PINOCHLE

card game derived from bezique and most often played in North America. One popular version is auction pinochle, a three-handed game using two packs of 24 cards ranking ace, 10, king, queen, jack, and 9 of each suit. Each player is dealt 15 cards, 3 at a time; after the first 3 are dealt, 3 are dealt to the table to form the widow. Bidding goes clockwise from the dealer's left. The lowest bid is generally 300. Bids reflect the player's estimate of the number of points he may earn through melds and by taking high-card points in tricks. The high bidder names trump, takes the widow, discards three cards after melds are displayed, and tries to score the amount of his bid, while the others try to defeat him. Before play begins, the bidder displays melds made up from his hand and the widow. The common melds and their point values are: Pinochle (queen of spades and jack of diamonds) 40 Dix (9 of trump) 10 Four aces (one in each suit) 100 Four kings (one in each suit) 80 Four queens (one in each suit) 60 Four jacks (one in each suit) 40 Marriage (king and queen in a side suit) 20 Royal marriage (king and queen of trump) 40 Royal flush (ace through jack of trump) 150 Values of cards in auction pinochle are ace (11), 10 (10), king (4), queen (3), jack (2), and 9 (0). If two identical cards are played to a trick, the first beats the second. Points are scored for (a) capturing counting cards in tricks, plus 10 for winning the last trick, and (b) holding various melds at the outset of the game. The king or queen melded in a royal marriage may not also be melded in a royal flush, or vice versa. The 9 of trumps (called the dix) is worth 10 points: to the dealer if turned as trump, to a player by melding it or displaying it after winning a trick. The dix is then exchanged for the turned trump. At any point up to the play of the first trick, the bidder may concede without further play, or his opponents may concede. To start play, the bidder leads to the first trick; others follow suit, or, if unable to follow, they must trump. If trump is led, the others must, if possible, play a higher trump.