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Stayman convention
01
a bidding system used by the responder to ask the opener if they have a four-card major suit, typically either hearts or spades, after an opening bid of 1NT
What is the "Stayman convention"?
The Stayman convention is a way for a player to ask their partner if they have four cards in either hearts or spades after the partner has bid no-trump. The player does this by bidding clubs, which signals the question. If the partner has four cards in one of these suits, they will respond by bidding that suit. The goal is to determine if the partnership can play in a major suit, which can often lead to a better result than playing in no-trump.
Examples
The Stayman convention helps us avoid a no-trump contract if we can find a good major suit fit.
By using the Stayman convention, the responder can ask the opener if they have a four-card major suit.
