The Book of Card Games: The Complete Rules to the Classics, Family Favorite and Forgotten Games (2 page)

A shuffle is the randomization of a deck of cards by “interleaving” the cards multiple times. You shuffle the cards by dividing the cards up into two nearly equal stacks and placing them into both hands. You then alternately interleave the cards from your left and right hands to combine the two stacks together. Some people do this by flapping the cards down using their fingers and thumbs, while others just push the stacks together.

If you play cards often, you’ve probably shuffled a deck, or even multiple decks of cards, hundreds of times. But do you know just how many different arrangements those fifty-two cards could create? You’ll probably be surprised at the answer.

To demonstrate how to calculate the number of possible arrangements, imagine that you have fifty-two choices for picking out the first card, fifty-one choices for picking out the second card (since one card has already been pulled out of the deck), and so on. This continues on until there is only one selection remaining to pull out of the deck. So the possible number of arrangements in a deck is obtained by multiplying 52 × 51 × 50 … and so on to 2 × 1. In mathematics this is referred to as 52! (or “52 factorial”). Shockingly enough, the expression 52! is a sixty-eight digit number: 80,658,175,170,943,878,571,660,636,856,403,766,975,289, 505,440,883,277,824,000,000,000,000.

In essence, this means that it is practically impossible for you to shuffle the deck in the same arrangement twice in your lifetime.

In most card games, after the dealer is done shuffling the cards, the player to his right or left will cut the cards. In order to cut the deck, you will remove as one unit roughly half of the cards from the top of the deck, placing that part of the deck on the table next to the remaining cards. The dealer then picks up the bottom half of the deck, places it on top of the other stack, and squares the deck. The purpose of cutting the cards is to vary who gets a specific hand after they are dealt.

In all of the poker games as well as blackjack, Red Dog, and baccarat, you will be placing bets on your hand in the hopes of winning money from the bank or your opponents. In games such as Pai Gow poker, blackjack, baccarat, and Red Dog, you will place an initial bet on the table. This bet must fall between a minimum and maximum bet that is documented on the casino table or that you have all agreed on when you play at home. In these games, your bet will typically remain the same throughout the hand. In a few instances you can increase your bet by doubling down (doubling your bet to receive one and only one more card to add to your hand) or splitting a pair (doubling your bet to split a pair of cards into two separate hands to play) in blackjack, or you can raise your bet in Red Dog. After you have played out your hand, you will win or lose your bet based on a comparison between your hand and the dealer’s hand. You will lose your bet if your hand loses to the dealer’s hand. You will push your bet if your hand ties the dealer’s hand, meaning that you get back your original bet and win/lose nothing. You can win money if your hand beats the dealer’s hand.

Betting limits are typically expressed with a minimum and maximum (for instance, $5–$10) and may be spread-limit or structured-limit. In a spread-limit game, you may bet any dollar amount between the minimum and maximum bet. When you want to raise the bet, it must also be within the minimum and maximum range. In a structured-limit game, you may only bet and raise the minimum dollar amount during the first few rounds of play, and the maximum dollar amount during the last few rounds of play.

The dealer is the person who deals out the cards during a specific round or hand of play. There are two types of dealers—dealers in home games or in a card group who are also players in the game, and dealers in a casino.

When the players are also the dealers, the first dealer is usually chosen at random or by cutting the cards. In most instances, all of the players take turns dealing, and after the first hand, the deal typically passes to the player on the left. In many card games, players will play with two decks, each with a different back. While one player is dealing, the next player will shuffle the deck of cards just played and place it to the right of the next dealer. This saves time, allowing more hands and games to be enjoyed.

In a casino, the dealer is an employee who staffs the games in the casino. He goes through extensive training to learn how to correctly shuffle the cards, deal the cards, and pay out money to the casino players. The players will never get to deal the cards, as it would leave room for error and cheating. In blackjack, the players play against the dealer, so he deals himself a hand. In poker, the dealer is not a participant; instead, the players play against each other, so the dealer does not deal himself a hand. (An exception to this is in Pai Gow poker, where the players do not play against one another but against the dealer, as in blackjack.)

Each card game has its own requirements for dealing out the cards, and you need to know them when it’s your turn to deal. You must first know the order that the cards should be dealt out to each player (clockwise, counterclockwise, or another varied pattern). The majority of card games are dealt clockwise. The next step to learning how to deal is to know if the cards are dealt face down or face up. In some games, all cards are dealt face down. Other times, the last card will be turned up to determine the trump suit (a suit that wins over the other three suits). The dealer then picks up that card after the first trick is played. In other games, some of the cards are dealt face down while others are dealt face up. As you learn the rules for a new game, pay close attention to whether the cards are dealt face up or down.

