How to know to look for slam

[Zelandakh]

It may not be the place for this sub-forum, but a new suit following 1M-2M raise could be, with partnership agreement, one of two hand types: A game try or a slam try.

It should really be one of (at least) 3 hand types with a bluff to induce a misdefence included. Fred wrote a decent BBF article on this sequence a few years ago.

 

 

If accepting the game try, and you wish to be sophisticated, you could build in some continuations that preserve bidding space to cater for the unlikely event that partner had the slam try possibility.

Not so sure this counts as sophisticated. Andy (gnasher) is one of the leading proponents of this approach on BBF and it is hard to see any reason not to follow his advice.

 

 

All that having been said, it is quite common for a new suit to show (initially) a *game* try asking for help in the suit, and then later, when showing a slam try, clarifying that that the earlier bid was a strength-showing control.

Is it? Most seem to play that the conversion just switched the game try to a slam try rather than this being an advance cue situation. Of course the style of help try is also relevant - if we are playing SSGTs (or two-way) then you could argue that it turns into a shortage-showing cue bid but that would be a strange definition. One advantage of playing your two-way game tries reversed (HSGT direct, SSGT indirect) is that jumps can retain their "natural" splinter meaning without duplicating sequences.

 

In any case, two-way gives you many options here. For example, with our suit spades we have 4♣♦♥; 3NT; 3♣♦♥ followed by 3NT over a non-accept; 3♣♦♥ followed by 4♣♦♥ over a non-accept; 2NT followed by 3NT; and 2NT followed by 4♣♦♥. That is 5 different sorts of slam try plus an extra one if Responder does not accept the direct game try. Those might correspond to singleton splinter; void splinter; natural slam try; Frivolous (general) try; and serious cue, with the extra optione separating out two different types of natural try. However you organise, there is enough space here to cater to almost everything you might think of.

 

 

Edit: wrong forum for this again. Please ignore if your name is not Jack. :)

[gszes]

This has been an interesting thread. Thanks to all who contributed.

 

I am a beginner, and in my life I think I might have used cue bids once. My impression was that cue bids generally show control. So, if I open 1S, partner responds 2S, and I realize slam is a possibility, on the given hand I might have bid 3D (had I remembered that cue bids exist). That would have said two things: I can't control clubs, and I can control diamonds.

 

I have never before heard of using a cue bid to ask if partner can help with a suit, as earlier responders have recommended.

 

When does a cue bid show weakness in a suit, and when does it show strength in a suit?

 

Thanks very much!

 

RobR

 

Do not confuse the concept of a HSGT Help Suit Game Try with cuebidding. The HSGT does not promise game it

can merely be a form of game invitation. Cue bidding is definitely a slam going auction meaning that we

have already decided on at least game and we are showing a control in case either one or both of us prefers

to go to slam. If you adopt HSGT then cue bids will take place after a HSGT or other game forcing auction

has happened (that is why 1s 2s 3c (HSGT) 4d is a cue bid since it is agreeing to play game in spades and

the cue bid happens because opener may have more than just game interest).