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 “Did you hear me, partner?”

When you know a slam can be defeated by partner making a normal lead (e.g., their suit, your suit), you do not need to double the final bid (unless any lead will defeat it and the opponents have no better contract). However, when you are not on lead and feel, guess, know that a different, unusual lead, often dummy’s first bid suit, will beat the contract, that is the time to reach for the “double” card. Welcome to the world of the “Lightner Double”.

 

A piece of high-level drama. You made your bid early but now it is your choice of opening lead.

Jan Cormack

Jan’s Day: The lead that cannot be ignored

“The Lightner double is a lead directing double of a slam contract, devised by Theodore Lightner of New York in 1929. This conventional double is made by the hand not on lead requesting partner to choose an unusual lead which the doubler hopes will defeat the slam. It excludes the lead of a trump or of a suit bid by the defenders in which they are known to have length.

Some experts treat this double quite rigidly. They define the double to mean that partner must lead dummy’s first bid suit. Other good players, including Lightner himself, interpret the bid more loosely: an unusual lead is requested and partner must deduce which suit lead is required.

Today’s hand came from the Far East Bridge Championships in Tokyo where the New Zealand Open Team were defending against India.

Unfortunately for New Zealand, partner’s request for an unusual lead was ignored as West tried to cash A.

 

The opening lead was ruffed in dummy with two losing clubs being thrown on the run of the diamonds, resulting 6x making, leaving East to stare mournfully at the AK.”

The raise to 6 was a clear signal to the defence that North had first round control of hearts. The double merely confirmed this and that West should look elsewhere for tricks. In theory, East could just as easily hold AK instead of the high clubs. Unlucky then for West had they led the wrong minor. The double cried out for a minor lead.

“Without a Lightner Double on this next deal, West would very likely have led J. Declarer would have covered with Q and the first trick would have been the last trick for the defence.

 

The double requested the unusual lead and in the context of the bidding, that could only be a heart. West’s five-card suit reinforced the fact that East was very likely void in that suit.

 unusual occurrences!

The Lightner Double is a fine convention but it needs courage to use it.”

Unfortunately, it also creates some confusion and heartache too. I was unable to find once the unusual lead from my small doubleton to give partner a first- round ruff in a suit which neither declarer nor dummy had bid! A story for another day!

How Strong is a Strong No Trump? for less experienced players...and others

Your partner opened the bidding and your right-hand opponent calls 1NT (15-17/18). You are playing a 5-card major system. You have a reasonable hand. What to bid?

 

Richard Solomon

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