How to Play Gin Rummy With 2 Players

You need one deck and about ten minutes to learn

Take out the jokers. Cut for the deal; low card deals first. The dealer gives each player 10 cards, one at a time, turns the next card face up (the upcard) and puts the other 31 cards face down beside it as the stock. Keep paper and a pencil handy for the score.

Sort your cards as you pick them up. Most people group them by suit, then by rank, so sets and runs are easy to spot.

The first upcard is offered to both players

The first turn is a little different. The non-dealer may take the upcard. If they pass, the dealer may take it. Whoever takes it discards a card, and play goes on from there. If both pass, the non-dealer draws from the stock instead.

Every turn is the same: draw one, discard one

1. Draw: take the top card of the stock (unseen) or the top card of the discard pile (face up).
2. Discard: put one card face up on the discard pile. If you took the discard, you can't throw that same card back this turn.

Your goal is to build sets (three or four cards of the same rank) and runs (three or more in a row in one suit; aces are low). Cards that fit neither are deadwood, and they count against you: face cards 10, aces 1, others their number.

Take the discard only when it makes a meld

Taking from the discard pile shows your opponent what you are collecting. A good rule for beginners: take it when it joins a set or run right away; otherwise draw from the stock. Try it with the hand below.

With the 9♥ up, taking it makes a run and your deadwood drops from 49 to 24 after you discard the K♣. With the K♠ up, it fits nothing, so you draw from the stock instead.

The hand ends when someone knocks or goes gin

After you draw, if you can discard and be left with 10 or less in deadwood, you may knock. Discard face down and spread your hand in sets, runs and deadwood. Your opponent then lays out their own melds and may lay off their loose cards on yours.

If all your cards are in sets and runs, you go gin: no lay-offs allowed, and a bonus. If the stock gets down to its last two cards with no knock, the hand is a draw and is dealt again. Read more in knocking in gin rummy.

The lower count scores, and the first to 100 wins

• Knock: the knocker scores the difference between the two deadwood counts.
• Gin: 25 points plus the opponent's deadwood.
• Undercut: if the defender has the same or less, the defender scores 25 plus the difference.

The winner of a hand deals the next one. At 100 points the game ends, and the winner adds a 100-point game bonus; each player adds 25 for every hand they won. The full method, with a calculator, is on how to score gin rummy.