2–4 players

How to play Hand

Nine rounds of rummy-style melding where the lowest score wins.

Keep score with ScoresDeck

Also known as Hand card game, هاند

Hand is a rummy-style card game played with two decks and two jokers — 106 cards. Each player is dealt 14, with one extra going to the player on the dealer’s right, who discards first. You build sets and runs and race to go out before everyone else.

Unlike most card games, the lowest total wins. Going out earns you a negative score; everyone else is charged for whatever is still stuck in their hand. A match is nine rounds, and the lowest total at the end takes it.

Objective

Finish the nine rounds with the lowest cumulative score by going out early and never being caught holding a heavy hand.

How to play Hand

  1. 1
    Deal

    From two decks plus two jokers, each player gets 14 cards — 15 for the player to the dealer’s right, who discards first. The rest form the stockpile.

  2. 2
    Draw and discard

    On your turn take a card from the stockpile or the discard pile, then discard one.

  3. 3
    Open with 51

    Your first lay-down must total at least 51 points across valid sets — three or more cards, either the same rank in different suits or a run in one suit. Jokers can stand in for missing cards. After you have opened, you can lay down freely.

  4. 4
    Go out

    The round ends the moment one player runs out of cards. Lay your entire hand down in a single turn without adding to anyone else’s sets and you have played a Hand — worth double.

  5. 5
    Score the round

    The player who went out takes a negative score; everyone else counts the cards left in their hand against them. ScoresDeck tallies all nine rounds and calls the winner.

Scoring

Going out pays, leftovers cost

Go out and you score −30. Everyone still holding cards adds up what they are left with: aces are 11, jokers are 15, and every other card is its face value. Those are positive points, and positive is bad — the lowest total wins.

A player who never laid down any sets at all takes an extra 100 points on top of their hand. It is the single most expensive thing that can happen to you in a round, and it is why opening matters more than opening well.

Playing a Hand doubles the round

Laying your whole hand down in one turn, without adding to anybody else’s sets, is a Hand. It scores you −60 instead of −30 — and it doubles what every other player is holding, the 100-point no-sets penalty included.

That is the real reason to hold for the perfect turn: a Hand does not just double your own reward, it doubles everyone else’s damage.

Partners

In the 2-vs-2 partners game the player who goes out scores the −30 or −60 and their partner scores exactly zero for that round — the team banks the bonus once, not twice. The opposing pair each count their hand as normal and their points are combined into the team total.

Optional "last place loses" mode

For 3–4 solo players ScoresDeck offers a last-place-loses mode, chosen when the lobby is created. The lowest total wins and only the highest total is recorded as a loss; everyone in between is neutral — the match still counts toward games played, but it does not affect their win rate. Ties for last are broken by who won more rounds.

Variants ScoresDeck supports

Hand (solo)

Two to four players, each for themselves — lowest total after nine rounds wins.

Hand Partners

A 2-vs-2 team game where partners combine their scores.

Hand Saudi

A variant where each opening lay-down must beat the last. Solo and partners.

Last-loses mode

An optional 3–4 player toggle: one winner, one loser, everyone else neutral.

Frequently asked questions

Does the highest or lowest score win in Hand?

The lowest score wins. Going out scores −30, and the cards left in everyone else’s hand count as positive points against them.

How many rounds is a game of Hand?

Nine. There is no target score — the match ends after the ninth round and the lowest cumulative total wins.

What is a "Hand"?

Going out by laying your entire hand down in a single turn without adding to anyone else’s sets. It scores −60 instead of −30 and doubles every other player’s points for that round.

What happens if you never lay down any sets?

You take an extra 100 points on top of the cards in your hand — and if someone went out with a Hand that round, the whole thing is doubled.

Can you play Hand with 2 players?

Yes. ScoresDeck supports two, three or four players in the solo game, plus a 2-vs-2 partners version.

Stop keeping score on paper

ScoresDeck handles every point of Hand for you — running totals, the live leader, and the winner the moment the match ends.

Get ScoresDeck

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