Control-Denying Doubles
These are also (confusingly) known as Control-Showing Doubles, which they absolutely are
not! These are the opposite side of the coin to Non-Penalty Slam Doubles. These are used when it is
our hand and opponents have sacrificed over a high-level contract that we have bid, in a sequence where 2nd-in-Hand over their sacrifice is
not the Captain of the Hand (or where there is no firm Captain). The question at hand is whether we double their sacrifice or bid one more and Control of their suit has not yet been specifically been shown by cue-bids or an Asking Bid response. Now:
2nd-in-Hand
- Passes with 1st Round Control of their suit (at the 6-level) or with 1st or 2nd Round Control (at the 5-level)
- Doubles with no such holding.
4th-in-Hand
...
passes,
doubles, or
bids depending on their own holding.
Important Note:
Bear in mind that the above does
not apply when the Captain of the hand is sitting immediately over the opponent making the sacrifice bid, and does
not apply if the question of control of their suit has already been settled. Most importantly, these do
not apply when we are in the middle of an Asking Bid sequence: If the sacrifice is of a pre-emptive nature, then Pass by the Captain of the Hand is
Lebensohl, demanding a Double from Partner, and therefore cannot be a Control-Denying Double. Similarly, if the sacrifice is
not pre-emptive in nature (ie: not jumping at least one round of bidding) then Double and Pass are "asking" backwards.