So it's Mark's game. Is he mad?



Yes.

On with the game, then. No surprise to see killersbee pick up on the attire... och aye the no, top two backups right away, but it gets better from there, orange-high blue-low blue. Crumbs, how long since Mad Sarah's game now?!?

Down to two of the Power 5 at the first commercial break and he's shrugging it off? We have a gambler here, folks! And the Banker knows it; this is a weaker board than Debbie's at this point and it's the same offer that the analytical crew considered nigh-on dealable even then. I would not think any less of anyone who took this, but I wouldn't, and he doesn't.

Survival, there - two high blues and The Rock. This could be Deal time. Offer is again just short of the mark for me; again I wouldn't begrudge a Deal; again we don't get one.

Blue... blue... ORANGE! Suddenly this is actually a rather strong board, and the Banker has nowhere to go... one comedy interchange later, we get an offer that I'm tempted to turn down simply because I'm thinking it should have been a bit more, and it strikes me (and probably only me) as an offer designed to instigate a No Deal, it being an offer from Courtney's game and just below the typical target. Describing it like that makes me want to Deal out of spite, but I'm doing the maths again and I think it's barely higher, if at all, relative to the mean so as the board's no less stable I'm playing on.

Oh, there we go. Mark asks for twenty grand, and behind the thematic comedy is the message 'just gamble, damnit'. Which he does, but not before admitting that contrary to the wishes of the host and/or producer, he'd rather sell the £250k for a five-figure sum than gamble to a blue.

Well, he's kept the one that matters, and that triggers an offer the other side of £20k, the producer now back in character and actually playing properly to buy the box. We confirm that we only got this far because of the producer's intervention, and it's absolutely the right decision to Deal, no matter what happens next.

And what happens next? The OPW confirmed in one box. Well played!

Another entertaining player. £19k was probably an easier decision for me at 8 box that £17k but anything close to £20k was probably worth dealing at 5 box and to get the OPW at the first attempt was a nice ending.

The theme with the banker 'not seeing the board clearly' was a bit strange, and little coincidence that it went on until the ADP of 8-box (sounding like KP here...). When Mark was on the wings, I thought there was a possibility he would deal at 11-box, and he did waver a bit, but perhaps Noel bigging up a board that wasn't there served to heighten the (to use KP's term) 'let's-gamble-damnit' mentality.

Not that a player should allow themselves to become easily influenced into an out-of-character decision, but we have seen it before, although thankfully Mark ended up playing the game perfectly and hopefully was true to himself in how he played it. I just thought the theme went on a bit long and was slightly distracting to the decision making process. It just didn't really feel as if the banker was taking the game seriously at all up to, er... 5-box really.

Still, on the other hand it was an OPW, which are becoming pleasingly more frequently lately!

Given Mark is Scottish I wonder why he didn't play yesterday - Burns Night according to my diary - not like DOND to overlook a possible theme.

Anyway good game, some odd humour with the running joke about the drunken Banker but a great result.

Proof yet again that if the 5 box offer is higher than 80% of the board it's usually worth taking

I miss courtney

Very enjoyable and entertaining show today. Mark's tactic of trying to get the banker drunk was simialr to Igor's trying to outlive him (!) but it worked to a tee.

He was lively and entertaining without being annoying too, and I loved his accent. I've been to see the Scottish Open Gold at Loch Lomond the last 2 years and I'm going again this year, it really is a beautiful part of the world, so it must be wonderful living round there.

I was really glad he had the nerve to turn down a lowered offer, I always feel asking for more is a dangerous tactic, though if you're really clever it can pay dividends like Adam - I could tell he was ready to deal, but I couldn't deal a lowered offer through sheer bloody-mindedness and pride, and I think Mark thought the same. I was so glad he survived the round with the £250k intact, and as I was watching it on 4OD, there was only 4 minutes left when he was getting to the question at 5-box, and I was praying he'd deal as I knew it would be a quick disaster if he didn't, I breathed a huge sigh of relief when he took the biggie out first box!

I was really hoping he had the 1p at the table as well but it didn't really matter.

Well played!

I love Indian runner ducks!!! Well done Mark.

I had a big problem with the banker lowering his offer
Raising it - sure, because the offer is still there, he's just added more but lowering it?? It's going back on his word and if he can do that why doesn't he phone up to lower the offer when the player is clearly dealing?
To me, taking money away from an offer already on the table should definitely be against the rules.

It seems no one agrees though?

Well Mark did ask for the offer to be raised and was only considering it rather than obviously about to deal. I think it would be a lot different, and cause a lot of uproar if the player had asked for the question, or even Noel is in process of asking it, then the banker rings up to lower the offer. That would be 100 times worse!

Great OPW for a great player!

I'm sooo proud of him!!! He done the family proud!!