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This means A-2-3-4-5 (called a wheel or bicycle, just as it is as a high hand) is the best possible low hand, and the ace is the lowest card. For a high-low split game, it also forms a high hand: a five-high straight. In order to avoid confusion, we will discuss only ace-to-five low at the moment. It is then sometimes known as a 'fitter'. For example 6-5-4-2-joker would count as a pair of sixes in normal poker with the joker wild, but in ace-to-five low poker the joker could be used as an ace, and in deuce-to-seven low poker it could be used as a seven to complete a low hand. Lowest Card Wild.
Origin | United States |
---|---|
Alternative names | gin, knock poker, poker gin, gin poker |
Type | Matching |
Players | 2 |
Skills required | Memory, tactics, strategy |
Cards | 52 |
Deck | French |
Play | Clockwise |
Card rank (highest first) | K Q J 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 A |
Playing time | 15 min. |
Random chance | Low |
Related games | |
Conquian, American Mahjong, Desmoche, Rummy |
- I'm trying to count the number of 'ace high' hands in a five card poker hand. The solution from my answer key puts the count at 502,860; however, I have an argument for why this number is too high.
- Your lowest five cards count, but these cards must all be different ranks. (Paired cards only qualify as one low card, not two!) 2. The first card to consider is the highest card of your five, then the next highest card and so on. In Hi/Lo poker an Ace counts as a low card when you are calculating the low part of the board. In fact, the Ace.
- We better get to Stratford and get a seat, first in a £1/£2 no limit holdem game, before making our way up to the £2/£5. Doesn't seem to matter which continent we're on, as we still wrap up.
- It pays 2:1 (meaning that the player receives two dollars for every dollar bet) and is available when the dealer's exposed card is an ace. The idea is that the dealer's second card has a fairly high probability (nearly one-third) to be ten-valued, giving the dealer blackjack and disappointment for the player.
- Definitely, Ace is always 1 and never 11, never considered it being worth 11. Allowing it to be part of a run with Q K A seems to put a couple more points into the game, that's an effect I've seen. It shows up significantly in a Q K A 4 hand being worth 7 points instead of just 4 points. Slightly higher average point values in hands.
Gin rummy, or simply gin, is a two-player card game created in 1909 by Elwood T. Baker and his son C. Graham Baker.[1] It is a variant of rummy.
- 5Playing
- 7Variations
History[edit]
According to the magician and writer John Scarne, gin rummy evolved from 19th-century whiskey poker and was created with the intention of being faster than standard rummy but less spontaneous than knock rummy.[2] John Scarne's theory deriving rummy from poker via whiskey poker has not gained general acceptance.[3]
Deck[edit]
Gin rummy is played with a standard 52-card pack of cards. The ranking from high to low is King, Queen, Jack, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, Ace.
Poker Ace Count As 1 2
Objective[edit]
The objective in gin rummy is to score points and reach an agreed number of points or more, usually 100, before the opponent does.
The basic game strategy is to improve one's hand by forming melds and eliminating deadwood. Gin has two types of meld: Sets of 3 or 4 cards sharing the same rank, e.g. 8♥8♦8♠; and runs of 3 or more cards in sequence, of the same suit, such as 3♥4♥5♥ or more. Deadwood cards are those not in any meld. Aces are considered low—they can form a set with other aces but only the low end of runs (A♠2♠3♠ is a legal run but Q♠K♠A♠ is not). A player can form any combination of melds within their hand; all sets, all runs, or some sets and some runs.
The deadwood count is the sum of the point values of the deadwood cards—aces are scored at 1 point, face cards at 10, and others according to their numerical values. Intersecting melds are not allowed; if a player has a three-card set and a three-card run sharing a common card, only one of the melds counts, and the other two cards count as deadwood. For example; within the five cards 7♣7♠7♦8♦9♦, the seven of diamonds can be included in the set (7♣7♠7♦) or included in the run (7♦8♦9♦), but it cannot be included in both.
