What Are the Rules of 4 Player Pinochle?
Pinochle uses 48 cards and teams of two. Each suit uses two aces, two tens, two kings, two queens, two jacks and two nines. Every player is dealt 12 cards. The players next bid for the right to call trump and receive cards from his partner. Bidding is based on how many points the player thinks he can score. Once bidding is complete, cards are exchanged between the bid winners and the meld is tallied.
The meld is a combination of cards played face up in front of each player worth a certain amount of points. After these points have been calculated, the players return these cards to their hands and the play begins. During this phase, a card is lead and players must try to match the suit with a higher card. When all cards have been played, the players count up their score. A score is determined based on the number of aces, tens or kings taken. It is important to note that in pinochle, the ten holds the second highest rank, after the ace and before the other cards.
The score is compared to the number the winning team bid. If they successfully managed to gain the number of points they bid, they get that score. Otherwise, the total amount they bid is subtracted from their score. The game continues until a score of 250 is reached. In the case that both teams reach 250 in the same round, the team with the higher score is the winner.
