Top 5: Awesome Bar Bets You'll Always Win (Probably)

Most of these bets and tricks involve empty bottles, coins and dollar bills. Learn a few new tricks to impress your friends, or just hustle them out of al their singles and change!

When you've finished with this instructable check out my website for more step-by-step written tutorials with pictures or have a look at my YouTube channel for more videos.

My website: TheBestHobbiesBlog.com

YouTube channel: Youtube.com/TheBestHobbiesBlog

Step 1: Watch This Video!

Watch me perform and explain each of these nifty tricks and bets in a short video!

Step 2: The Business Card Flick

All you'll need is a business card from your own or a friend's wallet and a penny. Place the card on top of the bottle and the penny on top of the card. Make sure the penny is positioned over the opening of the bottle. Flick the edge of the card and send it flying! The penny will fall straight into the bottle.

Step 3: Liberate That Dollar From a Stack of Quarters

Place a dollar on top of an empty bottle and pin it down under a stack of four quarters. The bet here is to remove the bill without touching or removing the quarters. Lick your finger and quickly swipe down at the bill. It will stick to your moist finger and pull out from under the coins without displacing them from atop the bottle. Voilà, you're practically David Copperfield.

Step 4: Yea, They'll Get This One Wrong

Place a bottle upside down on the center of a dollar bill. Ask a friend to remove the bill without touching or knocking over the bottle. Most people will attempt to yank the bill out from underneath the bottle. Unfortunately for them this will never work. Instead the answer is to roll the bill. keep your fingers in either side as you roll. The center of the bill will push the bottle off smoothly. Perfection, you've won yourself a dollar!

Step 5: There's More Than One Way to Get the Job Done

For the same bet there is another option. Instead of rolling the bill you can also make a fist and pound the table as you pull gently on the dollar. As the bottle bounces, the bill will work its way out from underneath. This works well as long as the table allows enough bounce. If it's too sturdy the bottle will barely budge.

Step 6: Bottle Sculpture

Can you balance a full drink on top of three empties and some butter knives? Of course you can! Place the bottles in a triangle shape. Hold two knives so that they cross at the blades and their butts each rest on a separate bottle. Add the third knife so that it weaves under one of the two already in place and over the other. Congratulations, you're a master of architecture! Well, maybe not, but this is still pretty cool.

Step 7: Enjoy!

If you know some more clever bar bets and tricks, I'd love to hear about them in the Comments section. Remember to check out the links in the description of this instructable for my website and YouTube channel (subscribe for new instructional videos and projects every week). Have a great summer!

Comments

[mbridwell]

Olive into the wine glass trick is pretty cool. Place an olive on the bar in front of guest, next to the olive sit a wine glass(upright)next to it and tell guest they need to get the olive inside the wine glass with out touching olive or picking it up with hands or any object. When they give up, simply place wine glass OVER the olive(upside down) and quickly move in circular motion, the faster the better,The olive will spin up into the wine glass, as it climbs up into middle swoop glass quickly back upright position and olive will be in glass. I'm bartending tomorrow maybe I can shoot a video!!!

[Cricketlips]

Cool !

[The Best Hobbies Blog]

That's pretty great, I've actually never heard that before. Thank you for sharing!

[yosoyelkurgan]

thumbs up! also a fine trick! thanks!

[Mihsin]

Last time I went to a bar was The Pink Pussycat in Mpls., Minn., 1965, however, I'll perform your bar tricks to much younger companions in my village.

Best regards,

[Mihsin]

Last time I went to a bar was The Pink Pussycat in Mpls., Minn., 1965, however, I'll perform your bar tricks to much younger companions in my village.

Best regards,

[BobS135]

Wait until someone next to you buys an expensive drink. Place a napkin over it and bet them $1 that you can drink it without removing the napkin or getting it wet. When they take the bet, remove the napkin, drink it, and pay them the $1. :)

[Namirreh]

I had a lot of fun with this one.In Canada , I would order a "Zombie".....4 or 5 or 6 kinds of rum, plus a liquior I beleive, anyway, back in the '70s when a beer was a buck a "Zombie " was about $10.+, so I would instagate someone into "buying the most expensive drink in the bar" and I can drink it without the glass leaving the table,my hand touching the glass or the table, nor the drink's glass touching my lips.........Now that the victum is hooked, or to push her/him over the edge,tell 'em you'll throw in "And I'll give you a buck if I can't, hen down the drink and throw 'em a buck, pretty well always ends up with a good laugh...........plus a return prank !

