[twcho]

MP, EW vul, S dealer.
Sitting north you held:
♠98
♥AT9xx
♦Txx
♣KTx

Your partner dealt and opened 1NT (15-17). RHO came in with 2♦ (any single suiter). You tried 2♥ (NF). Then 2 passes and RHO came in again with 2♠. You passed and so did your LHO. Your partner fell into a long tank and finally doubled. RHO passed and what could you do now?

Are you barred from certain action? If so, what bid can't you make?

[Jlall]

I think double is penalty so I would pass.

However, if you thought double was something other than penalty I don't think a slow X suggests either takeout or penalty either way. Thus, you can do whatever you want. It's not like you have a hand that wants to pull a slow penalty double, you should be jumping up and down on your chair so happy that partner doubled.

[FrancesHinden]

You've got unauthorised information that partner was not confident about his double. You are not allowed to select a call "demonstrably suggested" by that information.

What does partner's slow double suggest?

To me that depends a bit on our partnership agreements and indeed on partner.

If we have a clear partnership understanding that this double is penalties (which I agree with Justin that it should be), then a slow double suggests that partner is not totally certain it is going off, and the slow double suggests pulling. This would be most likely at love all (rather than the actual vulnerability) if partner has 3 decent spades and a heart fit, doesn't want to defend 2S undoubled and is guessing whether to double - which will need to be +300 - or bid on to 3H.

However I've got no reason at all to pull a penalty double as I've got a stormingly good hand in context for defence and a poor hand for bidding on.

If we have one of those general agreements that "double is always take-out unless it's obviously penalty" then partner's slowness is trying to decide what the double means, and it doesn't suggest anything in particular so I can do what I want.

[blackshoe]

Law 73C said:

When a player has available to him unauthorized information from his partner, such as from a remark, question, explanation, gesture, mannerism, undue emphasis, inflection, haste or hesitation, an unexpected alert or failure to alert, he must carefully avoid taking any advantage from that unauthorized information.

So ask yourself what partner's break in tempo suggests to you, and then ask yourself if the action you're contemplating takes advantage of — is based in any way upon — that suggestion. If it does, don't do it.

[Cyberyeti]

blackshoe, on Jul 11 2009, 09:15 AM, said:

Law 73C said:

When a player has available to him unauthorized information from his partner, such as from a remark, question, explanation, gesture, mannerism, undue emphasis, inflection, haste or hesitation, an unexpected alert or failure to alert, he must carefully avoid taking any advantage from that unauthorized information.

So ask yourself what partner's break in tempo suggests to you, and then ask yourself if the action you're contemplating takes advantage of — is based in any way upon — that suggestion. If it does, don't do it.

Partner's hesitation suggests he doesn't know what double means either.

You could have ♥QJxxxx and out, it's difficult to believe he can have a penalty double opposite that, so what does he have ?

To me this would never be clearcut penalty, it's probably action style, a maximum with 3 or 4 decent spades and 3 hearts.

I don't feel the hesitation gives a problem here as I don't feel there is a suggested action.

I would pass and hope to score 200 if we don't have game and 500 if we do.

[bluejak]

It may mean that to you, but with my partners we know it is takeout. So whatever he was thinking about, it wasn't the meaning.

[Cyberyeti]

bluejak, on Jul 20 2009, 06:23 PM, said:

It may mean that to you, but with my partners we know it is takeout.  So whatever he was thinking about, it wasn't the meaning.

If it's takeout, then this is a non problem, pass is just not in the frame.