When We Have Both Majors Opposite 1NT

 

Partner opens 1NT.  Now, how do you handle those invitational or weak hands where you are 4-4 or 5-4 in the majors?  There are various methods available, please read on.

 

 

17th January, 2007           Board 19      Dealer South       E-W Vul

 

Before we decide what to respond here, let's review some methods after the auction starts 1NT 2♣, 2♦?  Some of the possibilities include:

 

Method A:       2♥ is invitational and 4-5 in the majors

                        2♠ is invitational and 5-4 in the majors

 

Method B:       2♥ is weak and 4-5 in the majors

                        2♠ is weak and 5-4 in the majors

 

Method C:       2♥ says “pick a major” (aka “Garbage Stayman”)

                        2♠ is invitational and 5-4 in the majors.

 

Of the three, Method A is our least favorite because it makes no provision for weak major two-suiters.  Method B is flawed because it provides no method for showing the 5-4 invitational hand, so our preference is the hybrid Method C, which handles all weak and invitational major two-suiters.  To recap:

            1NT 2♣, 2♦ 2♥            All weak 4-4, 5-4, 4-5, 5-5 hands

            1NT 2♣, 2♥ 2♠            Invitational, 5-4

            1NT 2♦, 2♥ 2♠             Invitational, 4-5

 

Method C may be our favorite but it is also flawed, as can be seen on the actual hand.  When the auction starts 1NT 2♣, 2♦ 2♥, Opener has no way of knowing when one of Responder’s majors is longer than the other.  Consequently, it’s possible to end up in the 4-3 fit instead of the 5-3, or even (perish the thought) the 4-2 instead of the 5-2.

 

 

10th May, 2007                 Board 11       Dealer South        None Vul

 

 

What is your plan as South?  One option would be to transfer to Hearts, planning to play it in 2♥, unless Opener super-accepts to show a maximum and 4 Hearts, in which case game is a possibility.  Plan B would be to use Garbage Stayman … South bids 2♣, then, after 2♥ or 2♠, passes … and, if North bids 2♦, then South bids 2♥, which, by partnership agreement, can show a weak hand and both majors.  We prefer the Garbage Stayman option, giving up on the highly unlikely game possibility, but improving the chances of finding a part-score major suit fit.

 

30th August, 2006             Board 6      Dealer East       E-W Vul

 

 

Do you think that the North hand is good enough to force to game?  Or is it invitational only?  Seems like a close call to us, so you choose.  Now, having made your choice, what are your methods?

 

If you think the North hand is invitational:

The most common method with this so-called invitational hand is to transfer to Hearts and then bid 2♠, showing 4-5 in the majors.  And, if we are 5-4 in the majors?  Then the prescribed method is to use Stayman, and then over 2♦ to bid 2♠.

 

If you think the North hand is game-forcing:

Now, we use Stayman, and if Partner bids 2♦, we jump to 3 of a major.  There is a little wrinkle available, namely Smolen … playing this gadget, we jump to three of the 4-card major, instead of to three of the 5-card major … this way we get the strong hand as Declarer if we end up playing in game in the 5-3 major fit.  Without Smolen, the auction will be 1NT 2♣, 2♦ 3♥, 4♥ Pass, resulting in North being the Declarer.

 

 

20th September, 2006       Board 12      Dealer West       N-S Vul

 

 

Of course, if we have a 4-4-3-2 yarborough, we’d be most likely to look for a better contract because we don’t like the one we are currently in.  The obvious method would be to use “Garbage Stayman”.  Suppose that Opener did not have a 4-card major, what then?  The auction 1NT 2♣, 2♦ 2♥ simply says “I’m trying to play  in your better major, so pass or bid 2♠, please”.  The possible outcomes of a Garbage Stayman adventure are as follows:

-         you will find a 4-4 major fit, and surely that will play better than 1NT

-         there is no 4-4 major fit, but Garbage Stayman gets you to a 4-3 major fit … with 15 points opposite a very weak hand, this will usually be a better spot

-         there is no 4-4 major fit, but Partner, alas, opened 1NT with a 2-2-4-5 or 2-2-5-4 hand, and the resulting contract is a 4-2 major fit.

