STAYMAN CONVENTION
The origin of this conventional method is somewhat clouded. The initial concept was employed in the early days of the game of bridge by Mr. Ewart Kempson of England and was further developed by Mr. S.J. Simon to exchange additional information about the holding of partner following an opening of 1 No Trump. In the following years the concept was devised independently by Mr. John C.H. Marx of England and Mr. George Rapee of New York, United States, around 1945, who was the regular bridge partner and friend of Mr. Samuel M. Stayman. However, this newly devised concept was actively further developed by Mr. Samuel M. Stayman, who then published and promoted this concept within the bridge community, and was henceforth known as the Stayman convention.
It has been proposed that Mr. John C.H. Marx of England was unable to publish his version of this conventional method until 1946 because all bridge publications were suspended due to a paper shortage in England at the time when the war demanded all resources. Source: Bridge's Strangest Hands written by Mr. Andrew Ward, page 217.
One form of the Stayman convention is known as the Non-Forcing Stayman Convention. Although this is somewhat of a misnomer, because the response of 2 Clubs to the No Trump Opening forces the 1 No Trump opener for one round. The non-forcing element of this version of the Stayman convention refers to the fact that if, after the No Trump opener responds to the 2 Club bid and the responder bids a new higher-ranking suit on the two level, the No Trump opener is not required to continue the bidding. The No Trump opener may pass as shown in the following example.
Opener
Responder
1 NT
2
Forcing for one round. 2
2
Non-Forcing rebid. The opener may pass.
There is another version of the Stayman convention called the Forcing Stayman. This version is played exactly the same as the Non-Forcing Stayman convention, except for the fact that the opener may not pass a rebid by responder on the two level. The opener must continue bidding as long as the auction remains below the 2 No Trump Level.
Opener
Responder
1 NT
2
Forcing for one round. 2
2
Forcing rebid. The opener may not pass below 2 No Trump.
From the two illustrations above, the technical difference between Non-Forcing Stayman and Forcing Stayman should be clear. These two versions of the Stayman convention are still being played and if this is your partnership agreement, please adhere to this understanding. It must be noted, however, that the Jacoby Transfer has efficiently replaced any reasons for the responder to rebid a different suit on the two level, thereby rendering the use of the Non-Forcing or Forcing version of the Stayman convention unnecessary.
STAYMAN CONVENTION
A typical hand is shown below, and with similar holdings, we shall attempt to illustrate the usefulness of the Stayman convention. The general range for the No Trump opening for this conventional method is considered to be between 15-17 points. However, the Stayman convention can be used for a strong No Trump range between 16-18 points and a weak No Trump range anywhere between 10-14 points and balanced distribution. Depending on the No Trump range the required values of the responder are fewer or increased. For this presentation we use the 15-17 point range for the No Trump opening.
AKQ4 A76 Q43 J54
9876 KJ43 K72 Q7
In order to use the Stayman convention, the responder must have:
1. At least 8/9 high card points and one 4-card Major Suit
1.1. Responder should not hold a 5-card Major. 1.2. Transfer bids and/or variations of the Stayman convention are preferable holding a 5-card plus Major suit and/or a 5-4 distribution in both Major suits. 2. The 4-card Major suit should preferably have at least one of the top five honors.
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Next we review the forced responses of the No Trump bidder:
1. If the No Trump bidder does not have a 4-card Major, the No Trump bidder automatically bids 2 Diamonds. This is the so-called Denial Bid. 2. If the No Trump bidder has 4 cards in both Majors, the No Trump bidder can bid either the Heart suit or the Spade suit first. The preference is to bid "up the line", which means that the Heart suit is bid first. 3. There is no reason to bid the Heart suit first, and there is no reason to bid the Spade suit first. 4. It is a matter of Partnership Agreement.
1. Since the No Trump bidder has limited his hand to 15-17/18 high card points, the responder becomes the Captain of the partnership and must decide the correct contract.
2. If responder has 8-9 high card points, and he realizes that they have an 8-card fit in a Major, then the rebid of the responder is either 3 Spades or 3 Hearts. This is purely invitational and not forcing. The No Trump bidder continues to game with the maximum high card points and passes with the minimum high card points.
3. If the responder finds no fit, then the responder bids 2 No Trump with 8/9 points to show no fit.
4. If the responder has 10-14 points (high card points plus distributional points) after finding an 8-card Major fit, then the responder bids game in that suit.
5. If the responder has 10-14 high card points, and he realizes there is no fit, the responder bids game in No Trump.
6. If the responder has 15 plus points, high card points plus distributional points after re-evaluating his hand, after finding an 8-card Major fit, then the responder should try for slam.
7. If the responder has 15 high card points plus, and discovers no fit, the responder should try for slam by asking the No Trump bidder for his number of Aces with the Blackwood convention, or the agreed partnership slam conventional methods, with the intention of playing the contract in No Trump.
A summary of the rebids by the No Trump bidder after responder has initiated the Stayman convention:
Meaning Stayman Convention asking for a 4-card Major suit. Denial bid. No 4-card Major suit. Promises a 4-card Heart suit, but does not deny a 4-card Spade suit. Shows minimum values per partnership agreement. Promises a 4-card Heart suit, but does not deny a 4-card Spade suit. Shows maximum values per partnership agreement. Promises a 4-card Spade suit, and generally denies a 4-card Heart suit. Shows minimum values per partnership agreement. Promises a 4-card Spade suit, and generally denies a 4-card Heart suit. Shows maximum values per partnership agreement.
There are many "ifs" and "thens", but do not let that worry you. Since everything is dependent on length and strength of the holding of the responder, it requires only a little memorization and the use of the Convention of Logic to sort things out. If you keep the Line of Communication open with your partner, he will be able to visualize your hand and reach the correct contract.
Try to remember and use the following little trick when using the Stayman convention. Although the No Trump bidder has limited his holding and his partner becomes the Captain, who will guide him to the correct contract, the No Trump bidder can show strength in his response. For example:
Meaning
AKQ4 A76 Q43 Q54
10987 KQJ8 765 K9 A rebid on the two level would should minimum values. A rebid on the three level would should maximum values.
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Other possible continuations by the responder of the auction presented above are as follows;
Meaning
AKQ4 A76 Q43 Q54
J987 Q8 AK65 AK9 / 3
Shows either minimum or maximum values. Sign off. To play. Gerber convention asking for Aces or Keycards. This is a quantitative rebid asking partner to bid 6 No Trump with maximum values or pass with minimum values.
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If you wish to include this feature, or any other feature, of the game of bridge in your partnership agreement, then please make certain that the concept is understood by both partners. Be aware whether or not the feature is alertable or not and whether an announcement should or must be made. Check with the governing body and/or the bridge district and/or the bridge unit prior to the game to establish the guidelines applied. Please include the particular feature on your convention card in order that your opponents are also aware of this feature during the bidding process, since this information must be made known to them according to the Laws of Duplicate Contract Bridge. We do not always include the procedure regarding Alerts and/or Announcements, since these regulations are changed and revised during time by the governing body. It is our intention only to present the information as concisely and as accurately as possible.
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