How to play Euchre
- You and North play as partners against West and East. Each player gets five cards from a 24-card deck (9 up to ace), and one card is turned face up.
- In turn, players may order up the turned card’s suit as trump (the dealer picks it up and throws one away) or pass. If everyone passes, each may name a different suit; if it comes back to the dealer, the dealer must choose. Tick Go alone first to play the hand without your partner.
- Follow suit if you can. The highest trump wins, or the highest card of the suit led. The team that called trump needs three of the five tricks.
Tips for winning at Euchre
- Count your trumps before you call. Three of them, especially with a bower, usually take three tricks with your partner’s help.
- Mind the dealer. Ordering up gives the dealer an extra trump. If the dealer is on the other team, you need a stronger hand to order up.
- Lead trump when your team called it. Pulling the other team’s trumps protects your side aces later in the hand.
- Don’t trump your partner’s winner. If North is already winning the trick, throw your lowest card instead.
- Go alone with both bowers and an ace or two. Four points for a march alone can end a close game quickly.
- Remember the left bower. The jack of the same color is a trump, not part of its own suit, which changes what you must follow with.
About the game
Euchre is a trick-taking card game for four players in two partnerships, popular in the Midwest of the US, Canada and parts of England. It uses only the 9s up to aces, and the two top trumps are jacks, the bowers. Each hand is short, five tricks, and the team that names trump must take at least three. This version plays standard rules with stick the dealer and going alone, with you and a computer partner against two computer players.