Two reasonably competent chess players are discussing chess in a bar. A duffer comes up and challenges them to simultaneous matches, with the duffer playing white on one game, and black on the other. He offers a substantial bet on the outcome. However, since he's inexperienced, he will win the bet unless the two experienced players as a whole do better than the duffer. (That is, two draws or one win and one loss will result in the duffer winning the bet.)

The challenge is accepted, and play starts. After a few moves, the experienced players throw up their hands in disgust, and pay off the bet.

Question 1: What happened?

Question 2: Having accepted the challenge, what ought the experienced players to have done in order to win?

(In reply to re: Your answer to question 2 is incomplete by levik)

What happened?
The duffer played the same moves as his opponent with the same color. 

Having accepted the challenge, what ought the experienced players to have done in order to win?
Making the games timed games is a bit unreasonable as it puts an additional restraint on the duffer that is not placed upon the competent chess players.  As the same restraint placed upon a player of equal competency as the other two would give the other two a distinct advantage.

It is not unreasonable that the two competent chess players declare that the games will begin after the duffer makes his first move.  And, as long as the competent player playing white does not use an opening identical to that of the duffer, the competent players should be able to best their games.

Another option is that the competent players declare that one of the two matches be an unorthodox game, such as Fischer Random chess.  It matters not which of the two games is the unorthodox game as either competent player should still best the duffer and the duffer will be unable to play one game off the other.

Fischer Random chess is played like the orthodox game, but the set-up is different:

White Pawns are placed on their Orthodox home squares.
All remaining white pieces are placed on the first rank, randomly or with with an assigned starting square with the following restrictions:

• The white King is placed somewhere between the two white Rooks.
• The white Bishops are placed on opposite-colored squares.

The black pieces are then placed equal-and-opposite the white pieces as in orthodox chess.

Edited on February 9, 2008, 11:36 pm

Posted by Dej Mar on 2008-02-09 23:34:54