Take-Out Doubles

In the good old days a double was a call made when you thought that the opponents’ contract was destined to fail, and thus you wanted to up the stakes.
Things have certainly changed, as at the higher levels of the game the majority of doubles carry some specified meaning.
Even at club level there are plenty of ‘take-out’ doubles to be found.

What is a Take-out Double?

Basically, the double asks partner to bid his longest suit – it is almost the opposite of a penalty double, tending to show shortage in the doubled suit.

Why would we want to use a Take-out Double?

The answer is because we have two or three suits of similar length and we would like to ask partner to choose the one with
which he has the best fit. It is especially useful when you do not hold a five-card suit, because without five cards in a suit
you cannot make an overcall, and therefore would be unable to make a call without the help of a take-out double.

When do we use a Take-out Double?

In the following situations: 1 All doubles of natural suit bids on the first round of bidding when partner has not bid are for take out (up to the four level).

WEST  NORTH  EAST  SOUTH
1        Dbl

WEST  NORTH  EAST  SOUTH
1        Pass      1      Dbl

WEST  NORTH  EAST  SOUTH
2         Dbl

WEST  NORTH  EAST  SOUTH
3         Dbl

WEST  NORTH  EAST  SOUTH
1          Pass     3       Dbl

All of the doubles above should be for take out; it is very rare that we hold a hand that can penalise with authority in these situations.

2 When the opponents have found a fit and neither of our partnership have bid, then double should be for…

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