Bridge Basics 1TB7 by Richard Pavlicek

Lesson 9

The Stayman Convention

This is the main purpose of the Stayman convention — to find a 4-4 major-suit trump fit after a notrump opening bid.

Basic Use

Opener must bid a four-card (or five-card) major suit if he has one. With no four-card major suit, opener must bid two diamonds (also an artificial bid). Below is a summary of opener’s rebids after Stayman:

Opener has	Rebid
4+ card major	2 or 2
No 4+ card major	2

If opener happens to have both four-card majors, he should bid one of them. It makes little difference, but the recommended procedure is to bid hearts then, if responder does not raise hearts, opener should bid spades at his next turn.

Rebids by Responder

If opener showed a major suit and responder has four or more cards in that suit, responder should raise to the three level with 8-9 points to invite game; or raise to the four level with 10-14 points. Remember to count your distributional points as the dummy.

If a major-suit trump fit has not been found, responder usually should rebid two notrump with 8-9 points to invite game; or three notrump with 10-14 points.

Here is a summary of the common rebids after using Stayman:

Points	Major Fit Found?	Rebid
8-9	No	2 NT
	Yes	3 or 3
10-14	No	3 NT
	Yes	4 or 4

Besides the above, responder may also bid a five-card or longer suit of his own. With 8-9 points he may bid a major suit at the two level to invite game. With 10 or more points he may bid any suit at the three level, which is forcing. These rebids are summarized below:

Points	Suit Length	Rebid
8-9	5+	2 or 2
10+	5+	3 of any suit

Stayman over Two Notrump

Opener’s rebids are the same but one level higher — bid three hearts or three spades with four or more cards; or bid three diamonds to deny a four-card major.

Responder usually will raise opener’s major suit to game if a trump fit is found; or bid three notrump without a major-suit fit. These rebids are summarized below:

Points	Major Fit Found?	Rebid
4-10	No	3 NT
	Yes	4 or 4

Minor Suit Responses

First, remember that minor suits are a low priority in choosing the best contract. Generally, you should show a minor suit only with a very distributional hand or if there is a chance for slam (see Lesson 11).

With 2-7 points responder may indicate a six-card or longer minor suit by jumping directly to three clubs or three diamonds. This is a sign-off bid — opener should pass because game is out of reach.

With 10 or more points responder may indicate a five-card or longer minor suit by using Stayman first — even with no major-suit interest — and then bidding three clubs or three diamonds. This is game forcing.

To summarize these rules:

Points	Length	How to Show
2-7	6+	Jump to 3 or 3
10+	5+	2 then 3 or 3

Quiz 9

1.

A K 2 9 7 5 K Q 4 A 10 8 2

West _____ _____

East 2

2.

A Q 9 2 A 10 3 K Q 8 2 Q 3

West _____ _____

East 3

3.

K 2 A K 8 3 A K Q 2 Q 10 8

West _____ _____

East 3

4.

J 9 7 2 A J A Q 8 K Q J 2

West _____ _____

East 2

Now assume your partner opens the bidding and rebids as shown. Fill in the response and the rebid you would make.

5.

A 2 K Q 10 2 9 8 5 4 9 8 2

West 1 NT 2

East _____ _____

6.

A J 3 2 10 8 7 6 K 9 8 7 2

West 1 NT 2

East _____ _____

7.

K 2 J 8 7 4 A Q 9 8 7 4 8

West 1 NT 2

East _____ _____

8.

Q J 5 2 4 3 J 10 6 2 A 9 2

West 1 NT 2

East _____ _____

9.

A K 7 2 8 2 10 8 4 A Q 7 3

West 1 NT 2

East _____ _____

10.

J 9 8 6 5 A 9 2 K 3 2 6 5

West 1 NT 2

East _____ _____

11.

Q J 10 2 9 2 K 8 6 4 10 9 8

West 2 NT 3

East _____ _____

12.

9 8 7 6 A Q 9 7 6 10 8 4 2

West 2 NT 3

East _____ _____

Answers

1.	1 NT
	2

2.	1 NT
	Pass

3.	2 NT
	3

4.	1 NT
	2

5.	2
	4

6.	2
	2 NT

7.	2
	3

8.	2
	3

9.	2
	3 NT

10.	2
	2

11.	3
	3 NT

12.	3
	4