LET'S PLAY
HEARTS
Gin Rummy—grandma was right. Again. This game is pure, distilled brilliance. You and your opponent go toe-to-toe, drawing, discarding, and desperately trying to outwit each other in a battle of card-based supremacy. It’s poker without the mind games, blackjack without the dealer, and war—if war actually required strategy. The goal? Form sets, eliminate deadwood, and call “Gin” like you just uncovered a family secret. Fast, cutthroat, and just frustrating enough to keep you coming back. Grandma always knew best, even if you didn't really need that extra layer.
Object
Unlike most games, the winner is the player with the lowest score when another player exceeds 100 points.
What You Need
4 Players
A standard 52-card deck
A way to keep score
Card Ranks
• Card ranks: 2 (low) – Ace (high)
• Hearts: Each worth 1 point
• Queen of Spades: Worth 13 points
• All other cards: Worth 0 points
Who Goes First?
The player with the 2 of Clubs must lead the first trick. Play then proceeds clockwise.
Game Play
Set Up
Shuffle and deal out all 52 cards so that each player has 13 cards. Players should organize their hands by suit for easier play.
First dealer selection: Some play that the dealer is random, while others pick the player with the lowest card after an initial cut.
Before play begins, each player will pass three cards to another player based on the round’s passing direction:
• Round 1: Pass to the left
• Round 2: Pass to the right
• Round 3: Pass across (to the player opposite)
• Round 4: No passing (players keep their hands)
Watch the step by step guide here!
Players must follow suit if they can. The highest card of the lead suit wins the trick, and the winner leads the next trick.
Restrictions:
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Players cannot lead a heart until hearts have been broken (a heart has been played on a previous trick when a player couldn’t follow suit).
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The Queen of Spades can be played at any time when off-suit (except during the very first hand).
Scoring
At the end of a round, players count up the hearts they collected (1 point per heart) and check if they got the Queen of Spades (13 points). These scores are added to their running total.
When a player’s total reaches 100 points or more, the game ends, and the player with the lowest score wins.
Shooting the Moon
If a player manages to collect all 13 hearts and the Queen of Spades, they don’t get 26 points—instead, everyone else gets 26 points while they get zero. This high-risk, high-reward strategy can completely flip the game.
Variations
• Jack of Diamonds Variant: The Jack of Diamonds is worth -10 points, creating another strategy to reduce one’s score.
• Partnership Hearts: Players pair up (teammates sit opposite) and combine their scores.
• Spot Hearts: Hearts score their face value instead of each being 1 point (e.g., 2♥ = 2 points, 10♥ = 10 points).
Final Thoughts
Hearts is a deceptively simple game with layers of strategy. Whether you’re dodging the Queen of Spades or attempting a moonshot, every hand is a mix of skill, bluffing, and bad luck. Once you master the basics, it’s all about keeping track of cards and knowing when to take a hit—or dish one out.
