Huh? Certainly there's no rule against buzzing in for a conundrum when you don't know the answer. It's been done before. Also fudging numbers games isn't illegal, I did it once, maybe. I seem to think I declared, forgot what I'd done in the time and just kept going assuming I would remember at some point, and didn't. Of course since I couldn't remember what I'd done at the time, there's no way of knowing if it was the same solution I'd actually used in the game. I remember Jon O'Neill in his Countdown experience said more or less the same thing.Jon Corby wrote:Yes. He's a cheat. I actually still found that numbers game (where he blatantly stole his opponent's declaration and made it up on the spot) worse though.Gavin Chipper wrote:He also admitted at the start of this game that he didn't have the answer when he buzzed in with THWARTING, as discussed here.
Let's not bandy about words like cheating for stuff that isn't against the rules. I think "ethically dubious" is the right term, I'd also accept "immoral" or "unethical" if you feel strongly enough. I think what Jon's said could be interpreted as lying, that is, deliberately trying to deceive others. I don't interpret it that way mind you, I think he's just got a very extreme view of cheating.