The 1 NT opener normally has a stronger hand than its partner. Ideally, the partnership wants the opener's stronger hand to remain hidden from the opposition. If the opener mentions the trump suit first, the opener is the "declarer" of that suit and the responder exposes its hand when laid down as the "dummy".
When the responder has a 4-card major suit and at least 8 HCPs, the responder bids 2 ♣ , which is the "Stayman Convention". This artificial bid is a signal to the opener to bid its 4-major suit. If both opener and responder have the same 4-card major suit, the opener mentions the major suit first, and becomes the "declarer" of that major suit.
Once play begins, the responder with the weaker hand becomes the "dummy" and lays its hand face up on the table for all to see. The declarer's hand, which is stronger, remains hidden from the opponents.
If the responder has a 4-card major suit, the partnership might still be able to play a contract in that 4-card major suit. The opener will still have 2 to 4 cards in one major suit, and 3 to 4 cards in the other major suit. If the opener has the same 4-card major suit as the responder, the partnership has an 8-card fit which is normally enough to make a contract in that suit. The partnership can play a contract in that major suit. The purpose of the Stayman convention is to find that 8-card major fit, if it exists.
The responder uses the "Stayman Convention" (a secret, coded instruction) which asks the opener to bid the 4-card major suit it holds. The Stayman bid is 2 ♣ , an artificial bid (a secret, coded instruction). The responder does not want clubs to be the trump suit, but instead is a request for the opener to bid its 4-card major suit so that suit can become trump. In this way, the opener will mention the desired trump suit first in order to be the declarer so that the responder's weaker hand will be exposed in the dummy.
Responder's Requirements for a Stayman Bid • Suit Length: The responder must have one or both 4-card major suits (hearts or spades). The major suit(s) must be exactly 4-cards long - the suit(s) cannot be longer or shorter. Ignore any long suit in a minor.
Note: If the responder has a 5-card suit in a major, the responder would use the Tranfer convention instead of the Stayman convention.
• Point Count: The responder must have 8 or more HCPs in the hand. The location of the points does not matter.
Stayman Strategy
In most cases, the opener's 1 NT hand is stronger than the responder's hand. If the partnership wins the contract, the weaker hand should be the "dummy" where it is exposed face-up on the table. The player that first bids the suit that becomes trump is referred to as the "DECLARER". The declarer's partner becomes the dummy, and lays down its hand face-up on the table for all players to see. The stronger hand of the declarer remains hidden from the opponents. The strategy is to encourage the 1 NT opener to be the first player to bid the eventual trump suit.
Path 2 - Stayman Response to 1 NT Opening
Stayman Responses to 1 NT Opening
Responder's HCPs and Bid
0-7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
Part Score
Game Major
Game Minor
Path 2 4-card Major (Stayman)
4 hearts and/or 4 spades
PASS
2 ♣ Stayman
6/7/2024
15-22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
Minimum PARTNERSHIP Point Count (assume opener holds 15 HCPs)
1 NT Stayman Process (5 Steps)
Step 1: Opener bids 1 NT .
Step 2: The responder has two options. If the responder has:
• 0 to 7 pts: the responder bids PASS.
• 8 to 17 pts: and a 4-card major, the responder bids 2 ♣ . This artificial bid informs the opener that the responder does not have a 5+card major, but does have a 4-card major and at least 8 HCPs. This bid asks the opener to identify the opener's 4-card major, if there is one.
Step 3: Opener makes 1 of 3 bids revealing the presence or absence of a 4-card major suit:
• If the opener has NO 4-card major, the opener bids
×Step 3: Opener reveals it does not have a 4-card major and bids 2 ♦ . The partnership will not play a major suit contract, but will play a No Trump contract.
Step 4: - Responder reveals the responder's point count:
• 8-9 HCPs: responder bids 2 NT . There are not quite enough combined points for a game in No Trump.
• 10-17 HCPs: responder bids 3 NT . There are enough points for a game in No Trump.
Step 5: Opener confirms the final contract level.
If responder bid 2 NT and the opener has:
• 15 to 16 HCPs - Opener bids PASS . There are not enough points for a game.
• 17 HCPs - Opener bids 3 NT . There are enough points for a game.
If responder bid 3 NT , the partnership is at game level, so the opener bids PASS .
Since the opener mentioned No Trump first, the opener is the declarer and the responder's hand will be visible in the dummy.