[kewrw28]

Good Job. Always fun. :)

[Heyup]

Well done mate these are very good. but so easy.. Thanks.. John :)

[ВладимирФ]

Thank you for sharing

[barmaid56]

Or take 15 matches or toothpicks. It doesn't matter who goes first but you can take only 1 or 2 or 3 matches on your turn. No matter what, I can make sure you end up with the last match. Trick: always make sure you get the 10th match so whatever the other person does, they will end up with the last match. Got a lot of free drinks with this one!

[barmaid56]

Guys, I know it involves math but I stand by it. Yes, on occasion you can lose, but no bar bet is fool proof when it involves liquor. Just don't drink your winnings until you have sufficient cups stacked, lol. It doesn't matter who does what, just remember, you want that 10th match, so any combo after that they will lose. And aurad68, if you mimic them in the first round, it plays with their heads. Just keep the count in YOUR head.

[augrad68]

I lost the first time:

They - took 1, I took 3, they took 2. Whether I took 1, 2 or 3, I could lose. I was not able to get the 10th one in this combination.

[millmore]

The trick is to always take 4 matches in total for both of your turns combined (e.g. they take 1, you take 3. They take 2, you take 2. They take 3, you take 1), and to make sure you take the last one, you need to make sure they end a turn on 13, 12 or 11 so that you aren't forced to take the last one. That means you need to end the previous turn on 10, and 6 before that, and 2 before that.

So in your scenario, they take 1, you take 1 (total 2)

They take 2, you take 2 (total 6)

They take 3 for example, you take 1 (total 10)

Now if they take 1 (total 11), you take 3 - takes you to 14. If they take 2, you take 2 (total 14). If they take 3, you take 1 (total 14). Either way, they are forced to take the last match

The only way to loose is if they start and they take 2, and then they play perfectly as described. If you start, take 2 and follow this pattern, and you are guaranteed to win. If they start and take 2 but don't know what they are doing, take 1s in the hope that they don't take 3 - that will often get you back on track, which is to end your future turns on 2, 6 or 10.

In some variations, the goal is to take the last match, not leave it. Just add 1 to the numbers to do that, i.e. aim for 3, 7, 11.

[allen.benge]

I used to make from five to twenty dollars at a time by betting I could boil water on a business card. One simply folds each side of the card up, to form sort of a boat, then put a little water in, enough to cover the bottom of the 'boat.' Using a lighter, hold the flame under the card, and the water boils, letting you collect your prize. Water boils at 212 degrees F, and card stock burns at around 450 degrees. The water will not get hotter than 212 degrees, preventing the card from burning.

[Daryl Keeling]

Great Tricks Thanks

[tommy tinker]

2 quarters & a coffee cup or any container that is opaque. Hide one quarter in your left hand, don't let anyone see you do it, place the other quarter on the table place the cup upside down over it. Bet that you can get the quarter off the table without touching either the cup or the table.

When the bet is made slide your left hand under the table (with the other quarter), wave your right hand over the cup and snap your fingers. Pull your left hand out from under the table and show them the quarter.

When they lift the cup to prove the quarter is still there, reach out with your right index finger and place it on top of the quarter slide it to the edge of the table and pick it up without touching the table.

[Mike Pulskamp]

"I will give you a nickel for every quarter that you can stand on its edge." It's not super easy, but not that hard either, but hell, I will give you a nickel for any quarter... That's a pretty good return!

[cal13]

Here's a simple one that only requires a dollar bill and a somewhat gullible or cocky friend. Get a dollar bill (the higher the value the better) from a friend. crumble it lightly into a ball. have your friend places his hand palm down about 3-5 inches above it. you place you hand palm down 3-5 inches above him. the challenge is for him to grab the bill before you do. simply swipe the bill from under his hand and watch as his hand slams down after you've already secured your prize. Unless your friend has an unusually fast reaction time (though no one really does especially after a drink or two) you will be able to grab the bill each time. You can even begin to move you hand higher and higher above his though I would not recommend more than about 9-10 inches.