500 Card Game

7/30/2022by admin

500 or Five Hundred is a trick-taking game with some ideas from Bridge. The game described here is for four players. The game is played over a series of hands. You win the game by earning 500 points or forcing your opponents to reach -500 points. Objective Be the first player to win 500 points or be the player with the highest number of points when another player reaches -500 points. Amazon.com: Superfight a Card Game of Absurd Arguments Fun Family Friendly, Party Game of Super Powers and Super Problems, Enjoyed by Kids, Teens, and Adults, 500-card Deck, 3 or More Players, Ages 8+: Toys & Games.

Card Game 500 Bid
Free Five Hundred Card Game
500 Card Game App
500 Card Game Chart

Sans Joker: Five Hundred is sometimes played without use of the Joker. The game is identical to the standard games in all aspects except the Joker is not used. In this case the standard 32 card Euchre deck is used. Thus, the ranking of the cards in the declared trump suit would be; Jack of trump suit, Jack of suit of same color as trump suit, Ace of trump suit, King of trump suit, Queen of trump suit, 10 of trump suit, 9 of trump suit, 8 of trump suit, 7 of trump suit. The rank of the other three suits is identical as in standard Five Hundred. In addition, when the Joker is not used, the widow would consist of only two cards, not three.
Nullo Bid: Many Five Hundred players allow the addition of the Nullo Bid to the game. A player bidding Nullo is a bid to lose every trick in the hand, using no trump suit. In the hierarchy of bidding, a Nullo bid is considered higher than a bid of eight spades but lower than a bid of eight clubs. If a bid of Nullo does become the high bid and the Contractor manages to play the hand and not win a single trick he scores 250 points for the effort. However, if he wins even one trick, he must subtract 250 points from his score and the opponents each score 10 points for each trick the Contractor did win (in addition to any score they win for their own won tricks). 500 Card Game

Classic Scoring: The scoring and bidding values most commonly used with Five Hundred and described in the standard game above is called the Avondale schedule. However, some games use the 'classic' or 'original' schedule. This scoring schedule is as follows:

Tricks Won	Trump Suit
Spades (♠)	Clubs (♣)	Diamonds (♦)	Hearts (♥)	No Trump
6	40	60	80	100	120
7	80	120	160	200	240
8	120	180	240	300	360
9	160	240	320	400	480
10	200	300	400	500	600

When bidding, a bid is considered higher than a previous bid if the scoring value of it is higher. A bid can also be considered a higher bid if the bid would earn the bidder the same number of points as the previous bid, but is for a higher number of total tricks won. Other than these scoring differences, Five Hundred using the classic scoring schedule is played identically to the standard version.
Inverted Suit Ranking: Occasionally, games of Five Hundred may use an alternate ranking of the four suits. Using this inverted system, the suits rank as follows, from highest to lowest: Diamonds, Hearts, Spades then Clubs. As in all other versions of Five Hundred, a bid of No Trump is considered higher than a suited bid of the same number. The scoring and bidding table for this inverted schedule would be as follows:

Tricks Won	Trump Suit
Clubs (♣)	Spades (♠)	Hearts (♥)	Diamonds (♦)	No Trump
6	40	60	80	100	120
7	80	120	160	200	240
8	120	180	240	300	360
9	160	240	320	400	480
10	200	300	400	500	600

Card Game 500 Bid

As in the Classic scoring schedule, a bid using the Inverted schedule is considered higher than a previous bid if its scoring value is higher then that of the previous bid. A bid will also overcall another bid if the bid has the exact same scoring value but is for a higher number of tricks to be won. Other than the alternative suit ranking and scoring value differences, in all other respects playing Five Hundred using the inverted scoring schedule is played identically to the standard game.
Passed Deal: In the standard version of Five Hundred, if all players pass the cards are all thrown in and the deal abandoned. However, some games use the following optional rule:
In the event that all players pass, the hand is still played. The hand is played at No Trump, with each player for himself. There is no Contractor, and each player simply attempts to win as many tricks as possible. At the end of the hand, each player scores 10 points per trick won during the hand. The player to the immediate left of the dealer leads the first card to the first trick with the winner of each trick leading the first card to the next trick.
One Thousand: This game is a fun version of Five Hundred which provides bonus points in many circumstances for cards captured in tricks. Although the basic rules are the same as the standard version there are two key differences. The first difference is the award of bonus points for winning cards in tricks. This applies for a Contractor who accomplished his bid and for the defenders. A bidder who is unable to make his bid does not score any of these bonus points. After the hand has ended and all tricks have been won, these players sort through their cards won in tricks and add the following bonus points to their score for each captured:

