Bidding in depth
After partner raises your major, a new suit below three of the major asks whether partner’s cards help in that suit.
You open one heart, partner raises to two. That raise is a limited hand of about six to nine points with three-card support. Now the decision is yours. With fewer than about 16 support points you pass and play the part-score; with more than 18 you bid four hearts. The difficult hand is in between: too good to pass, not good enough to bid game on your own. Game then depends on how well the two hands fit, and a help-suit game try finds out.
With about 16–18 support points, you bid a new suit below three of your major: the one where your hand is weakest, where your losers are. It asks partner: “I am interested in game. This is my problem suit. If your cards work here, bid game; if not, stop at three.”
| You | Partner |
|---|---|
| 1♥ | 2♥ |
| 3♣ | 4♥ |
Three clubs is the help-suit try, pointing at a weak club holding.
Partner’s job is to answer the question asked, nothing more.
Your weakest suit is where the contract is won or lost, which is why it is the one worth asking about. A king opposite your three small cards can turn three losers into one, exactly the card that makes game. And the try is kept below three of the major so partner can always stop there.
A help-suit game try decides the level, not the strain. It answers the same question as the Rule of 17 over a pre-empt (is game worth bidding?), but by asking about one suit rather than counting the whole hand.
After a simple raise of its major, BidMaestro makes a help-suit game try in that 16–18 range. Below it, it passes; above it, it bids game. For the try it chooses a real side suit of three cards or more with no ace or king in it — its weakest suit — and bids it below three of the major. It is always on — a standard part of major-suit bidding, not a convention you switch on.
With about 16–18 support points after partner raises your major, bid your weakest side suit below three of the major. Partner bids game with help there or a raise of 9 or 10 high-card points, and signs off at three without either.
