Euchre

How to play Euchre

Euchre is a fast, cunning partnership trick-taking game that has been a parlour and pub favourite across North America, Britain, Australia and New Zealand for nearly two centuries. It is played by four people in two fixed partnerships with a short 24-card deck, and each deal lasts only five quick tricks — yet the bidding, the trump-calling and the famous bowers give it surprising bite. In this version you sit South with a computer partner across the table (North) and take on two computer opponents sitting East and West. Choose a difficulty, order up trump, and be the first side to reach 10 points.

The goal

You and your partner form one team; the other two players form the opposing team. On every deal one side becomes the makers by choosing the trump suit, and then tries to win at least three of the five tricks. The first partnership to reach 10 points over a series of deals wins the game. Because you never see your partner’s or opponents’ cards, this is a game of reading the bidding and remembering what has been played — there is no same-screen two-player mode, since hiding hands from each other on one device is impossible.

The deck and the deal

Euchre uses a stripped 24-card deck: only the 9, 10, Jack, Queen, King and Ace of each of the four suits. Each player is dealt five cards. The four cards left over form the kitty, and the top card of the kitty is turned face up for everyone to see — this up-card is the starting proposal for trump. The deal rotates clockwise after every hand, so everyone takes a turn as dealer.

Trump and the bowers

One suit is chosen as trump for the hand, and every trump card beats every card of the three plain suits. What makes Euchre unique is how the two Jacks behave once a suit is trump:

• The Right Bower is the Jack of the trump suit. It is the single highest card in the whole deck for that hand — higher even than the Ace of trump.
• The Left Bower is the Jack of the other suit of the same colour as trump (for example, if Hearts are trump the Left Bower is the Jack of Diamonds). It becomes the second-highest trump and, crucially, it counts as a trump card, not as a card of its printed suit.
• Below the two bowers the trump suit ranks Ace, King, Queen, 10, 9. So with Hearts as trump the order from the top is: J♥ (right bower), J♦ (left bower), A♥, K♥, Q♥, 10♥, 9♥, then everything else.

Bidding for trump

Bidding decides which suit is trump and which side are the makers. It goes around the table clockwise, starting with the player to the dealer’s left, in up to two rounds:

• Round one — the up-card: each player in turn may order it up, accepting the up-card’s suit as trump, or pass. If you order it up, the dealer picks the up-card into their hand and discards one card face-down. When it is the dealer’s own choice, this is called picking it up.
• Round two — name a suit: if all four players pass in round one, the up-card is turned down and its suit is now forbidden. Going around again, each player may name any of the other three suits as trump, or pass.
• Stick the dealer: this game uses the popular stick-the-dealer rule — if everyone passes again in round two, the dealer is not allowed to pass and must name a trump suit. This guarantees that every hand is played and there are no re-deals.
• Whichever side calls trump becomes the makers and must take at least three of the five tricks, or be punished.

Going alone

When you call trump you may declare that you are going alone. Your partner then turns their cards down and sits out the whole hand, so you play one-against-two. It is riskier, but if you go alone and sweep all five tricks you score a big 4 points instead of 2. Go alone only with a monster hand — typically both bowers and another high trump or two. In this app you tick the Go alone box before you order up or name a suit; the bots will go alone only when their hand is overwhelming.

Playing the tricks

• The player to the dealer’s left leads to the first trick (if that player is sitting out for a loner, the lead passes to the next active player). You may lead any card.
• You must follow the suit that was led if you can. Remember the Left Bower counts as trump: if a plain suit is led you cannot use the Left Bower to follow it, and if trump is led the Left Bower must be played like any other trump.
• If you cannot follow suit you may play anything, including a trump to ruff and win the trick.
• A trick is won by the highest trump in it, or if no trump was played, by the highest card of the suit that was led. The winner of each trick leads to the next one. Five tricks are played in total.

Scoring a hand

After all five tricks, the makers’ tricks are counted and points are awarded:

• Makers take 3 or 4 tricks: 1 point.
• Makers take all 5 tricks (a march): 2 points.
• Makers were going alone and take all 5: 4 points.
• Makers take fewer than 3 tricks (they are euchred): the defending side scores 2 points.

Winning the game

The running score is kept for each partnership and the first side to reach 10 points wins the match. Because a euchre hands 2 points to the defenders, calling trump on a weak hand is dangerous — a well-timed euchre can swing the game. Beat the computer partnership to earn ranking points.

Playing the computer (ranked)

Choose one of three difficulty levels. Easy plays legal but loose cards and rarely presses its advantage, so beginners can win. Normal bids on genuine trump strength, leads trump to draw out the opponents and keeps its bowers back for when they count. Expert also counts the trump that has gone, avoids overtaking its own partner, and ruffs shrewdly when it runs out of a suit. The computer thinks entirely on your device, so the game works offline. Win the game for your partnership to earn ranking points — Easy +10, Normal +30, Expert +100 — and sign in to record your best result on the leaderboard.

Strategy tips

• Count your likely tricks before you call. A safe order-up usually needs about three trumps including a bower, or two strong trumps plus an off-suit Ace. Calling on less invites a euchre.
• Never forget the Left Bower. It is a trump, so a hand that looks like it has, say, five diamonds may really have four once Hearts become trump and the Jack of Diamonds jumps ship.
• As a maker, lead trump early to strip it from the opponents, but hold your bowers to capture their high cards or to win the last trick.
• As a defender, try to keep a trump back to ruff the maker’s good side-suit cards, and lead your own off-suit Aces while they can still win.
• Watch the up-card and who ordered it up. The turned-up suit tells you where trump strength is likely sitting, and a player who passes in round one is often short of that suit.

Frequently asked questions