Two standard packs are required, shuffled together. The cards rank as follows: 2, ace, King, Queen, Jack, 10, 9,8,7,6,5,4,3, in other words in the usual order except that 2 is promoted to be the top card in each suit.

The players draw cards. He who shows the highest deals first, and the card drawn determines the trump suit. Thereafter the deal passes to the left, and the trump suit is determined by the player to the right of the dealer cutting the pack.

Seven cards are dealt face downwards to each player, and the remainder of the pack is placed face downwards in the centre of the table (the stock).

THE PLAY

The object of the game is to win tricks containing 2s, aces, Kings, Queens and Jacks, and for winning them a player scores 11 points for each 2,10 points for each Ace, five points for each King, four points for each Queen and three points for each Jack.

The player on the left of the dealer leads to the first trick thereafter the poker player who wins a trick leads to the next. A player must follow suit if he can; if not he may either discard or trump. If two players play identical cards, the player of the second is deemed to have played the higher card.

Immediately after a player has played to a trick he draws a card from the stock; if he now holds in his hand the King and Queen of the same suit, other than of the trump suit, he may call ‘Pip-Pip’, and place the two cards face upwards on the table in front of him. for calling ‘Pip-Pip’ a player scores 50 points and, at the end of the current trick, the trump suit changes to that of the exposed King and Queen.

‘Pip-Pip’ may be called and 50 points scored if a player is dealt the King and Queen of a suit other than of the trump suit. The trump suit is then changed before the first trick is played. If two or more players are dealt the King and Queen of a suit other than of the trump suit each scores 50 points if he calls ‘Pip-Pip’.

The trump suit is changed to that of the player who was first to call. ‘Pip-Pip’ may be called twice in the same suit provided the online poker player has both Kings and both Queens of it.

A King or a Queen once paired cannot be paired a second time. It is not compulsory to call ‘Pip-Pip’ if a player holds the King and Queen of a suit, but if he does not call he cannot score the bonus of 50 points.

Drawing cards from the stock continues until it contains insufficient cards to enable every player to draw one. The remaining cards in the stock are then turned face upwards and the players play the last seven tricks with the cards left in their hands.

The game ends when every player has dealt an equal number of times.

Games for Five or More Players