## Help solve this story problem

Simple patterns, variables, the order of operations, simplification, evaluation, linear equations and graphs, etc.

### Help solve this story problem

My son came home with a math packet to do for fun over summer. We've worked and worked this one particular problem on it that both he and I have worked and worked and we still can't get the correct answer. Can you help? Here's the problem:
Tyrone, Brett, Gabe and Mario compete in a softball throwing contest. Tyrone won the contest with a distance of 79.25 meters. Brett threw 10.65 meters less than Mario. Gabe threw 6.9 meters further than Brett but 2.75 meters less than Tyrone. How many meters did Mario throw the softball?

Here's what we've come up with:
T=79.25
B=M-10.65
G=B+6.9 G=T-2.75

We're trying to solve for M.

So G=76.5, B=69.6 and M=80.25

However the story problem says that Tyrone won with a distance of 79.25, so Mario couldn't have thrown 80.25.

Where did we go wrong???
pixleyyy

Posts: 1
Joined: Sat Aug 22, 2009 10:39 pm

I don't see that you did go wrong. I have a feeling the author of this convoluted exercise is the one that made a mistake somewhere!:oops:

stapel_eliz

Posts: 1783
Joined: Mon Dec 08, 2008 4:22 pm

### Re: Help solve this story problem

On my first pass I came up with the same 80.xx distance for B that you did. However, I realized as you that this was an error.

The problem states B = 10.65 < M .... so, M is B + 6.9m or G - 6.9m. 58.95 = 69.60 #3 M - 10.65m (question states #4 B threw
10.65m < #3 M.

I imagine looking at the problem repeatedly over the summer perhaps was blinding.

This problem struck me as one that would look good on a graph or even a number line.

I don't know if I got this correct, but my computations for everyone except M were the same as yours.
jordierocks94

Posts: 5
Joined: Thu Aug 13, 2009 10:26 pm
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