How To

How to Play Gin

Contributor
By Jami Mack
eHow Contributing Writer
(8 Ratings)

Read on to learn how to play gin.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy
Instructions

Things You'll Need:

  • Deck of Cards (Can play with two decks if more than 4 people)
  • Paper
  • Pen
  • 2 or more Players
  • Table & Chairs

    How to Play Gin

  1. Step 1

    Goal: The first player to lay down all their cards wins the round, and the winner of the entire game has the most points. You can play as many rounds or to as many points as you wish.

  2. Step 2

    Shuffle the deck of cards thoroughly and deal 7 cards to each player.

  3. Step 3

    Put the remaining cards in a pile in the center of table, and flip the top card over on the side of the deck.

  4. Step 4

    The player to the left of the dealer starts the game by either selecting the up-card or a down-card from the pile in the center.

  5. Step 5

    The player now needs to lay down any combination of 3 in his/her hand…3 of a kind or a 3-card straight (same suit).

  6. Step 6

    The player then selects a card from his/her hand to discard. The card is discarded face-up, and so the card(s) underneath can be seen.

  7. Step 7

    The next player to the left begins his/her turn by selecting a card from the down-pile, or the card from the top of the up-pile, or he/she may select all the cards in the up-pile. If he/she selects all the cards in the up-pile, the last card must be played in front of the player before he/she ends his/her turn.

  8. Step 8

    Each player after the first, Go back to Step 8, and continue play until one player lays down all their cards drawn, and there are no cards in the draw piles.

  9. Step 9

    Once the round has ended, everyone adds up his or her points. The face cards and 10’s are worth 10 Points each. The cards 2 through 9 are worth 5 points each. Aces are worth 5 points when used with a 1-2-3 combo/straight, and are worth 15 points when used in an A-K-Q-J straight or a 3 of a kind.

Tips & Warnings
  • Create a Winning Number, i.e. 500 points wins the game.
  • If you have a lot of time on your hands, and want to do a tournament (like an entire summer of Gin), then just increase the points, say to 5000 points, makes the odds a little better, and it’s a challenge!
  • Gin can be addictive if you love playing card games.

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