=SUM(LARGE(A1:A12,ROW(1:9))
There are two potential problems with this formula.
1. If you copy/drag it to another row, the row references in the ROW function
will change. Usually, I have avoided this by using a construct like
ROW(INDIRECT("1:9")).
However, I have JUST discovered that this problem can also be avoided by using
absolute references: ROW($1:$9). Can you think of any disadvantages to this
approach? If not, it would seem preferable to the INDIRECT construct as it
saves a level of nesting.
2. The formula will give an error if there are less than 9 entries. If this
is undesirable, one could do something like:
=IF(COUNT(A1:A12)<9,"",SUM(LARGE(A1:A12,ROW($1:$9))))
(**array-entered**)
--ron