How to play Pinochle: two-player rules

Rules in short: Pinochle uses a 48-card deck with two of every 9, jack, queen, king, 10 and ace. Each player gets twelve cards, and the next card is turned up to set trump. While the stock lasts, the winner of each trick may lay down one meld for points, and then both players draw a card. When the stock is empty, the last twelve tricks are played strictly: follow suit and win the trick if you can. Meld points and the points in the tricks you take are added up, and the first player to 1,000 wins.

The deck Deal and trump Melds Playing with the stock The last 12 tricks Scoring Example Strategy Variations FAQ

The deck

A Pinochle deck has 48 cards: two of each ace, 10, king, queen, jack and 9 in clubs, diamonds, spades and hearts. Within a suit the cards rank, from high to low, ace, 10, king, queen, jack, 9. Note that the 10 ranks just below the ace and above the king. When two identical cards fall in the same trick, the one played first wins.

The deal and trump

The dealer gives each player twelve cards. The next card is turned face up: its suit is trump for the whole hand. The turned card goes face up at the bottom of the face-down stock, so the stock holds 24 cards and the turned card is the very last one drawn. If the turned card is a 9 (the dix, pronounced "deece"), the dealer scores 10 points at once.

The non-dealer leads the first trick. The deal alternates between the players every hand.

Melds and their points

A meld is a scoring combination of cards. You may meld only right after you win a trick, before drawing, and only one meld each time. Melded cards are laid face up on the table where both players can see them. They still belong to your hand, and you can play them to later tricks straight from the table.

Using a card in more than one meld

• A card can be used again in a meld of a different kind. The Q♠ of a pinochle can later be part of a marriage in spades, or of queens around.
• A card cannot be used twice in the same kind of meld. Two marriages need two different kings and queens.
• Each new meld must include at least one card from your hand that is not already on the table.
• You may meld a royal marriage first and later add the A, 10 and J of trump to score the run (40 + 150). The reverse does not work: once the run is down, its king and queen cannot be melded as a marriage.
• Holding the dix, you may meld it for 10 points and swap it for the turned-up trump at the bottom of the stock. The second 9 of trump can be melded for 10 as well.

Playing while there is a stock

The leader plays any card, and the other player answers with any card: while the stock lasts you do not have to follow suit or trump. The higher card of the suit led wins the trick, unless a trump is played, in which case the trump wins (the higher trump if both are trumps).

The winner of the trick takes the two cards, may make one meld, then draws the top card of the stock. The loser draws the next card. The winner leads the next trick. On the twelfth trick the loser draws the turned-up trump.

The last 12 tricks

When the stock is empty, both players pick up their melded cards. No more melds are made. Now the play is strict:

• You must follow suit if you can.
• You must win the trick if you can: play a higher card of the suit led.
• If you have no card of the suit led, you must play a trump if you have one.
• Only if you have neither may you play any card.

The winner of the last trick scores 10 extra points.

Scoring and winning

Each card you take in a trick counts its points: ace 11, ten 10, king 4, queen 3, jack 2, nine 0. All the cards together are worth 240, and with the last trick there are 250 trick points in every hand. Add your meld points to your trick points for your score for the hand. Scores carry over, and the first player to reach 1,000 at the end of a hand wins the game. If both pass 1,000 in the same hand, the higher score wins.

Snug Table note: some tables count only aces, tens and kings as one point each ("counters", 25 per hand) with melds scored in tens. That is the same game with every number divided by ten, roughly. Snug Table uses the full card values so that every point you see adds up.

Example

Strategy

• Lead your junk early. While the stock lasts, lead 9s and odd jacks you cannot meld, and keep aces, tens and trumps for the end.
• Win tricks when you have a meld ready. A trick worth only a few points is worth taking if it lets you put 40 or 150 on the table.
• Do not break up melds. A king you might marry or a queen of spades you might pair with a jack of diamonds is worth more than a cheap trick.
• Count trumps. There are twelve trumps. Track the ones played and the ones melded face up, so you know who controls the last twelve tricks.
• Watch the last stock card. The loser of the twelfth trick gets the turned-up trump, so sometimes losing that trick is the better deal.
• Use what you can see. When the stock is gone you can work out every card your opponent holds. Snug Table's hard computer and coach play the last twelve tricks out exactly.

Variations

• Partnership Pinochle: four players in two teams, the whole deck dealt out, with bidding for the right to name trump.
• Auction Pinochle: three players bid; the high bidder takes the widow and names trump.
• Counters: aces, tens and kings worth 1 each and melds in tens; a game is often 100 or 150.
• Bigger melds: some houses score double aces around (1,000) or a double run (1,500).