Gin Rummy

Object of Game

Gin Rummy is a 2-player game using a standard deck of 52 playing cards.

The dealer deals 10 cards to each player. The deck is placed face down on the table. The top card is turned face up and placed next to the deck.

Starting the Game

Each player has the option of taking the card that's face up and adding it to his or her hand. If either player takes it, that player then discards a card face up to take its place, and the turn passes to the other player. If neither player wants to take the initial face up card, the non-dealer takes the next turn.

From then on, each player in turn takes either the top card from the stock or the top card from the pile of face up cards and adds it to his or her hand. The player then discards any card (it may be the one just drawn) face up onto the face up pile.

Melds

The object is to group the cards in one's hand into "melds." A meld is a set of three or more cards forming either a set or a sequence. A set is three or four cards of the same rank, such as 444 or JJJJ. A sequence is three or more cards of sequential rank, all in the same suit, such as the 3-4-5-6 of clubs. For sequence purposes, aces are only low.

Knocking

Players continue to draw and discard until one player "knocks" or "goes gin." A player may, but is not required to, knock when the total of the unmelded cards in his or her hand--known as "deadwood"--is less than or equal to 10 points. In determining this total, aces count 1 each, 2s count 2, 3s count 3, and so on, with face cards counting 10 points each.

Upon knocking, a player turns his or her hand face up with melds grouped. The opponent now reveals his or her hand and counts up the number of points in its unmelded cards. Before counting, though, the opponent has an opportunity to lay off cards on the knocker's melds. For example, if the knocker's hand includes melds of 333 and A-2-3-4 of hearts, the opponent could reduce his or her deadwood by playing a 3 on the 3s and the 5 of hearts on the sequence.

Going Gin

If a player knocks with no extra cards--that is, with everything melded--it's called "going gin." When a player goes gin, the opponent may not lay off any cards.

Scoring

If the knocker's unmelded cards add up to fewer points than the opponent, the knocker scores that point difference.

A player who goes gin earns a 25-point bonus, in addition to the value of the cards in the opponent's hand.

Undercut

If the opponent has points equal to or less than the knocker's, however, the knocker has been "undercut," and the opponent earns the difference in the points in the hands plus a 20-point bonus.

Big Gin

If all 11 cards in a player's hand can form a meld prior to knocking, the player will earn a Big Gin bonus of 6 points when he or she knocks.

Endgame

The first player to get a total of 100 points wins the game.

Basic Tactics

Begin each hand by playing offensively--that is, trying to win the hand. If things don't go well, you must decide at some point whether to switch to a defensive strategy--either to minimize your losses by getting rid of high cards, or to attempt to block the opponent from getting the cards he or she needs until the deck is exhausted.

If you find you are winning too few hands, you're not playing offensively enough; while if you are losing too many hands by large scores because you're caught with a lot of points, you're not playing defensively enough.

When only one card will help, try to keep your hand intact for a couple of turns. When two cards can help you, go a bit longer; but soon, if there's no improvement, start discarding high cards (such as a pair of kings). If your hand can be improved in more ways, though, or if your unmelded total is low, you can afford to play on.

If you have an unmelded count of only 1, it's a good time to go for gin; if the opponent knocks, you will undercut him or her--the only risk is that the opponent will go gin first.

Discarding Tips

Try to discard cards that will give you the most offensive options, and that will help the opponent the least. Most players like to discard their high cards first, but this is not always the best strategy. If you know your opponent plays this way, for example, you can deliberately save high cards, and you'll have a fairly good chance that the opponent will discard one you need.

Except when you're trying to knock, you shouldn't pay much attention to the fact that one discard will reduce your point count more than another.

While low cards in your hand are valuable, they can also be good defensive discards, which usually don't help the opponent reduce his or her hand's point count much. If you give the opponent a third king, the opponent's point count is reduced by 20; if you give the opponent a third ace, his or her point count is only reduced 2 points.

If no cards of certain ranks or cards that fall within certain suit sequences do not appear for much of the hand, there's a good chance the opponent has them.

Runs ending with king or ace are less valuable than others, because they can only be added to at one end. With K Q J of a suit, only the 10 of that suit will extend the run, but with Q J 10 9, either the king or eight will work--twice as good a chance.

This also means that throwing an ace or king is less likely to give opponent a run than throwing a queen or two; and throwing a queen or two is safer than throwing a three, a jack, or anything in between.

Try to remember all the discards, so you don't end up trying for a meld that can't be made. Pay close attention to your opponent's discards, and think about what they reveal. When the opponent picks up your discard, try to determine whether it was to make a set or a sequence; subsequent discards will often make this clear.

Also take note of what cards the opponent fails to pick up. If you can deduce what the opponent has, you may be able to avoid discarding the card that will help the opponent until you knock.