Dealing[edit]
Dealership alternates from round to round, with the first dealer chosen by any agreed upon method. The dealer deals 10 cards to each player one at a time starting with their opponent, and then places the next card in the deck face up. This begins the discard pile. The face down pile is known as the stock pile.
Playing[edit]
On the first turn of the round, the non-dealing player has first option of taking the upcard on the discard pile or passing. If the non-dealing player takes the upcard, they must then discard a different card to the discard pile. The player acting second can take the top card from the pile of their choice. However, if the non-dealing player passes the upcard, the dealer is given the opportunity to take the upcard or pass. If the dealer also passes, the non-dealing player must draw from the stock pile, then the next turn and after, players can draw from the pile of their choice.
On each subsequent turn, a player must draw either the (face-up) top card of the discard pile, or the (face-down) top card from the stock pile, and discard one card from their hand onto the discard pile.
Players alternate taking turns until one player ends the round by knocking, going Gin, or until only two cards remain in the stock pile, in which case the round ends in a draw and no points are awarded. The game ends when a player reaches 100 or more points (or another established amount). In tournament rules the game is played in best of five with 250 points per game.[4]
Knocking[edit]
In standard gin, only a player with 10 or fewer points of deadwood may knock. Knocking with 0 points of deadwood is known as going Gin or having a Gin hand, while knocking with deadwood points is known as going down.[5]
To knock, the knocking player discards as usual, announces knocking (generally by simply placing a discard face down), and the hand is laid out with the melds clearly indicated and deadwood separated. The other ('defending') player is then entitled to lay out any melds in their hand and can then lay off any of their remaining deadwood cards that fit into the knocking player's melds, provided that the knocking player does not have a gin hand.
For example, the knocking player has a meld of three Kings. The defending player's deadwood has a king. The player can lay off that king, reducing the deadwood count by ten. The knocking player can never lay off their deadwood into the defending player's melds. Once a player knocks or declares gin the round is over and scores are tallied, players cannot draw.
Poker Ace Count As 1 5
The knocking player then subtracts their deadwood points from the defending player's deadwood points. The result is the number of points the knocking player receives. An undercut occurs if a player knocks and the defending player's deadwood points are less than or equal to the knocking player's. In this case the defending player receives an undercut bonus (usually 25 points) plus the difference in deadwood points. If the defending player has less or equal deadwood to the knocking player's deadwood after laying off any of their deadwood, then it is still a valid undercut.
Gin[edit]
Cards played from a Gin hand
If all 10 cards in a player's hand fit into melds and thereby the player has no deadwood, they can choose to go Gin in which case the round ends and the player going Gin receives a Gin bonus of 25 points (or another established amount) plus any deadwood points in the opponent's hand. The defending opponent can only lay out their melds and cannot lay off any deadwood into the melds of an opponent that has declared Gin. A player can go Gin with a hand of three or fewer melds as long as all cards fit into a meld. Players can also have an 11 card gin, see Big Gin Variant below.
Big Gin[edit]
Gin hands normally consist of 10 cards. However, if a player chooses to draw so that 11 cards fit into melds, they can declare Big Gin in which case the player receives a Big Gin bonus of 31 points (or another established amount, commonly 50 points instead of the standard 31 points, depending on rule set) plus any deadwood in the opponent's hand.
Scoring[edit]
Aces are scored at 1 point, face cards at 10, and all other cards are scored at their numerical values. The number of points awarded for bonuses may vary from region to region. No matter what the bonus amounts are, points are scored in Gin for the following:
- Knock points
- After a player knocks, and the layoffs are made, the knocking player receives a score equal to the difference between the two hands. For example, if a player knocks with 8, and the defender has 10 deadwood points in their hand after laying off, the knocking player receives 2 points for the hand. If a player is able to knock before any cards are accepted, it is considered a misdeal.
- Gin bonus
- After going gin, a player receives a bonus of 25 points plus the entire count of deadwood in the opponent's hand. There is no chance to lay off when a player goes gin.
