The curse of the "commanding lead"

From Kirsten's Musings:

"I lost the Cribbage Cup a few weeks ago, so I decided that it was time to win it back. I issued a challenge to the Mighty Joe Roberts, stating that it was time for the Cup to return to the west side of the building. He accepted the challenge, and the game was on.

He got off to a big lead in the first game, but I managed to keep it close. He'd have a 16-point hand followed by 2- and 6- point hands, so my steady flow of 8- and 10- point hands kept me within striking distance. Unfortunately he managed to peg out before I could make my final push. Game 1, Mighty Joe.

In the second game it was my turn to go out to a big lead. After the first turn I was ahead by 33 points, which prompted Mighty Joe to comment that I had a "commanding lead." Aaargh...this is the curse of death in our cribbage matches. Just about any time someone is noted to have a "commanding lead," it evaporates, and this was no exception. He kept chipping away at my lead, passing me on the last leg. It stayed close to the end, but I couldn't retake the lead. Game 2, and Match, Mighty Joe.

I know that Rajiv the Tiger wants to take a shot at Mighty Joe, so we'll see how next week's games go. Joe's had the Cup for far too long..."

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