Risky Bet (Red) by Henry Evans
We absolutely love this trick! It's the kind of trick that gathers a crowd at a walkaround show. This is the sort of thing you will use IMMEDIATELY. And we love the use of the floor to "set the stage." It's a close-up trick, yet it plays big.
In effect, the magician has a spectator select a card from the deck. Without letting the magician see, the spectator can look at and show the selection to the audience. Then the card is placed into the center of the deck and the spectator shuffles it. The magician then claims that with in 2 attempts, he can find the selected card. In fact, the magician is so confident that he bets $5 if the card is not found.
Placing his wager of a $5 bill under his shoe, where it is safe and visible, the magician fans the deck and takes his first attempt to find the card. The revealed card is not the spectator's selection! One more incorrect guess and the spectator wins the bet! The magician using his last and final attempt pulls from the deck...a folded $5 bill! Since the magician's wager ended up where the selected card was in the deck, then the selected card should be where the bill was. Sure enough, there is now a face down card under the magician's shoe. Picking it up and turning it over reveals the spectator's selected card and the magician wins the bet!