ and have an easy run at a plus score.  But West has the chance to be more enterprising!  A take-out Double is called for!  It gets E-W into the auction fairly safely, and will usually push the opponents to the 3-level.  Is there a chance that West's Double will turn out badly (as in an adverse penalty)?  Yes, of course, it's possible ... but, E-W are not vulnerable, and we are most likely to have at least an 8-card fit in Spades and/or Diamonds.

 

 

18th October, 2006           Board 30      Dealer East       None Vul

 

 

Here’s another auction where snoozing with a nondescript hand is not the winning strategy.  We pass originally (but 2♣ is kind of tempting, don’t you think?), but when 2♠ gets back to us, it is time for us to arouse from our slumber.  The point of this Problem is that we have shortness in their suit, so the onus is on us to get into the auction because it is most unlikely that Partner will be able to.  We would double, we have the perfect hand for it.  And, as luck would have it, Partner happens to have the perfect hand for a Penalty Pass.

 

 

8th November, 2006         Board 16      Dealer West       E-W Vul

 

 

Let’s not miss the opportunity here to make a “pre-balancing” Double.  What this Double does is anticipate Partner’s problem if we were to pass, and so did East.  Now, Partner is in the balancing seat, no doubt with 3 or 4 cards in the opponents’ Spade suit.  With such a hand, she would find it difficult to make a balancing bid.  So, in anticipation of that, as we have the shortness in their suit, it behooves us to pre-balance.  As so often in these auctions, the one with shortness in their suit is the one who must stretch to take action.

 

 

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