Practice on Cuebids
Practice borderline game hands where opener and responder need to decide whether to stop in part-score or bid game.
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Systems
Last updated
2026-07-31
What is a Help Suit Game Try?
A Help Suit Game Try is used after opener bids a major and responder makes a simple raise. Opener bids a new side suit to show game interest and ask for useful cards in that suit.
The bid is not a natural attempt to play that suit. It is a cooperative question about whether responder's values are working or wasted.
Strength for the try varies by style, but opener typically holds around 16 to 18 total points, or about six losers: too much to pass the raise, not enough to insist on game.
A weak-suit or help-suit try may be only three cards long. A long-suit trial is a distinct treatment that promises four or more cards, so the partnership should not use the two labels interchangeably.
Game try after a heart raise
- 3 is a Help Suit Game Try in clubs.
- Responder bids 4 with useful club cards or signs off in 3 with poor help.
Game try after a spade raise
- 3 asks whether responder can help in diamonds.
- The partnership has already found a spade fit.
What counts as help?
Useful help usually means cards that cover losers in the game-try suit: aces, kings, fitting honors, shortness, or enough overall strength and shape to make game attractive.
A weak holding such as xxx in the suit is usually bad news. It means opener's losers may remain uncovered and the defense may have an easy lead.
- An ace in any length, a guarded king such as Kx or Kxx, fitting honors such as KQx, and shortness are all common sources of help.
- Qxx can be close and partnership style matters.
- With Jxx or three small cards, responder usually rejects.
- Extra trump length or useful side shape can upgrade responder's hand.
Responder actions
Responder accepts by bidding game and rejects by returning to three of the agreed major. Some pairs add counter-tries or last-train style bids, but simple accept-or-reject methods are enough for most auctions.
A common middle ground, by agreement, is the counter-try: a new suit below three of the trump suit shows values there when responder is unsure about the asked suit, and opener makes the final decision.
Responder should judge the whole hand, not just the named suit. A maximum raise with extra trump length may accept even with only moderate help, while a flat minimum may reject despite one honor.
Rejecting the game try
- Responder signs off because club help is poor.
- Opener should normally pass unless the try was very strong.
Accepting the game try
- Responder has useful diamond cards, shortness, or a maximum raise.
- Game is accepted.
Lead-directing cost
A Help Suit Game Try gives the defense information. If the auction stops short of game, the named suit may become an attractive opening lead. If responder accepts, defenders may avoid that suit because dummy likely has help.
This does not make the convention bad, but it means opener should avoid automatic tries on every invitational hand.
Other invitations and competition
Not every invitational sequence is a help-suit try. Many pairs keep a direct raise to three of the major as a general or trump-quality invitation and 2NT as a natural balanced try, and after 1 - 2 some pairs treat 3 as natural, still looking for a four-four heart fit. All of these meanings are by agreement.
When the opponents compete over the raise, bidding space shrinks. If their bid sits directly under three of the trump suit, there is no room left for a game try below three of the trump suit at all, so many pairs use a maximal double as the game try; with more room, new suits can still be played as tries by agreement.
Hand examples
The key question is whether opener's losers in the try suit are likely to disappear.
Opener has a real club problem
- After 1 - 2, opener can bid 3 as a help-suit try.
- Responder should accept with useful club cards or shortness.
Responder accepts
- Opposite a club game try, the club ace is excellent help for a simple-raise hand.
- Responder should usually bid game when the raise is near maximum and the help-suit cards are working.
Responder rejects
- After 1 - 2 - 3, this minimum raise has only Jxx in clubs, so opener's club losers are unlikely to go away.
- Responder signs off in 3.
Common mistakes
- Treating the game try suit as natural.
- Accepting with wasted values and no help in the named suit.
- Making automatic game tries with every invitational hand.
- Forgetting that the try can guide the opening lead.
FAQ
Does a Help Suit Game Try promise length in the suit?
A weak-suit or help-suit try may be only three cards long, while a long-suit trial promises at least four. The partnership should agree which treatment it uses.
How does responder reject?
The usual rejection is returning to three of the agreed major.