• If the opener has a 4-card heart suit (and perhaps a 4-card spades suit), the opener bids
×Step 3: Opener reveals a 4-card heart suit and bids 2 ♥ . The opener guarantees it has a 4-card heart suit.
Step 4: The responder reveals its 4-card major suit and makes one of four bids:
• If the responder has a 4-card heart suit, the responder bids 3♥ or 4♥ , depending upon the responder's points. This heart bid by the responder indicates the partnership will play a hearts contract.
If the responder has both 4-card major suits, the responder ignores the spades. The opener might not have a 4-card spade suit. Accept the known heart contract - one bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.
• If the responder does NOT have a 4-card heart suit, the responder will have a 4-card spade suit, otherwise the responder could not have bid Stayman. The partnership will not play a hearts contract. Instead, the responder wants to know if the opener also has a 4-card spade suit so the partnership could play a spade contract.
If the responder has a 4-card spades suit, the responder bids 2♠ or 3♠ , depending upon the responder's points.
Step 5: The opener confirms the contract and level.
•
×Step 5: The opener confirms the partnership will play a hearts contract.
If responder bid 3 ♥ , the responder has 8 to 9 pts and there may not be enough points for a game in hearts.
• If opener has 15 or 16 pts there are not enough points for a game. The opener bids PASS and plays a sub-game hearts contract.
• If opener has 17 pts there are enough points for a game, and the opener bids 4 ♥ and plays a game-level hearts contract.
If responder bid 4 ♥ , the responder already bid game in hearts, so the the opener bids PASS and plays a game-level hearts contract.
or
•
×Step 5: The opener confirms the partnership will play a Spades contract or a No Trump contract.
If responder bid 2 ♠ , the responder has 8 to 9 pts and there are not be enough points for a game in spades.
• If opener also has a 4-card spade suit, the partnership can play a spades contract. The opener bids PASS and plays a sub-game contract in spades.
• If opener does NOT have a 4-card spade suit (has only 2 or 3 spades), the partnership can not play a spades contract. Instead the partnership will likely play better in a No Trump contract. The opener bids 2 NT and plays a sub-game level contract in No Trump.
If responder bid 3 ♠ , the responder has 10 to 17 pts and there are enough points for a game in spades.
• If opener also has a 4-card spade suit, the partnership can play a spades contract. The opener bids 4 ♠ and plays a game contract in spades.
• If opener does NOT have a 4-card spade suit (has only 2 or 3 spades), the partnership can not play a spades contract. Instead the partnership will likely play better in a No Trump contract. The opener bids 3 NT and plays a game level contract in No Trump.
Note: If the partnership ends up in a spades contract, the partner is the declarer and the opener's hand will be visible in the dummy.
• If the opener has a 4-card spade suit ONLY, the opener bids
×Step 3: Opener reveals a 4-card spades suit and bids 2 ♠ . The opener does NOT have a 4-card heart suit.
Step 4: The responder reveals the presence or absence of a 4-card spade suit and makes one of four bids:
• If the responder has a 4-card spade suit, the responder bids 3♠ or 4♠ , depending upon the responder's points. This spade bid by the responder indicates the partnership will play a spades contract.
• If the responder does NOT have a 4-card spade suit, the partnership will not play a major suit contract.
The partnership will play a No Trump contract. The responder bids 2NT or 3NT , depending upon the responder's point count.
Step 5: The opener confirms the contract and level.
•
×Step 5: The opener confirms the contract level in spades.
If responder bid 3 ♠ , the responder has 8 to 9 pts and there may not be enough points for a game in spades.
• If opener has 15 or 16 pts there are not enough points for a game. The opener bids PASS and plays a sub-game spades contract.
• If opener has 17 pts there are enough points for a game, and the opener bids 4 ♠ and plays a game-level spades contract.
If responder bid 4 ♠ , the responder already bid game in spades, so the the opener bids PASS and plays a game-level spades contract.
or
•
×Step 5: The opener confirms the level of the No Trump contract.
If responder bid 2 NT , the responder has 8 to 9 pts and there may not be enough points for a game in No Trump.
• If opener has 15 or 16 pts there are not enough points for a game. The opener bids PASS and plays a sub-game No Trump contract.
• If opener has 17 pts there are enough points for a game, and the opener bids 3 NT and plays a game-level contract.
If responder bid 3 NT , the responder already bid game in No Trump, so the the opener bids PASS and plays a game-level No Trump contract.
Note: If the partnership ends up in a spades contract, the partner is the declarer and the opener's hand will be visible in the dummy.
