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September 1st, 2024 (Permalink)
The Return of Three-Card Monty
"'Three-card Monty*' is the name; three-card monte is the game!" he shouted to the passing crowd on the boardwalk. Monty caught the eyes of a young couple: Jack, and his date, Jillian. The couple approached the large cardboard box that Monty used as a table. Monty took out a deck of cards, spreading it out face up on the box, and assured them that it was a standard deck of playing cards. Then, gracefully gathering the cards together, he riffled through the deck with the faces towards him, and pulled out three cards. He dealt the three cards face down in a row on top of the box.
"Listen close, whatever you do," he said to them, pointing to the row of cards, "to the right of a King is a Queen or two."
"To win or not to win, there's the rub!" he added, "a Heart or two are to the right of a Club."
"If you want to win, here's the thing," he continued, "to the left of a King is another King."
"And here's the most important part: there's a Heart or two to the left of a Heart."
"Now, listen to the final clue," Monty concluded, "to the left of a Queen is a Heart or two."
"Are you ready to find the lady?" he asked them, "find a gent, you won't win a cent!"
Which card should Jack and Jillian pick to win? Be careful! When Monty says that a card is to the right or left of another, he doesn't necessarily mean the immediate right or left. Also, right or left is from the point of view of the two suckers―I mean, the nice young couple.
Remember: Monty doesn't lie.
A standard deck of playing cards does not include two cards of the same value and suit.
Jack and Jillian picked the rightmost card and won! Did you?
Explanation: The Queen of Hearts is the rightmost card. The other two are the King of Clubs and the King of Hearts, but which order they are in can't be determined from the clues.
* If you haven't met Montgomery Banks―not his birth name, I'm sure―he's a trickster who always speaks the truth and nothing but the truth, but he doesn't always tell the whole truth. Moreover, he never uses sleight-of-hand or gimmicked cards. Monty doesn't manipulate cards; he manipulates minds. For previous puzzles involving Monty, see:
- Three-Card Monty, 4/19/2018
- The Four Ace Puzzle, 6/24/2018
- A Valentine's Day Puzzle, 2/14/2019
- Three-Dice Monty, 3/12/2019
- For All the Marbles, 2/6/2021
- The Return of Three-Dice Monty, 8/4/2021