Question: When Gondorf produces four Jacks as the winning poker hand, how does he know four Jacks will be good enough to win? The most likely way he can produce the four Jacks is that he has that hand hidden somewhere and can get to it anytime he needs it. Wouldn't it have been smarter to have four Kings or four Aces or a straight flush available?
The Sting (1973)
1 question since 4 Mar '25, 04:35
Directed by: George Roy Hill
Starring: Robert Redford, Paul Newman, Charles Durning, Robert Shaw, Dana Elcar, Robert Earl Jones
Plot hole: Doyle attends Gondorff's betting shop three times, and he listens to the announcer calling three races from three different race tracks - Narragansett in Rhode Island, Belmont in New York, and Riverside Park in Missouri. He cannot possibly miss the fact that the same announcer calls all three races! J.J. Singleton, the race caller, has an instantly recognisable voice, and Doyle wouldn't be fooled for a second. Each race track would have had its own announcer.
Upvote valid corrections to help move entries into the corrections section.
Suggested correction: There are a lot of things Doyle is processing when he's in the shop. There's a lot happening, and he has a lot on his mind, and increasing pressure and stress each time. It's quite possible that he wouldn't notice the accent of the announcer, something he has no reason to doubt.
Rubbish. During his first two visits, he sits quietly listening to the race announcements. On his second visit, he would recognize J.J. Singleton's distinctive voice and would realize something was very wrong.
Doyle Lonnegan: Not only are you a cheat, you're a gutless cheat, as well.
Trivia: Producer Julia Phillips (died 2002) became the first female producer to win an Oscar for "Best Picture" for this film. The Oscar for "Best Picture" goes to the producers of the winning film since 1952. She shares the Oscar with fellow producers Tony Bill, and her then-husband Michael Phillips.
Join the mailing list
Separate from membership, this is to get updates about mistakes in recent releases. Addresses are not passed on to any third party, and are used solely for direct communication from this site. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Check out the mistake & trivia books, on Kindle and in paperback.
Answer: He knows (from intelligence gathered by JJ) that Lonnegan's go-to cheat is to stack a deck to give himself (Lonnegan) four nines and his opponent four threes. Therefore, he knows that giving himself four jacks will beat it.