 

That’s fine when Responder is very weak and when 1NT looks like a poor contract.  But here we have 7 HCPs, not quite enough to invite to game, but enough to believe that Partner will do quite well playing in 1NT.  However, when we have a lesser hand, and both majors, there is a school of thought which says that we should try for the 4-4 major fit anyway, even though we are not trying to escape from 1NT with a weak hand, and even though we have no intention of bidding game or trying for game.  The theory is that the odds favor us being able to improve the contract in 2♥ or 2♠.

 

You’ll notice that we’ve used the terms “theory” and “school of thought” in the above narrative.  That’s because there does not seem to be any right or wrong here, by all accounts, the probabilities are rather evenly balanced … some players go the Garbage Stayman route with these hands, and some don’t.  Choose for yourself, but first be sure that you and your Partner are on the same wavelength on the meaning of the auction 1NT 2♣, 2♦ 2♥.

 

On the actual hand, going the Garbage Stayman route hits pay-dirt when Opener obligingly responds 2♥.  It turns out that 2♥ makes 9 or 10 tricks (depends how Declarer guesses the trump suit), whereas 1NT makes but 7 or 8 tricks.

 

27th September, 2006       Board 7      Dealer South       Both Vul

 

 

This one is on the cusp between inviting game and insisting on game … in a team game (especially being vulnerable) we would insist on game … at matchpoints, it’s not so clear, we’d probably take the optimistic route anyway (seduced by the Heart fillers), but wouldn’t want to be dogmatic about it.

 

Anyway, make your own choice, and then consider the methods available:

-         If you consider the hand to be invitational:  the prescribed method for showing a 4-5 invitational hand in the majors is to transfer to Hearts, and then bid 2♠ … 2♠ can be passed or raised, or else Opener can go back to some number of Hearts or No Trump, depending on his strength.

-         If you consider the hand to be game-going:  now, we use Stayman … we’ll raise a major suit response, of course, and we’ll bid 3 of a major over Opener’s 2♦ response.  Which major do we bid?  The natural approach is to bid 3 of our 5-card suit, offering a choice (in this case) between 3NT and 4♥.  There is also a useful gadget available, known as Smolen, whereby we bid 3♠ (the 4-card major), offering Partner the same choice, but allowing the strong hand to be Declarer in 4♥.

 

OK, that’s how to handle the 4-5 major suit hands.  How about when we are 5-4?  With the game-going hand, it’s the same method as above.  And, when we are invitational, we use Stayman, and then, after a 2♦ response, we bid 2♠.

 

25th October, 2006           Board 7      Dealer South       Both Vul

 

 

Normally, with a 5-card major opposite a 1NT opening we start out by transferring to that major.  This hand is a rare exception to that rule.  West’s plan should be to Stayman the hand and then, over 2♦, to bid 2♠.  This sequence shows 5-4 in the majors, with invitational values.

 

8th November, 2006         Board 29      Dealer North       Both Vul

 

 

Clearly, letting Partner struggle in 1NT is likely to lead to -200 or -300.  It must be better to look for a fit, at least that way our hand might actually be able to contribute something to the proceedings.  We can think of three possible plans:

-         Bid 2♣ and pass the response … not a good idea, Partner might be 3-3-2-5 and we’ll end up in a 3-2 Diamond fit

-         Transfer to Hearts … that’s more like it, at least this way we’ll be in a 5-2 fit at worst.

-         Bid 2♣ and, if Partner bids 2♦, bid 2♥.  This is the so-called Garbage Stayman (aka Creeping Stayman and Crawling Stayman).  Partner is supposed to pick her better major in this situation.

We’d go the creepy-crawly route ourselves, it gives us two ways to win.

 

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