Euchre

If you were to visit the Queens Arms, Slapton on a Wednesday evening after 9:00 or the first hour of Sunday lunchtime, you would be forgiven for thinking the noisy crowd in the corner were having an argument. The game Euchre, at times, generates an excitement not found in many card games, particularly at the end stage of a close 'leg' of the game.

Euchre is a popular game in Devon and Cornwall although it is not just restricted to the two counties; indeed I first encountered it at Chatham in 1974 while I was serving in the Royal Navy but the older locals remember it as 'always been'.

To the uninitiated observer the game appears a little strange with rules that seem to alter as the game progresses - many a head has been scratched watching Euchre.

The description below is based on the version of the game played at Slapton, many other versions exist but the basic theme of the game remains the same.

Slapton Euchre

Players and Object
Euchre is a whist-based game for four players in fixed partnerships, partners sitting diagonally opposite each other. Five cards are dealt to each player and the object is to win at least three of the five tricks - with a bonus for winning all five. 

Rank of Cards
A pack of 25 cards is used consisting of A K Q J 10 9, in each of the four suits, plus a joker. If the pack of cards has no joker, the two of spades is used as a substitute. 

The trump suit has 8 cards ranking from highest to lowest as follows:

Benny, (the joker or two of spades)
 Right Bower (the jack of the trump suit)
 Left Bower (the same colour jack as the trump suit)
 Ace
King
Queen
Ten
Nine

The other suits have 6 or 5 cards ranking as normal: A K Q (J) 10 9. 
Note: Benny and Left count for all purposes as belonging to the trump suit. For example if hearts are trumps, the jack of diamonds is a heart not a diamond. It can be played to a heart lead and if it is led, hearts must be followed. 

The Deal
The first dealer is selected by turning the shuffled deck face-up, one card at a time around the table, until a jack is turned; the player who receives this jack becomes dealer. The turn to deal then rotates clockwise throughout the game. The dealer shuffles and the player to dealer's right will cut. 

Five cards are dealt clockwise to each player in two rounds, giving each player a packet of two or three cards in any order - any player who was dealt two in the first round gets three in the second and vice versa. 

The remainder of the pack are placed face down to the left of dealer with the top card facing upward. This up-card is used as a basis for selecting the trump suit.

Making trump
This process determines the trump suit and which team are the makers - that is the team which undertakes to win three tricks. Each player in turn, beginning with the player to the dealer's left, has the option of electing the up-card's suit as the trump suit or passing; specifically:

  • The player to dealer's left may either pass or say, "I order it up"

  • If the first player passes, the dealer's partner may either pass or say, "turn it down"

  • If the first two players pass, the player to dealer's right may either pass or say, "I order it up"

  • If all three other players pass, the dealer may either take the up-card saying, "I take it up", or pass by saying, "over" and turning the up-card face-down.

If either of the dealer's opponents order it up or if dealer decides to take it up, the suit of the up-card becomes trump; the dealer adds the up-card to his hand and discards another face-down. The dealer's partner cannot make trumps and play with a partner; he can only make the turned up suit trumps by playing alone, in which case the upcard and the dealer's cards are placed face-down on the table and dealer's partner now plays alone, with the turned suit as trump.

If all four players pass, the up-card is turned face-down, and there is a second round in which players have the option to make any other suit trump. Again the player to dealer's left speaks first and may either pass again or name a suit. If the first player passes the second may name a suit or pass, and so on. If all four players pass a second time the cards are thrown in and the next player deals; in a Euchre Drive competition the same person deals again after a throw-in as every player has to deal once on each table visit. 

Note that the calling process does not end when someone accepts or makes trump (rather than passing), as all players are entitled to an equal number of calls - any player who has not called once during the first round or twice during the second may yet overcall; this is explained further in Going Alone, below. 

If the Benny is the turned up card then the dealer calls a suit before looking at any of his cards and play resumes as normal.

Going Alone
After trump has been made, but before the first lead, any player who has not yet called on that round may announce that they are playing alone. The partner of a lone player puts his cards face-down and takes no part in the play.

Either member of either side may play alone. It is possible that a player of both sides chooses to play alone, in which case there will be only two active players. If the first caller in a partnership 'goes alone' he can be over-ruled by his partner who might feel that he too can go alone in the designated trump suit.

The Play
Play begins with the first active player to the dealer's left leading to the first trick. Any card may be led, and each player in clockwise order must follow suit by playing a card of the same suit as the card led if possible. A player who cannot follow suit may play any card. Remember that, for the purpose of following suit, Benny and the Left Bower are considered to belong to the trump suit and not to any other suit. 

The trick is won by whoever plays the highest card of the suit led, unless a trump is played in which case the highest trump wins. The winner of each trick leads to the next one. 

Scoring

  • If the makers win 3 or 4 tricks they score one point.
  • If the makers win all 5 tricks they score two points.
  • If the makers take fewer than 3 tricks they are said to be euchred, and the other team scores two points. If euchred by the other team playing alone then four points are scored.
  • If a member of the makers' team is playing alone and wins all 5 tricks, the team scores four points instead of two, if he wins 4 of the five tricks the team scores two points.

The game is normally played to 31 points, that being one length of a standard cribbage board, the team who first reach 31 or more points over several deals win that game or leg.  Sometimes teams play to 16 points if time is shorter or just 'once deal round the board' if the dinner is on the table. A Euchre drive has no set points target, rather each player keeps a tally of his score at each table and the player with the highest score at the end of the drive wins.

Historical Note
Euchre was probably derived from the game Jucker which was formerly played in Alsace. Euchre reached the USA in the early nineteenth century and was the original game for which the Joker was introduced into the playing-card pack in the 1850s (to serve as the highest trump). Euchre is popular in the US Navy, and it may be through this maritime connection that it migrated in the later nineteenth century from America to other English speaking parts of the world; certainly in Britain it is mainly found in regions where there has been a strong Naval influence. 

The word Bower comes from the German Bauer, which means farmer or peasant and is also a word for Jack.

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