| Modified Five-Handed Hearts – A Fun Variation
You have a hot Hearts game lined up with three of your friends. Then a fifth person comes along, who also happens to be a good player. You could try a five handed game, with one deck - a lousy way to play! You could cut cards to see who sits out a whole game. You could watch the game; however, nothing is more boring than kibitzing a card game when you are ready to play. Solution - five handed Hearts with a twist. Instead of removing the red deuces or playing with a two-card Kitty, and 10 cards/player, try this: Add another thirteen card Spade suit. Now, there are two Queens of spades, and 26 spades. Each player still has 13 cards. The pass (of three cards) rotation is Left, Skip Left, Right, and Skip Right. If two equal ranked spades are played on the same spade trick, then the first spade of that rank is the winner. The deuce of clubs still leads, and all of the other standard rules apply.
It sure creates lot of excitement!. Firstly, there are 39 points which are distributed for every hand. Secondly, there are two Aces and two Kings of spades to worry about every hand. Thirdly, a successful Moon can be devastating. After all, most early Heart tricks contain five cards and a thin holding such as A - K - Q by themselves might pick up the whole suit. (Then again, you would still have to win both of the spade Queens - a pretty tall order!) And finally, every hand is a miniature battle in which the two spade Queens are under constant siege by the large number of spades held by the other players. The game limit is 100 points, although, it might be better to set the limit at 125 or even 150. I played this variation at the recently completed Grand Prix National event, and it was a lot of fun, as well a good test of counting the spade and hearts suits. | |
| Annual Holiday Hearts Quiz
Win a copy of "The Complete Win At Hearts", four novelty decks of cards and an Official Grand Prix T-Shirt from this year's event. All you have to do is to answer these thirteen questions, and be one of the first three people to submit the most correct answers. Assume the standard four-handed game without scoring minus ten for the Jack of diamonds. Please send e-mails to: heartsmoon@aol.com The winners’ names (the first three emails received with the most correct answers) will be announced in the December column.
1. What was the original name for the game of Hearts, and in what country did this mid 18th century version of Hearts originate? (2 parts)
2. What is the original “mythological" name for the Queen of Spades? (Hint: It was made official in 1812).
3. The modern rule for the opening lead in Hearts requires that the holder of the deuce of clubs lead this card. What was standard rule for the first lead in Hearts prior to the modern deuce of clubs lead? (Hint: It is still used in some circles today and is described in some of the “Hoyle" books?)
4. Describe the two ways that Partnership Hearts (often called Variety I and Variety II) is played?
5. Who wrote the book, "Hearts In Atlantis" which was made into a movie in 2001?
6. Describe the other two most popular passing (of three cards) options besides the standard passes of three cards to the left, right, and across? (Assume a four player game).
7. What is the synonym for "Comparison" Hearts (where players have the same cards in each direction and the results for each hand are compared)?
8. Describe the "spear" play in the game of Hearts relative to the play of the Queen of spades and show an illustrative example.
9. In which U.S. city was the first "National" Hearts Tournament held? (Hint: It was sponsored by the Zone in 1999.)
10. In the game of Hearts, describe the "depravation" play and describe the style of playing known as "dirty Hearts". (Two separate answers).
11. What is the original "mythological" name for the Jack of diamonds? (Hint: It was made official in 1812).
12. What is the only instance when it is perfectly legal to drop the Queen of spades on the FIRST trick of a hand? Describe the layout or hand.
13. Who is the legendary east coast Hearts player of the 1970's who executed the first known pure (and documented) "squeeze" play in tournament competition? (Hint: The play is now named after him. Hint #2: It is NOT yours truly! LOL.)
Get those answers in soon to heartsmoon@aol.com
Happy Thanksgiving! | |
