To choose two out of three, three coins are flipped, and if two coins come up the same and one different, the different one loses (is out), leaving two players. Three-way coin flips are also possible, by a different process – this can be done either to choose two out of three, or to choose one out of three. Some high-profile coin tosses, such as the Cricket World Cup and the Super Bowl, use custom-made ceremonial medallions. Larger coins tend to be more popular than smaller ones. The coin may be any type as long as it has two distinct sides it need not be a circulating coin as such. Such cases in which a coin does land on its edge are exceptionally rare and in most cases the coin is simply re-flipped. Angular momentum typically prevents most coins from landing on their edges unsupported if flipped. A computational model suggests that the chance of a coin landing on its edge and staying there is about 1 in 6000 for an American nickel.

However, even on a flat surface it is possible for a coin to land on its edge. It is possible for a coin to land on its side, usually by landing up against an object (such as a shoe) or by getting stuck in the ground. When the coin comes to rest, the toss is complete and the party who called correctly or was assigned the upper side is declared the winner. Depending on custom, the coin may be caught caught and inverted or allowed to land on the ground. The other party is assigned the opposite side. Either beforehand or when the coin is in the air, an interested party declares 'heads' or 'tails', indicating which side of the coin that party is choosing.

Process ĭuring a coin toss, the coin is thrown into the air such that it rotates edge-over-edge several times. In England, this was referred to as cross and pile. A Roman coin with the head of Pompey the Great on the obverse and a ship on the reverseĬoin flipping was known to the Romans as navia aut caput ('ship or head'), as some coins had a ship on one side and the head of the emperor on the other.

Coin flip simulator