- Undercut (or underknocking)
- Occurs when the defending player has a deadwood count lower than or equal to that of the knocking player (this can occur either naturally or by laying off after a knock). In this case, the defender scores an undercut bonus of 25 points plus the difference in deadwood in the knocking player's hand. (In some rule sets, the bonus is only 10 or 20 points, or is not awarded in case of a tie.)
- Game bonus
- Once a player has acquired 500 points (or some other agreed-upon number) the game is over, and that player receives a game bonus of 100 points (or another agreed-upon number).
- Line bonus or box bonus
- Added at the end of the game. For every hand a player won during the game, 25 points is added to their score.
- Big gin
- Prior to knocking, if all 11 cards in a player's hand form a legal gin, the player can retain the extra card as part of their hand, and is awarded 31 points plus entire count of deadwood in their opponent's hand. (In some rule sets players may be awarded 50 points or another established amount plus the entire count of deadwood in the opponent's hand)
- Shutout bonus
- If a game is completed with the winner having won every hand, the points for each hand are doubled before adding the line bonus.
Variations[edit]
Straight gin[edit]
In straight gin, players are required to play until one of them can go gin. Knocking is not allowed. Scoring and rules remain the same as standard gin rummy.
Mahjong gin[edit]
Similar to straight gin, knocking is not allowed. However, more than one card may be taken, in order, from the top of the discard pile. If more than one card is taken, the lowest position card taken must be used in a hand: e.g. <bottom> 8♠3♥5♥ <top of discard> 8♠ is the lowest position card and must be used in a hand; continue with one discard). Cards are shown to the table, with opponents being able to add on to straights of the same suit or finish a three of a kind with the fourth card for points. After a player has gin, points are added, with cards on the table being added up and cards in hand being subtracted. The player who gins receives 25 additional points, 2 through 9 = 5 points, 10 through K = 10 points, A = 15 points.
Oklahoma gin[edit]
In this version of gin rummy, the value of the first upcard is used to determine the maximum count at which players can knock. If the upcard is a spade, the hand will count double. So if the first upcard was a 4, you can knock and go out with only 4 or fewer points in your hand; and if the card was 4♠, you would get double points that hand.
Another version in this variation (mostly in match play) and in Hollywood gin (see below), a second deck of cards will be used to determine the knock value of a hand. The knock value card will be dealt from the bottom and turned over on top. Above rules apply but both players are dealt ten cards with the last hand winner picking first from the deck.
Hollywood gin[edit]
This is a scoring style, not a rules change to the game of gin. In Hollywood gin, scoring is kept for three different games at the same time. A player's first win will be recorded in their column in Game One. A player's second win will be recorded in their columns for both Game One and Game Two. Their third win will be recorded in their column for all three games. Hands are played until all three games are finished.
Tedesco gin[edit]
Similar to Oklahoma gin, except aces can be used high or low, and runs can be formed 'around the corner' (such as K♠A♠2♠). If you are caught with an unmelded ace, it counts as 15 points against you. Hollywood scoring of three games to 200 when playing head-to-head or with two-person teams. Three-person teams play to 300, 25 points extra if all three teammates win. 50 points for four-person team, etc. This is a more complex gin game for all levels of player.
Single match[edit]
When a single match is to be played, the players will continue to play rounds until one player has 100 points or more. This player wins the match.
Multi-match[edit]
In multi-match games, match scores are reset to zero with the start of each match, while game scores accumulate until a predetermined winning score is reached, perhaps 500 or higher. Each individual match ends when one player scores 100 match points. At the end of the match, players' match scores are credited toward their game scores, as well as:
- 25 game points for each individual round won,
- 100 game points to the winner of the match, and
- 100 bonus game points to the match winner if the loser won no rounds.
Notable players[edit]
- Stu Ungar, widely regarded as the greatest gin rummy player of all time, described by many as having a clairvoyant ability to see his opponents' hands.[6][7]
- Oswald Jacoby, best known as a contract bridge and backgammon champion, also played high-stakes gin rummy and wrote several books on the game.
