So much for introducing a tiebreaker system to help eliminate the luck factor in the Pigskin Picks contest.

Honolulu's Karen Nakamura won this week's contest by picking all 15 games correctly and then winning the tiebreaker by coming the closest to the combined total yards of the University of Hawai'i-Florida game.

"We used our birthdays (for the tiebreaker)," said Karen's husband, Wayne.

Their birthday combination of month and day totalled 643 and the actual total yardage in the UH-Florida game was 647.

That allowed Nakamura to beat 57 other perfect ballots to win the weekly first prize of a trip for two to Las Vegas and $500.

"This is all luck," Wayne said. "To actually get close (in the tiebreaker) is luck."

Karen Nakamura had another admission that torpedoed the Advertiser's attempt to lessen the luck factor.

She said her husband actually made the picks and submitted her name.

"She's the lucky one, so if I enter it's her name I put on," Wayne said. "Whenever we both enter things, her number gets picked and mine doesn't, so no sense putting my name."

Said Karen: "He claims I'm the lucky one, though, I have my doubts about that. He's the smart one."

Karen, now retired, worked for the City & County, as does Wayne. She says she's "enjoying my time, working on arts and crafts and helping as a caregiver for friends and family."

She and Wayne go to Las Vegas about four times a year. "I'll gladly take him (to Vegas)," said Karen, referring to her husband of 22 years.

She said she enjoys playing video poker, and her biggest winning was $400, which already has been topped by winning Pigskin Picks.