The goal
Win exactly the number of tricks you bid. Highest total after all hands wins.
Setup
3 to 7 players, each for themselves. One 52-card deck, ace high.
The deal
Hand 1: 7 cards each, then one fewer each hand down to 1, then back up to 7 (13 hands). Turn up the next card: its suit is trump.
A turn
- Bid in turn from the dealer’s left: say how many tricks you will win. Zero is allowed, passing is not.
- Left of the dealer leads: plays the first card of the first trick. Follow suit (play the suit led) if you can; otherwise play any card.
- Highest trump wins, otherwise the highest card of the suit led. The winner leads next.
Special cards
- The hook: the dealer bids last and may not make the total of bids equal the number of tricks.
- No card left to turn up: play without trump.
Scoring
- Exactly your bid: 10 + bid.
- More or fewer tricks: 0.
Winning
After the last hand, the highest total wins.
House rules
- No hook. The dealer may bid any number, so every player can make their bid in the same hand.
- Trick points. Score 1 point for every trick you win, plus a 10-point bonus when you win exactly your bid.
- Start from one. Deal one card in the first hand, two in the second, and so on, up to the most cards the deck allows.
