SOLUTION: Paul is 33 years old. He's three times older than his brother Phil was when Paul was the same age Phil is today. How old is Phil?

Question 615155: Paul is 33 years old. He's three times older than his brother Phil was when Paul was the same age Phil is today. How old is Phil?
Found 2 solutions by ankor@dixie-net.com, davethejackal:
Answer by ankor@dixie-net.com(22740) (Show Source): You can put this solution on YOUR website!
Paul is 33 years old.
He's three times older than his brother Phil, was when Paul was the same age Phil is today.
How old is Phil?
:
Let p = Phil's age
:
3(33-p) = 33
99 - 3p = 33
99 - 33 = 3p
66 = 3p
p = 66/3
p = 22 yrs is Phil's age
:
The difference in their ages is 11 yrs
11 yrs ago, Phil is 11, 3 time 11 = Paul's age

Answer by davethejackal(28) (Show Source): You can put this solution on YOUR website!
Let p=Phil's age.

Pauls was as old as Phil (33-p) years ago.
At this time Phil was [p-(33-p)] years old.

"Paul is three times older than his brother Phil was when Paul was the same age Phil is today."

So Paul's age now = 3 x phil's age when paul was as old as phil is now
=> 33=3 [p-(33-p)] = 3[2p-33] = 6p - 99

Rearranging => 6p = 33+99 => p = 132/6 =22.

Phil is 22.

Checking in the original statement, Paul is 33, so when he was 22, eleven years ago, Phil would have been 11 years younger than his current age of 22, i.e. 11. Paul is currently three times this age so the original statement is true.
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