Brain Teasers
A Dead Man's Hand
Texas Jack and Steady Eddie were old business partners who had a reputation of making and enforcing their own laws in their town. After many years of success and growing tensions between the two, Texas Jack and Steady Eddie decided to part ways in a unique fashion. They decided to play poker against each other - the winner would take the other's share of the business while the loser had 24 hours to leave town. The poker game made Steady Eddie especially nervous, as Texas Jack's visibly armed assistant blockaded the door. On the final hand, as the two were about to reveal their cards, Steady Eddie muttered,"With this hand, if I were shot right now, I would literally be a dead man." The armed assistant quickly drew his pistol, but to his chagrin, Texas Jack motioned for him to put the gun away. Why wasn't it necessary for Steady Eddie to become a literal dead man?
Answer
Texas Jack did not need Steady Eddie to become a dead man as he held the better hand: a flush. When Steady Eddie mentioned becoming a dead man, Texas Jack realized that his former partner held a Dead Man's Hand (a pair of Aces and a pair of Eights.) In real life, a man named Wild Bill Hickok was shot in the back while playing Aces and Eights, thus giving us the name "A Dead Man's Hand"!Hide Answer Show Answer
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