Whist (a trick-taking game) is a classic card game which was played widely in the 18th and 19th centuries and was a development of an older game Ruff and Honours. Although the rules are extremely simple there is enormous scope for scientific play and since the only information known at the start of play is the player's thirteen cards (plus possibly the turned up trump card from the dealer's hand), the game is difficult to play well.

In its heyday a large amount of literature about how to play Whist was written. Edmond Hoyle, of "according to Hoyle" fame, wrote an early popular and definitive textbook. By the late 19th century an elaborate and rigid set of rules detailing the laws of the game, its etiquette and the techniques of play had been developed that took a large amount of study to master. In the 20th century, Bridge, which shares many traits with Whist, has displaced it as the most popular card game amongst serious card players. Nevertheless, Whist continues to be played in Britain, often in local tournaments called "whist drives".

Versions of whist

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Nowadays there are many other games called Whist - the name has become attached to a wide variety of games based on classic Whist, but often with some kind of bidding added, for example:

• Bid whist (a partnership game with bidding, played in the USA)
• Boston (played in 19th century Europe, favored by Count Rostov in Leo Tolstoy's novel War and Peace)
• Catch the Ten (aka Scotch Whist) (uses only half the deck, 10 is most valuable
• Colour whist or Kleurwiezen (a Belgian game similar to Solo Whist, but more elaborate)
• German Whist (a British two-player adaptation of Whist without bidding)
• Hearts and Spades are also American versions of the game and can be found on Windows as simple fun games.
• Israeli whist (another game somewhat related to Oh Hell, in which one tries to bid the exact number of tricks one will take)
• Knockout whist (a game in which a player who wins no trick is eliminated)
• Minnesota whist (in which there are no trumps, and hands can be played to win tricks or to lose tricks - also the very similar game of Norwegian Whist)
• Oh Hell (players bid on exactly how many tricks they will take going too high or too low is penalized)
• Romanian whist (a game in which players try to predict the exact number of tricks they will take - similar to Oh Hell)
• Solo whist (played in Britain; a game where individuals can bid to win 5, 9 or 13 tricks or to lose every trick)
• Three-Handed "Widow" Whist (or Three-Handed Whist, an extra hand that is dealt just to the left of the dealer)

Whist Rules

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A standard 52 card pack is used. The cards in each suit rank from highest to lowest: A K Q J 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2.

Whist is played by four players, who play in two partnerships with the partners sitting opposite each other. Players cut or draw cards to determine partners; the two lowest playing against the two highest; with the lowest having seating rights. Players cut for deal.

Shuffling

The cards can be shuffled by any player, usually the player to dealer's left, and dealer has the right to shuffle last if they wish. To speed up dealing a second pack can be shuffled by the dealer's partner during the deal, this is then placed on their right ready for the next hand, (as the deal rotates clockwise). The cards are cut by the player on dealer's right before dealing.

Deal

The dealer deals out all the cards one at a time so that each player has thirteen cards. The final card, which belongs to the dealer's, is turned face up to indicate which suit is trumps. The turned trump remains face up on the table until it is dealer's turn to play to the first trick.

Play

The player to the dealer's left leads to the first trick; any card may be led. The other players, in clockwise order, each play a card to the trick and must follow suit by playing a card of the suit led if they have one; a player with no card of the suit led may play any card either discarding or trumping. The trick is won by the highest card of the suit led, except if a trump is played when the highest trump wins. The winner of the trick leads to the next trick.

Scoring

After all 13 tricks have been played, the side which won the most tricks scores 1 point for each odd trick, that is 1 point for each trick in excess of 6.

In Britain, Short Whist is usually played, where the first side to reach 5 points wins game, and the first side to win two games wins the rubber. Points are counted in a rubber as follows: a game (if opponents scored 3 or 4 points), is worth 1 point; a double game (if opponents scored 1 or 2 points), 2 points; a treble game (if opponents scored 0 points), 3 points; winning the rubber, 2 points. The result of the rubber is the difference in rubber points between the two sides, and when gambling paid at a set amount of money per point.

There is also Long Whist played to 9 points. In the US game is usually 7 points.

Honours are points for game that are claimed at the end of play for holding the top four cards (A,K,Q,J) in the trump suit. A pair who hold three of the four honours between them claim 2 points, a pair who hold all four honours between them claim 4 points. Tricks are scored before honours, and a side with 4 points can't score honours to win the game. Honours add nothing to a play of a hand, and serve to only as an element of luck that speeds up games; they are often omitted these days.

Basic Whist Technique

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For the opening lead it is best to lead your strongest suit, which is usually the longest. A singleton may also be a good lead, trying to get ruff. Partner should normally return the suit led.

1st hand. It is usual to lead the king from a sequence of honours that includes it, including AK (the lead of an ace therefore denies the king).

2nd hand usually plays low, especially with a single honour. However, it is often correct to split honours (play the lowest of two touching honours) and to cover a J or 10 when holding Qx, and cover a Q when holding the ace.

3rd hand usually plays high, and again the lowest of touching honours. The finesse can be a useful technique, especially in trumps where honours can't be trumped if not cashed.

Discards are usually low cards of a suit you do not like, however, when the opponents are drawing trumps a suit preference signal is given by throwing a low card of your strongest suit.

Curious references

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• Edgar Allan Poe wrote about whist on his tale The Murders in the Rue Morgue:

"^* Whist has long been noted for its influence upon what is termed the calculating power; and men of the highest order of intellect have been known to take an apparently unaccountable delight in it, ^*"

• Phileas Fogg, the hero of Jules Vernes novel Around the World in Eighty Days, is a dedicated whist player.

• Edward Gorey made a mention of whist in his illustrated book The Glorious Nosebleed, the selection reading:

"They played whist distractedly."

• Horatio Hornblower is an excellent whist player in C. S. Forester's historical-fiction series of the same name.

References

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Rules of Card Games: Whist

The Pan Book of Card Games, Hubert Phillips, Pan Books Ltd, London, 1960

Waddingtons Family Card Games, Robert Harbin, Pan Books Ltd, London, 1972

Official Rules of Card Games, United States Playing Card Company, 59th ed., 1973

Anglo-American playing card games | Trick-taking card games

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