DAILY BRIDGE CLUB

“The man was born with a silver horseshoe in his mouth,” Unlucky Louie grumbled.

Louie meant the player we call Harlow the Halo. While Louie’s bad luck is unending, Harlow continually basks in a tanning bed of good luck. His finesses never lose, his errors never cost.

In a team match, both Louie and Harlow played six spades. Harlow took the A-K of clubs, ruffed his last club in dummy, cashed the king of trumps, finessed with the jack and took the ace. He led a diamond to dummy’s jack, winning, and made seven.

“If he had needed a 3- 3 diamond break, he’d have gotten that too,” Louie sighed.

Louie’s play was better. He took the ace of hearts at Trick Two and then the A-K of trumps. He threw a diamond on the king of hearts, ruffed a heart, cashed his second high club and ruffed his last club in dummy. Louie then ruffed a heart and went to the ace of diamonds to discard his last low diamond on the good fifth heart.

Too bad, Louie. Harlow’s luck can’t last forever. DAILY QUESTION You hold: one spade, and your partner responds 1NT. What do you say?

ANSWER: This is an uneasy situation in “Standard” methods. You seem to have the strength for game, and many players would choose a jump- shift to three diamonds. But your hand is not quite worth its point count; many of your values are located in your shorter suits. If you chose to bid two diamonds or perhaps 2NT, I wouldn’t be critical. North dealer Both sides vulnerable