- Ernie Kovacs, the comedian and television pioneer, published a book in 1962 called How to Talk at Gin.
In Poker Can Ace Count As 1
- Fictional characters
- The villain Auric Goldfinger cheats at gin rummy in the key introduction scene of the James Bond film Goldfinger (1964), with the help of an accomplice looking at the opponent's cards through binoculars.[8] The film script changed the game to gin rummy from two-handed Canasta in the source novel by Ian Fleming.
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^'C.G. Baker, Helped Devise Gin Rummy'. New York Times. May 17, 1950. Retrieved May 22, 2008.
C. Graham Baker, writer and producer of motion pictures and co-creator of the card game gin rummy, died today at his home in Reseda in the San Fernando Valley. ..
- ^Scarne, John (2008). Scarne on Card Games: How to Play and Win at Poker, Pinochle, Blackjack, Gin and Other Popular Card Games. Courier Dover Publications. p. 37. ISBN0-486-43603-9.
- ^'Parlett's Historic Card Games: Gin Rummy - David Parlett'.
- ^Hainline, John; Hainline, Lily Ann (2018). 'Gin Rummy Rules for Tournament Play'(PDF). ginrummytournaments.com. Palm Desert: Gin Rummy Association. Retrieved April 11, 2018.
- ^'Glossary of gin rummy terms'. rummytalk.com.
- ^Ungar, Stu (June 29, 2006). One of a Kind: The Rise and Fall of Stu Ungar (documentary). USA: Szymanski, Al.
- ^Michael Konik (April 1, 1999). 'The Gin Mill'. Cigar Aficionado. Retrieved July 18, 2012.
- ^'Goldfinger (1964) - Miami hotel pool scene'. Retrieved July 18, 2019 – via YouTube.
External links[edit]
- Rules of gin rummy at Pagat.com
- online rummy at GamingStar.in
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< Poker
Hand rankings[edit]
The most fundamental of poker concern the hand rankings, because the hand rankings determine the winner. While betting is extremely important to the game, players are wagering on whether they have won, therefore a complete understanding of hand rankings must come first. These hand rankings do not apply to games played 'low', such as lowball or razz; see the section on 'low hands' below.
The cards are ranked thus, from low to high: 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, Jack, Queen, King, Ace. An ace is the highest card, but it can also function as the lowest in completing a straight. The two is usually called a 'deuce', and the three is sometimes called a 'trey'. Ten, Jack, Queen, King, and Ace are often abbreviated T, J, Q, K, and A, respectively, so that each card name has a single number or letter associated with it. This is commonly used in describing hands, for example, A-2-3-4-5 is a hand with an ace, a two ('deuce'), a three, a four, and a five — not necessarily in that order, but presenting them in that order makes it clear that the hand is a straight. A hand may also be written, say, A-A-x-x-x, where 'x' means any other card that does not form a better hand.
