Oklahoma Rummy is a variant of Gin Rummy, as such the basic rules are very similar to the rules of Gin Rummy itself. There are, however, a few important differences. The first difference is whereas Gin Rummy is intended to be a two player game, Oklahoma Rummy can be played with any number of players between two and four. This makes it popular for people who want to play in group games as opposed to head-to-head. The second difference is in the scoring system as players can score negative points in Oklahoma Rummy. The final difference is that the value of deadwood at which players can knock is not always ten (as it is in Gin Rummy). Instead this value is determined by the value of the upcard (the first card of the discard pile).

Oklahoma Rummy is played with a standard deck of 52 playing cards (no jokers). If two players are involved then each is dealt 10 cards, if three or four players are in the game then each player receives 7 cards. Following the deal, the dealer places the remaining cards face down in the middle of the table forming the stock pile. The top card of the stock pile is turned face up and used to start a separate discard pile next to the stock pile. This is the upcard. The value of the upcard is of little importance in Gin Rummy, but in Oklahoma Rummy it has a significant influence on the game and must be noted.

Play begins with the player to the left of the dealer and each turn consists of a draw (either a blind draw from the top of the stock pile, or drawing the visible card on top of the discard pile) and a discard (which requires a player to discard one card of their choice from their hand face up on the discard pile). The aim of the game is to make melds out of the cards in your hand. Each player works out their melds in secret, such that other players do not know what cards they have, how close they are to winning and what cards they need to do so. As with all Rummy games a meld comes in two forms, either a run or a set. A run is a sequence of three or more cards of the same suit in order (for example the 6, 7 and 8 of Diamonds). A set is three or more cards of the same rank (for example three Aces). Any cards that a player holds that are not part of a meld are called deadwood.

A game of Oklahoma Rummy ends when a player knocks. A player may knock when the value of the deadwood in his hand is less than or equal to the value of the upcard (the first card drawn from the top of the stock pile that was used to begin the discard pile). This is why the value of the upcard is so important in Oklahoma Rummy. If a player holds an Ace and a four as deadwood then they would be able to knock if the value of the upcard at the start of the game had been five or more. However, if the value of the upcard was less than five, that player would not be able to knock. If a player can meld all of their cards then obviously they can win the game regardless of the value of the upcard by “Going Gin”. Indeed, it is often played that if the upcard is an Ace, then the game can only be won by “Going Gin” (and not by being left with a sole deadwood Ace as you might otherwise expect).

As with ordinary Gin Rummy the knocker receives points based on the total amount of deadwood left in his opponents’ hands after they have laid down their own melds and laid off their cards onto the knocker’s melds as best as they are able, thereby reducing their deadwood. Of course, as there are more players in Oklahoma Rummy this can potentially be a much higher score. The player who knocks receives points to the value of the difference between their deadwood and all their opponents, plus an additional 10 bonus points. However, if a player has a lower deadwood count than the knocker, the knocker has been undercut and the undercutting player receives the difference in points between their deadwood and their opponents’ totals, plus an additional 10 point bonus. If a player achieves Gin, they obviously cannot be undercut and score the sum of all their opponents’ deadwood, plus a 20 point bonus.

The difference in the scoring system between Gin Rummy and Oklahoma Rummy is that losing players receive negative points equal to their personal amount of deadwood minus the value of the knocker’s deadwood. This means that, throughout the course of the game, a player’s overall score can go up as well as down. Oklahoma Rummy games are normally played up to 150 points.

In Kaluki (or Kalooki), 106 cards are used (2 decks and two jokers) and each player is dealt 13 cards regardless of the number of players participating in the game. Aces are high and are therefore worth 11 points. The jokers take the value of the cards they are pretending to be whilst in play and a value of 15 for the purposes of scoring.

After 13 cards are dealt to each player the dealer forms the face-down stock pile using the remainder of the pack and then turns the top card face-up and uses it to start the discard pile. Play begins with the player to the left of the dealer and rotates in a clockwise direction. Each player’s turn consists of 4 parts.

The first action on each turn is the draw, which is compulsory. The first player may draw from the stock or discard pile, but the following players are restricted to drawing from the stock pile only until they have laid down an initial meld of at least 40 points. However, they are able to draw from the discard pile provided that they use the card they draw on that turn to lay down their initial meld.

The second action is melding, which is optional. This involves the player laying down melds of cards in the form of sets or runs. A set is a group of three or more cards of the same rank and of different suit. As two packs are used in Kaluki there will be two cards of each rank and suit in play. However, as the cards in a set must all be of different suits, it is not possible to have both in a single set. Runs are sequences of three or more cards of the same suit in order: the 8, 9 and 10 of Spades, for example. Note that Aces are high in Kaluki, so the run Queen, King, Ace is valid, whereas the run Ace, 2, 3 is not.

