A player could have between seven and eleven cards in their hand that are part of the winning melds. Points are accrued by making melds, which are runs of four or more cards and/or sets of at least three or more matching cards, either way the cards are grouped the melds are worth points. There must always be a discard unless a player receives a BIG GIN which is explained below. That player may select a card from either the face-up for the facedown pile added it to their collection and then discard a card this continues through until one of the players can successfully and they’re hand. Once the card is placed face up on the discard pile it becomes the next players turn. The player may discard a card chosen from the draw pile if it he chooses. The only card that cannot be discarded is the card that was selected from the discard pile. Player compares the card to the cards in his hand and then must discard one.

Playing consists of taking a card from either the discard pile, the face up pile once a player has discarded, or from the draw pile which are the remaining cards face down. This is done by playing through as many turns as it takes for one player to get Gin or knocks. The object of the game is to have the highest points at the end of multiple hands or if it is single hand to receive Gin, Big Gin, or the highest set of points. Upon picking up the cards each player will arrange the cards according to matching suits for runs or two or three of the same value card.

The game starts when the dealer shuffles the cards and deals 10 cards to each player clock wise turning the top card face up in a separate pile which is the discard pile. For more than four players, a second deck of cards would be needed, which is one variation from the standard game. Two to four players can play comfortably. So they will be playing with a standard 52 set deck. Below I will go through the official rules of Gin as well as some variations on how to play with younger or older individuals who may or may not be able to follow the original rules.įirst, to start out players will need a deck of cards with the jokers removed. The game is comprised of collecting matching cards and making runs of the same suit. The ease of the game most likely has to do with its popularity. Sometimes the game is dominoes, sometimes the game is poker, but often the game is Gin or more officially known as Gin Rummy. It is often a trend in movies and TV shows to have people playing games.

Official gin rummy rules