The Basics

Anyone playing Gin Rummy will be aiming to arrange as many of their cards into "sets" and "runs".

A set is simply three or more cards of the same rank.
OR

A run is a sequence of three or more cards, but all in the same suit and in order.
OR

Additionally, a player must always remain aware of the amount of "deadwood" in their hand, because this is another approach to winning a game of Gin Rummy. (This is discussed a bit later in the Rules)

A player can win by Going Gin, Knocking and Undercutting, and the last two can allow a player with the smallest amount of deadwood to be declared the winner.

It all begins with the deck:

A game of Gin Rummy requires a standard deck of 52 cards, excluding the Jokers. Numeric cards are given their points by face value. For example, the five of diamonds is worth five points.

The face cards are all worth ten points, and the Ace cards are worth a single point each.

The four suits

The cards and their values
1 points  2 points  3 points  4 points  5 points 6 points  7 points  8 points  9 points  10 points   10 points  10 points  10 points

Playing a Game of Gin Rummy

To play a round of Gin Rummy requires from two to four players. When a game begins with two players, each will receive ten cards. Should the game have three-four players, each receives only seven cards.

The dealer must then place the remainder of the deck, face down in the center of the table. They will then turn the top card over and lay it on the table, next to the deck. This creates the stock pile (the deck) and the discard pile (the upward facing card).

Each player takes a turn, and is required to first draw a single card from either the stock pile or the discard pile. This card is added to their hand.
Next, they must complete their turn by placing a single card into the discard pile in the upward facing position.

Should the players work their way through the stock pile until there are only 2 cards left, they must shuffle the cards in the discard pile and then lay them face down as a new stock pile. The last discarded card is then used to begin the new discard pile.

Play continues in this manner until one player is in a position to bring the game to an end. This is done in two primary ways:

• Going Gin – when a player is able to dispose of all cards at a single time without any "deadwood". This means they will lay down their cards on the table and separate them into runs and sets without having any leftover cards; or
• Knocking – when a player has less than ten points in deadwood and is the first to lay their cards on the table.

When a player does either of these things, their opponent(s) will also need to layout their hand as well. The scoring process begins after players have had their chance to "lay off cards".

Laying Off

Laying off is the process through which opponents try to reduce their own deadwood counts by using the sets and runs of the other players.
For example, a player who Goes Gin cannot have any cards laid off on their melds. If, however, they Knocked, the next player can lay down their sets and runs to get rid of deadwood in their own hand.

How does this work? A simple example is the hand of a player who Knocked which contains a run of seven through ten of hearts, a set of threes in all four suits, and deadwood cards of five of diamonds and four of clubs. The next player might be holding the six of hearts and the Jack of hearts. They could lay off these cards on the Knocking player’s hand.

There are some rules about laying off, however, and these include:

• No one can use another player’s unmatched deadwood to lay off their own cards; and
• No one can use the hand of the player who went Gin for laying off their cards.

Winning and Scoring

In addition to Going Gin and Knocking, a player can also win through:

• Undercutting – when a player has a lower deadwood count than the player who "knocked". This might be achieved instantly, or it can be done through the laying off process.

Once all players have finished laying off, the scoring can be done. The way in which the winner took the hand will determine how some points are scored. For example:

• A game won by Going Gin automatically requires opponents to receive the sum of their deadwood cards plus a 25 point penalty.
• A game won by Knocking requires opponents to receive the sum of their deadwood cards, but they reduce this count by the Knocker’s deadwood card values.
• A game won by Undercutting requires opponents to receive the sum of their deadwood cards, and the Knocker must also take a 25 point penalty.

Payout Table

Should a game have a "pool" or "pot", the winner of the game usually receives 75% of the value and the remaining 25% is divided between the opponents. Should a player be more than 50 points behind the winner’s score, however, they do not get a share.

Click here to see examples.