[msjennifer]

SIR, This one happened to be BOARD 15 ,in AUG.2019 in a casual but high level match

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YOU HAVE YOUR CHOICE FROM 5H TO 7NT. WHICH ONE IS YOUR CHOICE?

[Winstonm]

My bid depends on my partner. If an aggressive raiser, I bid 5S. Otherwise, I simply bid 7H.

IMHO, the 4D cue here should have nothing to do with diamond control.

[Cyberyeti]

I bid 5N which for us is "tell me more", if partner bids 6♣ I bid 7♥. The main danger is that partner has something like Qxxx, Kxxxx, K, AJx and you don't have enough discards.

[FelicityR]

5♠ looks particularly sensible here as partner should get the message that you are looking for a grand slam, not just a small one as you could have bid 6♥ immediately.

Depending on your methods for dealing with a further possible disruption bid of 6♦ by the opponents, it does give you the option of either your partner or yourself responding accordingly to a forcing pass bid scenario to show extras or controls. Your responses at this level would have to done by agreement.

Flying in and bidding 7♥ or 7NT directly here is just not constructive.

[Winstonm]

FelicityR, on 2019-December-08, 13:35, said:

5♠ looks particularly sensible here as partner should get the message that you are looking for a grand slam, not just a small one as you could have bid 6♥ immediately.

Depending on your methods for dealing with a further possible disruption bid of 6♦ by the opponents, it does give you the option of either your partner or yourself responding accordingly to a forcing pass bid scenario to show extras or controls. Your responses at this level would have to done by agreement.

Flying in and bidding 7♥ or 7NT directly here is just not constructive.

The way I have always played the cue bid in this sequence is support and opening hand values. I can't imagine opening hand values missing the club A, so 7H is not so much a flyer.

[Cyberyeti]

Winstonm, on 2019-December-08, 14:24, said:

The way I have always played the cue bid in this sequence is support and opening hand values. I can't imagine opening hand values missing the club A, so 7H is not so much a flyer.

KQJ, Kxxxx, K, J10xx, but note any 4513 without the ♠K or QJ will have a loser even with both aces

[pescetom]

I'm on the same wavelength as FelicityR here, a control-bid of 5♠ and (as Terence Reese once wrote) the scales drop from partner's eyes.
If the opponents insist with 6♦ then by our agreements DBL shows second level control of ♠ and Pass shows control of ♦.
Curious to know if anyone uses one of the two to show control of ♣ instead.

[Tramticket]

5♠ for now. But I'm going to 7 unless partner fails to cue-bid clubs.

[Cyberyeti]

Tramticket, on 2019-December-09, 02:39, said:

5♠ for now. But I'm going to 7 unless partner fails to cue-bid clubs.

I thought about this, but what does 5N mean over 5♠ ? For us it is what partner would do with ♠K, if you're sure partner will bid 7 over 6♦ with ♣A then that's fine, but to us this would suggest that spades are more important than clubs.

[Tramticket]

Cyberyeti, on 2019-December-09, 05:09, said:

I thought about this, but what does 5N mean over 5♠ ? For us it is what partner would do with ♠K, if you're sure partner will bid 7 over 6♦ with ♣A then that's fine, but to us this would suggest that spades are more important than clubs.

We don't have any sophisticated agreements for 5NT. it is defined as pick-a-slam or Josephine - neither are very likely here.

[Cyberyeti]

Tramticket, on 2019-December-09, 06:19, said:

We don't have any sophisticated agreements for 5NT. it is defined as pick-a-slam or Josephine - neither are very likely here.

We simply have the agreement that where it doesn't have a sensible meaning, it replaces the most expensive cue so spades here

[Winstonm]

Cyberyeti, on 2019-December-08, 14:27, said:

KQJ, Kxxxx, K, J10xx, but note any 4513 without the ♠K or QJ will have a loser even with both aces

My personal opinion - that is an easy 4H bid and not worth a cue. But that is only my opinion.
Also, it is the reason I wrote a qualifier in my first post that with an aggressive raiser I would bid 5S.

[mikeh]

KQJx xxxx x Axxx is too good for 4H over 3D, and looks about right for 4D. While grand is reasonable on the auction, it isn't the sort of grand one wants to be in at imps.

Now, he rates to hold a better hand than that, and grand is likely cold opposite most hands he might have. Thus, if we were told that our choices were 6H or 7H, it is easy...we bid the grand.

So the question is whether there is a meaningful way to involve partner in the decision. While nobody has yet mentioned this, as best as I can see, we do have an obvious grand slam try available: 6D.

Indeed, 6D is so obvious that I had to slow down and consider how that call will seem to partner. It is without doubt a grand slam try promising first round diamond control, so that fits. But at this level, we are not asking partner to show specific cards: he has, in essence, only two options. He can reject via 6H and any other call accepts the try for grand (and thus he really ought not to do anything other than 7H, since on this auction one would be nuts to look for 7N (given that the OP suggests this is imps)).

Ok, now we need to consider how good a player partner is and how he might assess his hand.

KQJx xxxx x Axxx is, to me, a rejection based on poor trump.

Kxxx Kxxx xx Axx: I think that this is an acceptance because it has controls in the side suits and a trump filler, but I may be allowing my knowledge of the hand to bias me. Btw, I think this is a minimum 4D hand, but 6D isn't about minimum or maximum: it is about the quality and location of your values. 6D is a BIG bid.

If I am playing with a good player, a true expert and someone I have played with a fair amount (so I know he or she will trust me, and I can trust them) I bid 6D. Otherwise I bid 7H. I cannot construct a plausible hand on which grand has zero play single dummy.

Btw, while I use 5N in a number of ways, depending on the auction, to me 5N here needs to be GSF. Picture Axx A10xxx void AKQJx. We don't need it for any other purpose. With a spade cue, we cue spades, with a club cue and no spade Ace, we bid 6C, and so on. But when all we need, realistically, is KQxx in hearts, we bid 5N (and hope he doesn't have KQx but note how careful I was to give us the 10 ).

[Cyberyeti]

Winstonm, on 2019-December-09, 10:32, said:

My personal opinion - that is an easy 4H bid and not worth a cue. But that is only my opinion.
Also, it is the reason I wrote a qualifier in my first post that with an aggressive raiser I would bid 5S.

Probably With ♣A and without ♥K is more likely, so KQJ, 109xxx, K, AJ10x you have no clue partner is looking for 7 and also don't know a raise is coming behind you, Axxx, AKQxx, xxx, x is potentially plenty to make a small slam opposite so you have to cue.