tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4717062726091119776.post-60926901472931874902007-08-31T11:56:00.000-05:002007-08-31T12:13:35.049-05:00(highlight to view)<br /><br /><span style="background: rgb(204, 204, 204);">This is a set of 25 playing cards. Each trio of letters gives the rank (2-9,T,J,Q,K,A) and the suit (Clubs, Diamonds, Hearts, Spades), followed by a letter or "*" which will be used at the end of the puzzle.<br /><br />As the title and instruction imply, these 25 cards can be arranged into one each of the top 5 poker hands (Royal Straight Flush, Straight Flush, Four of a Kind, Full House, and Flush) as follows:<br /><code><br />AC, KC, QC, JC, TC (royal straight flush)<br />7S, 6S, 5S, 4S, 3S (straight flush)<br />9H, 8S, 8H, 8D, 8C (4 of a kind)<br />AH, AD, 4H, 4D, 4C (full house)<br />KD, QD, JD, TD, 3D (flush)<br /></code><br />Note that within each hand, cards are kept in the same descending order as in the original puzzle listing. Now, by reading off the third letter (or "*") associated with each card in this new order, we get:<br /><code><br />T*T*L*FR*NKS*NF**R*F*K*ND<br /></code><br />By filling in the vowels, we get "Total of ranks in four of a kind." The cards involved in the four of a kind are four 8s and a 9, which total up to 41, a number between 33 and 52, and the solution to this puzzle.<br /></span>Jeb Havenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15354554606360978644noreply@blogger.com