You must also know how many cards are dealt out at a time. The majority of card games require cards to be dealt one at a time, but in some games the cards are dealt out in groups of two, three, or more cards. To complete the deal, you must know the total of how many cards are dealt out to each player. Every card game varies in the amount of cards dealt in a hand. In cribbage, only six cards are dealt to each player, while each player in spades gets thirteen.

After dealing out the cards, you must know what should be done with the remainder of the deck. If the card game does not require that the deck be completely dealt out, something must be done with the remaining cards. Sometimes they will form a stockpile and a discard pile that players will draw from during play. Other games require a kitty, or side area, that a player or multiple players will add to their hand at a later point in the game. In a variety of games, the cards are just placed to the side of the dealer and never viewed in the hand.

As the dealer, you also need to know if there is a discard-and-replace step in the game. In a few card games, the players are allowed to discard cards from their hand, which are replaced by the dealer from the cards remaining in the deck. These cards are not dealt one at a time. Instead, they are dealt in a group to the player before moving to the next player who discards. Some gambling card games also have cards that are dealt out at a later point in the game. There are usually rounds of betting in between, and then another card is dealt to each player or to a communal area on the table.

Proper etiquette is important when playing cards, especially in a casino, in tournaments, or when playing older, well-established card games. Some standard rules of etiquette apply to all games and should typically be adhered to.

When being dealt to, you should pick up your cards after the last card is dealt, not each time you receive a card. If you’re the dealer, you should never attempt to view the bottom card while dealing, even if it is dealt to you as the last player. If you’re the first player to play your turn, you should wait until all players have organized their hands and appear ready to play.

While playing the game, there should be minimal conversation and it should be applicable to the game itself. In between games, or when the hands are being shuffled and dealt, conversation is appropriate. If a game involves bidding or betting, you should make the statements clearly and loud enough for the entire table to hear. You should not hesitate in your bid or bet, or use an inflection or special emphasis, as this may be considered a signal and is not allowed.

It is improper to praise or critique or criticize yourself or your opponents during play. This means you should also not draw attention to your score or your opponent’s score. In a trick-taking game, you should not call attention to the number of tricks needed to complete or defeat a bid.

You should not detach a card from your hand before it’s your turn to play, and if you know that you are going to win a trick, you should never prepare to gather the cards before all four players have played. If a player folds his hand or wins a hand, you should not ask or insist upon seeing that hand unless the rules specify that the hand be displayed.

Following social etiquette is the best way to have fun, play a great game of cards, and allow others to enjoy their time as well. You don’t want to play a game that involves cheating, signals, loud talking, or obnoxious players. That defeats the purpose of getting together to play!

NUMBER OF PLAYERS:
Four

EQUIPMENT:
One standard deck of fifty-two cards

TIME:
Two to three hours

PARTNERSHIP:
Yes

COMPLEXITY:
Medium to high

All Fours is a trick-taking game similar to whist and bridge, but it differs in the use of a unique scoring system that introduces complexity and a different strategy. There are many spinoffs and variances that have evolved from the game of All Fours, including All Fives, California Jack, Cinch, and Pitch (see following).

In pubs of seventeenth-century England, the game of All Fours was pioneered. The first recorded mention of the game is found in Charles Cotton’s
The Complete Gamester
. According to Cotton, All Fours originated in Kent County. All Fours eventually traveled to the United States, where it gained in popularity in the nineteenth century. Many variations were derived from the game as players in various locations added their own rules and objectives. All Fours is still commonly played in England and Wales, and it recently has become popular in Trinidad. In the United States, All Fours survives in the game of Auction Pitch.

The objective of All Fours is to be the first team to score seven points by winning tricks containing the court cards and the high, low, and jack of the trump suit. Receiving the low point is luck of the deal, but scoring the remaining points requires you to play with some foresight.

All Fours opens with each player cutting the deck, and the player with the highest value card deals first. When it’s your turn to deal, deal out six cards, one at a time or in batches of three, face down to each player. Now turn up the next card to determine the trump suit. If the card is a jack, your team automatically scores one point for jack. The deal passes to the left for each hand.

Play begins with the player to the dealer’s left (called the eldest hand) deciding if he’s happy with the trump suit. If he is, he says, “I stand,” and play begins. If he wants a different trump suit based on the cards in his hand, he says, “I beg.” If you are the dealer and you prefer to keep the original trump suit, you respond, “Take one,” and your opponents receive one point. If you agree that the trump should be changed, you say, “I run the cards” and deal three more cards to each player. You then turn up the next card to determine the trump suit and score one point if the card is a jack (as earlier). If the card is a new suit, play begins. If it is the same suit as the original trump suit, you’ll deal three more cards to each player, and the process is repeated until a new suit is played or the deck of cards runs out. In that case the entire deck is shuffled and re-dealt.