The Declarer's final pile holds these 22 cards: I, XXI, K
, Q
, II, III, IV, V, VI, VII, VIII, IX, X, XI, XII, 7
, 8, 9, 10, 2
, 3, 4. The Declarer's Pagat (the I) silently won the very last trick of the hand, unannounced.
Count the Card Points, say whether the contract succeeded, and total the Victory Points both players score.
Reveal answer
Answer
22 Card Points: 22 cards ÷ 3 gives 7 with one card left over, and a single leftover rounds away to nothing, so the base count stays 7. Pip count: the I and XXI (Trull) = 8, the K = 4, the Q = 3, total 15; 7 + 15 = 22, nowhere near the 36 needed. The contract fails, and the opponent scores 3 Victory Points for the win. But the Pagat Ultimo happened anyway, and bonuses belong to whoever earns them, win or lose: the Declarer still scores 1 Victory Point for the silent Pagat Ultimo. Strawman’s forgiving core, doubled: an announced bonus never costs you if it fails, and a completed bonus never checks whether your contract did too.
= 4, the Q = 3, total 15; 7 + 15 = 22, nowhere near the 36 needed. The contract fails, and the opponent scores 3 Victory Points for the win. But the Pagat Ultimo happened anyway, and bonuses belong to whoever earns them, win or lose: the Declarer still scores 1 Victory Point for the silent Pagat Ultimo. Strawman’s forgiving core, doubled: an announced bonus never costs you if it fails, and a completed bonus never checks whether your contract did too.