The third action is laying off (also known as building), which is also optional. When building a player may add cards from their hand to melds that have already been placed on table by themselves or another player. The meld must be valid after the addition of the cards and the rule that sets must not have cards of the same suit still applies. A maximum of two cards can be added to the same end of an existing run, so you could not add the Jack, Queen and King to a run consisting of the 8, 9 and 10. Although a player is allowed to build in the same turn as laying down their initial meld, the building cards do not count towards the value of the initial meld.

The final action of a turn in Kaluki is drawing, which is compulsory. This involves a player discarding one card face-up on the discard pile.

The jokers add a twist to Kaluki in that they can be used to represent any other card in a meld. For example, with only a pair of twos you can lay down a melded set of twos by adding a joker. A player who has the genuine cards to complete a set can use them to replace a joker. So if a set consisted of the Jack of Hearts, Jack of Diamonds and a Joker and a player had the Jack of Clubs and Jack of Spades, they could add those two cards to the set and take the Joker. However, they must use the Joker they pick up either in a meld or in building on the same turn. They cannot add it to their hand. If the player only had the Jack of Clubs in their possession they could still add to the set, but they would not be able to pick up the Joker as the set would then be a closed set with the Joker as the Jack of Spades. If a set consisted of three cards, two of which were Jokers, a player could add two cards of the correct rank and different (required) suits to take one Joker and form a closed set. Jokers can also be used in runs, where they have a definite identity as a specific card. They can be swapped with that card by any player who possesses it. They cannot add the Joker to their hand and must meld or build with it immediately.

The game ends when one player discards their last card, which is called “Calling off”. The other players are not able to meld or build after this point and are left with their remaining cards. The points values of these cards are summed and added to each player’s individual score as penalty points. The “Calling off” player receives 20 bonus points. If a player plays all 13 of their cards in a single hand this is called Hunt (or Kaluki) and earns the player 20 extra bonus points (total 40) and means that all penalty points earned by other players in that hand are doubled. Once a player reaches 150 penalty points they are eliminated from the game.

Gin Rummy is similar to traditional Rummy, but it is a quick-fire game as there is no melding or laying off until the end of the game. The Gin Rummy game is traditionally a game for two players, although there are versions for more than two players. It is played with a standard pack of 52 cards (no jokers). Both players are initially dealt 10 cards and the remaining cards are placed face down, forming the stock pile. The dealer then removes the top card from the stock pile and places it face up next to the stock, forming the discard pile, this is the upcard.

Play begins by the non-dealer taking the upcard if they would like it. If they do not want it, they forgo the opportunity to have the first go and that chance is then with the dealer. If the dealer wishes to take the upcard they may. However, if neither player wants the upcard then the non-dealing player begins the game by drawing the top card from the stock pile.

A player’s turn in Gin Rummy involves no melding or laying off. Therefore, a turn simply consists of drawing one card (from the discard or stock pile) and then discarding one card face up on the discard pile. Instead of laying down melds on the table it is down to the player to secretly arrange their hand into melds.

A player’s hand consists of melds and deadwood. Melds are cards that form a set or run. A set being three or more cards of the same rank, for example three Queens. A run being three or more cards of the same suit in sequence, for example the 8, 9 and 10 of Spades. Any cards that a player holds that they cannot fit into their melds are called deadwood. A player may end the hand when the cumulative score of their deadwood cards is less than 10. The score of the card is based on its rank with Aces being low (and hence worth 1 point) and all face cards (Jacks, Queens and Kings) being worth 10 points. All other cards are worth the number of points equal to their rank. Therefore, if a player can meld all their cards except for a 2, 3, 4 and 5 (which are obviously of different suits) then they have a deadwood score of 14. If it is their turn and they have already drawn a card then they can discard one card (to complete their turn). They can therefore discard the 5 and be left with a deadwood score of 9. This is less than 10, hence they are able to knock if they wish.

When a player knocks their opponent then has the opportunity to meld or lay off cards in their own hand. Melding is done in the same way as the knocker, but in addition the opponent has the opportunity to add some of their cards to the knocker’s already laid melds. When laying off a player could add the fourth card of the same rank to any set, or add another card (or more) in sequence to a run (such as adding the 7 and 8 of Hearts to a run of the 4, 5 and 6 of Hearts). This gives the player who did not knock the opportunity to reduce their deadwood score. Once they have completed all the melding and laying off that is possible their deadwood score is calculated. In our example the knocker had a deadwood score of 9. If their opponent has a deadwood score more than this then the knocker is awarded the number of points equal to the difference between the two scores. So if the opponent had a deadwood score of 25, the knocker would collect, 25 – 9 = 16 points. However, if the opponent has a deadwood score of less than the knocker they would score the difference plus a bonus of 25 points for “undercutting” the knocker. For example, if the opponent had a deadwood score of just 7, they would get 9 – 7 + 25 = 27 points.

