Pitch

Overview

Pitch is a classic American trick-taking game for four players in two partnerships. You and the player sitting opposite are partners. It uses a standard 52-card deck, ranked from Ace (high) down to 2. Only six cards go to each player, so 24 of the 52 cards are in play each hand; the other 28 stay out, which means some trumps, including the Jack, may never appear.

The deal and the bidding

Each player gets six cards. There is one round of bidding, starting with the player to the dealer's left. Each player may pass or bid 2, 3, 4 or Smudge, and every bid must be higher than the one before it.

• The dealer bids last and may steal the contract by matching the highest bid, instead of beating it.
• If the other three players all pass, the dealer must bid at least 2.
• The deal passes to the left after every hand.

The pitch and the play

The highest bidder, the pitcher, leads the first card, and its suit becomes trump for the hand. To play a card, tap it and then press the Play button.

• You must follow the suit that was led if you can, but you may always play a trump instead, even when you could follow suit.
• If you cannot follow suit, play any card.
• The highest trump wins the trick. If no trump was played, the highest card of the suit led wins.
• The winner of each trick leads the next one. A hand is six tricks.

The four points

Each hand is worth up to four points, plus the bid at stake:

• High: the highest trump in play. It always wins its trick, so the team holding it scores it.
• Low: the lowest trump in play, scored by the team that captures it in a trick. That makes a low trump risky to play when the other side is winning the trick.
• Jack: the Jack of trump, scored by the team that captures it. If it was not dealt, nobody scores it.
• Game: the team whose captured cards add up to the most, counting 10s as 10, Aces 4, Kings 3, Queens 2 and Jacks 1. A tie for Game scores for nobody.

Scoring and setback

• If the bidding team takes at least as many points as it bid, it scores every point it took.
• If it falls short, it is set back: the amount of the bid is subtracted from its score. Scores can go below zero.
• The other team always scores whatever points it took.
• A Smudge is a bid to take all six tricks. Made, it scores 5; failed, the bidding team loses 5.

Winning

The first team to reach 21 wins, but only on a hand in which it made its own bid. The defending team can pass 21 and still not have won; the game goes on until a team that bids and makes it is at 21 or more.

Tips

• Bid on trump strength. An Ace or King of trump nearly guarantees High, and a Jack you can protect is another point.
• When you pitch, lead your highest trump to pull the opponents' trumps early.
• When your partner is sure to win a trick, give them points: the Jack, a low trump or a 10 for Game.
• Hold on to a low trump until your side can win the trick it lands in, or the opponents take the Low point.
• As dealer, stealing at 2 is often worth it with any decent trump suit, since you get to pitch.