the Perfect Game
NUMBER OF PLAYERS—Two to Six Players, each playing for
himself.
THE
In the four-handed game, 32 Cards: Ace
(high), King, Queen, Jack, 10, 9, 8, 7.
In the five-handed game, 40 Cards:
Ace (high), King, Queen, Jack, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5.
In the six-handed game, 48 Cards:
Ace (high), King, Queen, Jack, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3.
THE DEAL—All players draw; high draw deals first. The deal passes, after each hand,
to the left. Dealer deals one card at a time, in rotation, beginning with the
player to his left, until each player has eight cards. This will exhaust the
entire pack, except in the two-handed game.
THE BIDDING—The player to the dealer’s left bids first.
Each player, in rotation, has one turn to bid (or pass). Three is the minimum
bid, and each bid must exceed the last preceding bid. The highest possible bid
is 17. High bidder names the trump suit. If no one bids, the hand is not
played, and the deal passes to the left.
OBJECT OF PLAY—The high bidder tries to win in tricks
enough Aces and Face Cards to make or exceed his bid. The other players try to
prevent him from doing so. Aces, Kings,
THE PLAY—The high bidder leads first; he may lead any card. Each player, in
rotation, must follow suit to the lead, if able. If unable to follow suit, he
may play any card. Any trick containing a trump is won by the highest trump
played; any other trick is won by the highest card of the suit led. The winner
of each trick leads to the next trick. Players are not allowed to advise each
other, nor may they say anything that reveals the quality or contents of their
hands. Any discussion of the hand should wait until after the hand has been
fully played.
SCORING—If the high bidder wins at least as many points as he bid, he scores his
bid, and the other players score nothing. If he does not make his bid, the
other players each score his bid, and he scores nothing.
If the high bidder wins more points than his bid, these extra points
are recorded in a special account called sweven. If the same player is
high bidder in the next hand and he successfully makes his bid, he is awarded
these extra points in addition to his normal score. If he is not high bidder in
this next hand, or if he is unsuccessful in making his bid, the points in sweven are lost.
No other player can be awarded them, nor may he redeem them in a subsequent
hand. (Example: High bidder bids 4 points but takes 7. He is awarded 4 points,
and 3 points are put in sweven.
In the next hand he is again high bidder, bidding 10 and taking 12. He receives
13 points—10 points for his bid and
3 points from the previous hand. The 2 extra points he took in this hand are
now put in sweven.)
PENALTY—If the high bidder fails to make his bid, he may not bid in the next
hand.
THE GAME—The first player to reach 35 points wins
the game. If more than one player reaches 35 points in the same hand, the
higher score prevails. If two or more players are tied for first place, they
are all counted as winners.