Instead of knocking with some deadwood cards remaining a player can wait until they have no deadwood and can make their entire hand into melds. This is called “Gin” and prevents the opponent from laying off any cards and means it is impossible to be undercut. In this case the player “Going Gin” scores whatever the value of their opponents deadwood is plus a 25 point bonus. Therefore, if their opponent had a deadwood score of 15 they would score, 15 + 25 = 40 points.

A game of Gin Rummy is normally played up to 100 points. Matchplay is also common. When playing a match a player gets 100 points for every game they have won (i.e. being the first to 100 points) as well a 25 point bonus for every hand won in that game. Therefore, after a game in which “Player A” reached 100 points first whilst winning 4 hands and “Player B” won 2 hands, “Player A” would receive 200 match points and “Player B” would receive 50 match points.

The traditional Rummy game is played by between two and six players with a single deck of standard playing cards (52 cards, no jokers). The game is played up to a certain number of points, which is agreed before the start of play. Normally this is 100 points. The initial dealer is decided by whoever draws the lowest value card from the deck.

The number of cards dealt to each player is dependent on the number of players. In a game with two players each player receives 10 cards, 3-4 players receive 7 cards each and 5-6 players receive 6 cards each. The deal rotates clockwise around the table (or simply alternates if there are just two players). The dealer begins with the player to his left and deals the cards one at a time clockwise around the table until each player has the correct number of starting cards. The dealer then places the remainder of the deck face down on the table (making the stock pile), turns the top card face up and begins a separate pile (the discard pile) next to the stock pile. This is the upcard. During play, cards placed on the discard pile are always face up, cards drawn from the stock pile are always face-down.

Play begins with the player to the left of the dealer. Each turn begins with a compulsory draw. The player must draw one card from either the discard pile or the stock pile and add it to their hand. Obviously, if the player decides to draw from the discard pile, the other players will be able to see what card they are drawing. If the player draws from the stock pile the card is not shown to the other players, so they will be unaware of the identity of the card drawn.

After the compulsory draw the player has the option of laying down melds on the table in front of them. Melds are either sets or runs. A set is three or more cards of the same rank, for example three 8s, three Jacks, or four Kings. As only one deck is in play, all cards in a set will be of a different suit and the maximum number of cards in a set will be four. A run is a sequence of at least three cards of the same suit in order. So the 4, 5 and 6 of Hearts is a valid run, as would be the 9, 10, Jack and Queen of Clubs. It is important to note that all cards in a run must be of the same suit.

Following melding another optional action is available to the player whose turn it is: laying off. This is where a player can add any number of cards to melds already laid down on the table. The additional cards must form a legitimate meld once they have been added to the meld already laid down. Thus, adding the 6 of Clubs to a meld consisting of the 3, 4 and 5 of Clubs is allowed. If the player had the 7 of Clubs they could add that also. They could also add the 2 of Clubs if they possess it. Similarly, a player may add to a set by adding the fourth card of the same rank to an already placed meld of three same-ranking cards. A player is not obligated to meld or lay off cards just because they are able to.

The final action in a player’s turn is the compulsory discard. This requires the player to discard one card from their hand face-up on the discard pile. It is often ruled that if a player draws a card from the discard pile they cannot return that same card to the discard pile on the same turn. They can, however, discard the card they drew that turn if they drew from the stock pile as the other players will not have seen the identity of the card when it was drawn. That player’s turn is over after the discard and the next player to the left begins their turn.

If the stock pile runs out the top card of the discard pile is left in place, whilst the rest of the discard pile is shuffled and used to form a new stock pile. The hand ends when a player is the first to play all of their cards by melding, laying off or discarding. This is called, “Going Out”. If a player plays all his cards in a single turn, without previously having melded or laid off any cards, this is called, “Going Rummy”. In this case the player receives a bonus number of points. This is normally either double the points they are owed, or a flat bonus of 25 points.

The score is calculated by adding up the value of all the cards the losing players have remaining. Face cards are worth 10 points, Aces are normally low (and thus worth 1 point), although sometimes they are played as high. The player that played all their cards first receives the total score of the sum of all the other players’ remaining cards.