U.S. Seniors win gold

At the 2016 World Bridge Games, Bob Hamman-Chip Martel, Jeff Meckstroth-Zia Mahmood and Reese Milner-Hemant Lall won the gold for the United States in the Senior Teams. They rolled through the qualifying stage and early knockout matches but had to rally against France in the final.

In today’s deal, Martel-Hamman bid a good slam as North-South. After Martel showed strength and heart support, Hamman took over with a variation of the Blackwood convention.

CLUB LEAD

West might have led a spade — East had not doubled North’s reply of five clubs — but as the cards lay, it wouldn’t have mattered. Hamman won the actual club lead, took the top trumps and ran the diamonds to pitch spades. Making six, plus 980.

In the replay, South for France opened 1NT. That was an accurate statement of his high-card points but failed to take into account his good five-card suit and abundant prime values. The French rested at 3NT — North had no thoughts of slam — and the U.S. gained 10 IMPs.

DAILY QUESTION

You hold: ♠J 5 4 2 ♥ J8 5 ♦ A Q 10 7 4 ♣ A. You open one diamond, your partner responds one heart, you bid one spade and he bids 2NT. What do you say?

ANSWER: Partner’s 2NT invites game. If he wanted to play at 3NT, he could have bid it or maybe bid two clubs, a forcing “fourth-suit” call. Pass. You can’t bid three hearts, which would be forcing, and you have no reason to think that a heart contract would be superior to 2NT. South dealer Neither side vulnerable