Drunk con

[Guest]

I've been trying to remember the workings of this card con and am hoping some of you guys will be able to help. I seem to remember it being on one of Simon Lovell's videos, but I don't have access to them right now.

Anyway, the scam revolves around the fact that people often forget the hierarchy of winning poker hands. The con begins when a drunk walks into a bar and tries to get someone to play a hand or two with him. He's incredibly obnoxious and intoxicated and gets the mark all irritated. During the hand, the drunk accidently exposes the cards he holds so the mark can see them. The mark sees that the drunk has something like the 8h, Js, Jd, Jh, 7h and realizes that drunk is going to go for the full house. The mark looks at his own hand and sees that either his hand is better than any hand the drunk could make, or (and I think this is more the con) his hand has the cards that the drunk is looking for. The drunk draws two cards as expected, and the mark, thinking that there's no way for the drunk to beat him, bets and raises heavily. When they finally show their cards, the drunk tips his hand to reveal 7h, 8h, 9h, 10h, Jh. That is, he was drawing to a straight flush, not a full house, but the mark was so irritated by the drunk's antics that when he saw the drunk's hand he only looked to the obvious draw and not the less obvious but better draw.

Anyway, that's sort of the gist of it, but I can't remember what hands each one is supposed to be holding. If I've told the con wrong or left anything out, corrections would be great as well. In fact, any help anyone has would be greatly appreciated.

Andrew

[Guest]

I don't know for sure but try this. Give the mark

trip sevens and two eights. Mark plays pat, you

draw two and set the deck down face up. Jack on

bottom you grab the deck to turn it over and

flash the seven of hearts in your hand....Mike

[Guest]

Originally posted by Andrew Cohen:
I've been trying to remember the workings of this card con and am hoping some of you guys will be able to help. I seem to remember it being on one of Simon Lovell's videos, but I don't have access to them right now.

It's trick number 68 in Scarne on Card Tricks :"Scarne's Drunken Poker Deal." A whole bunch more can be found here on the forum, thanks to Paul Cummins.

[Guest]

Thanks for the link, it's an interesting reference with some good reading. What I'm really asking about, though, isn't the "drunken poker" trick where you deal hands from a mixed up deck. What I'm asking about is/was a con, but not magic, really. I'm interested in it more for the story and the psychology it displays. But I appreciate the comments and references all the same.

[Sean Piper]

Dai Vernon goes over this on his Revelations tapes/DVD's. I believe he calls it the Drunken Mitt.