Rank name | Also called | Cards needed | Example | Names for example |
---|---|---|---|---|
High card | No pair, nothing | (Anything) | A-x-x-x-x | Ace high |
Pair | Two cards of same rank | A-A-x-x-x | Aces; pair of aces | |
Two pair | Two pairs | A-A-K-K-x | Aces up; aces and kings; aces over kings | |
Three of a kind | Trips, a set | Three cards of same rank | A-A-A-x-x | Three aces; set of aces |
Straight | Five cards in sequence | 10-J-Q-K-A | Ace-high straight | |
Flush | All five cards same suit | A♣10♣7♣6♣4♣ | Ace-high flush | |
Full house | Boat, full boat | Three of a kind plus a pair | A-A-A-K-K | Aces full; aces full of kings |
Four of a kind | Quads | Four cards of same rank | A-A-A-A-x | Quad aces; four aces |
Straight flush | Five cards forming straight and a flush | 10♠J♠Q♠K♠A♠ | Ace-high straight flush (Also called a Royal Flush) |
A-2-3-4-5 is considered a five-high straight, and it is called a wheel or bicycle; this is the only time an ace plays as a low card. An ace-high straight flush is called a royal flush and it cannot be beaten. The only time it ties is when all 5 cards to the royal flush, i.e. A♥K♥Q♥J♥10♥, are on the community board. Higher cards always beat lower cards, for example, a pair of aces beats a pair of kings, and a flush with a king beats a flush whose highest card is a Queen. If two players have the same pair, a kicker is used to break the tie if possible (more about them soon). When two players have two pair, the highest pairs are considered, for example, aces up always beats kings up, no matter the other pairs. If, for example, two players both have aces up, then the higher of the smaller pairs wins: aces over kings beats aces over queens. If, for example, both players have aces over kings, then the kicker card is considered. Kickers also come into play when more than one player has the same three or four of a kind (possible only in community card games or wildcard games). If players have the same straight, flush, full house, or straight flush, it is always a tie and the players split the pot. There is no suit superiority or trump suit; a spade flush with A-10-9-6-4 does not beat a club flush with the same values.
A kicker is any card that you hold in your hand that does not make part of it, that is, an otherwise useless card. A hand can have more than one kicker; A pair for instance has three kickers and a three-of-a-kind has two, and they are considered in rank order highest-first. When two players hold the same pair, two pair, three of a kind, or four of a kind, the highest kicker wins, for example, A-A-K-x-x beats A-A-Q-x-x, A-A-K-Q-x beats A-A-K-J-x, and A-A-K-Q-J beats A-A-K-Q-T. A kicker can be higher than the rest of the hand, for example, K-K-A-x-x beats K-K-J-x-x, so an ace usually makes the best kicker. If the first kicker ties and there is a second or third, they are compared in rank order; A-A-K-J-x loses to A-A-K-Q-x. If the hands are totally equivalent, the pot is split.
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Low hands[edit]
Some games have a high-low split, and some games such as lowball or razz are played low-only. In a high-low split game, typically a low hand must not have any cards ranked higher than eight and no cards must be paired, or it does not count as a low hand. In low-only games, any cards can be used. Many forms of poker do not use low hands, so you need not concern yourself with these until you intend to play games that do.
There are three common ways of ranking low hands: ace-to-five low, ace-to-six low, and deuce-to-seven low, named after the best possible hands in the respective systems. In all systems, paired cards are bad and cannot be used to beat any hand that does not have a pair. Likewise, a pair beats three of a kind, three of a kind beats a full house, and a full house beats four of a kind. The most common hand ranking system for low hands is ace-to-five, used almost universally in high-low split games and very common in other games. This means A-2-3-4-5 (called a wheel or bicycle, just as it is as a high hand) is the best possible low hand, and the ace is the lowest card. For a high-low split game, it also forms a high hand: a five-high straight. In order to avoid confusion, we will discuss only ace-to-five low at the moment.
When pairs and any other 'bad' hands are not present, then the winner is the one whose highest card is lowest. For this reason, a low hand is usually described highest card first, to make it easier to tell which is lower. In ace-to-five, 8-4-3-2-A loses to 7-6-5-4-3 because the highest card in the first hand (eight) is higher than the highest card in the second hand (seven), even though all the other cards in the second hand are lower. If the highest cards are the same, then the next-highest cards are considered, and so on: 8-7-6-3-A loses to 8-7-5-4-2 because the second hand goes lower first.
In ace-to-six low, straights and flushes count for high (that is, they're bad), and the best possible hand is A-2-3-4-6 unsuited, since it's the lowest possible card combination that avoids pairing, straights, and flushes. Deuce-to-seven is identical except the ace is the highest card, so the best possible hand is 2-3-4-5-7 unsuited. Therefore, in deuce-to-seven low, the hand that would make the worst possible high hand in traditional poker is the best possible low hand, and vice versa: a royal flush is the worst possible hand.
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