Card Denomination	Point Value
Joker	0
Aces	1
Kings, Queens, Jacks	10
10, 9, 8, 7	Value marked on card

The first player to have accumulated 1,000 total points at the end of a hand is considered the winner of the game.
Fifteen Hundred: This game is the same as One Thousand, however the required total of accumulated points needed to be declared the winner of the game is 1,500.
Four Player Five Hundred: The following version of Five Hundred for four players, two against two in partnerships, is so popular in Australia and the surrounding area it is actually considered Australia's national card game. This version is also popular in many parts of Canada. The following describes the rule for this four handed variant:

Four player Five Hundred uses a modified 52 card deck. To make this modified deck, the following cards are removed from the standard deck: all twos, all threes, the four of Spades, the four of Clubs. One Joker is added to this modified deck to complete the deck alteration needed for this variation, creating a deck consisting of 43 total cards.
The specific ranking of the cards in each suit will be dependent on which suit is selected as the trump suit by the contracting partnership as follows:

Selected trump suit Diamonds or Hearts:

Other suit of same color as trump:
Suits of opposite color as trump suit:

Selected trump suit Spades or Clubs:

Other suit of same color as trump:
Suits of opposite color as trump suit:

The trump suit in Four Player Five Hundred if Spades were to be selected as trump by the Contractor for the hand.

In a no-trump bid, the cards will rank in the expected order in each suit. The Joker is considered the highest card in the deck and will beat any other card in a trick. However, there are special rules on how it can be played, detailed below.
After determining partnerships and first dealer, the players should seat themselves at the table such that they are directly across from each other. The dealer then distributes the cards in a clockwise direction to the players. He begins by dealing one round of three card packets to each player. He then deals a three card widow face down to the center of the table (called the kitty). He then deals a round of four card face down packets and then a final round of three cards packets, such that each player should have a total of a 10 card hand.
The player to the dealer's immediate left then begins the bidding and the bidding proceeds in a clockwise direction around the table. A player may bid or pass. Once a player passes in a round, they can make no more bids during that hand. In order to be a valid bid, a players bid must be higher than any previous bid. A player's bid consists of a number indicating some number of tricks (minimum six and maximum ten) and the suit he intends to use as trump if his is the winning bid. A bid may also be in No Trump indicating no specific trump suit will be used for the hand. A No Trump bid is higher than any other bid for the same number of tricks calling a specific suit as trump. Bidding continues in a clockwise rotation until all but one player passes, with the player making that high bid becoming the Contractor. If all players pass before any legal bid is made, the cards are reshuffled and the deck passed to the next player with no score on that hand.
Two additional special bids are allowed in the four hand variation; Misere and Open Misere. Misere is a bid to play alone with no trump suit with the goal to lose every trick. Open Misere is a bid to play alone with no trump suit, with his entire hand exposed (after the first trick) with the goal of losing every trick. In a winning bid of both Misere and Open Misere the Contractor's partner sets his hand aside, face down, and takes no further part in the hand. The scoring value and bidding value of the suited and no trump bids is identical to the scoring table detailed above for the standard three hand game. A bid of Misere is considered higher than a bid of seven No Trump but lower than a bid of eight spades. A bid of Misere can never be made by any player until the bidding had reached seven tricks or higher. A bid of Open Misere is considered higher than a bid of ten diamonds and lower than a bid of ten hearts.
Once the high bidder is determined, the player and his partner attempts to win at least as many tricks as bid, using the specified trump suit. If the high bid was Misere or Open Misere, the high bidder attempts this playing solo, without the help of his partner. To begin, the Contractor picks up the three card kitty and discard any three cards from his hand to the side. These cards are set aside, face down and will not be used further in the hand. The Contractor leads the first card to the first trick with each player playing one card to the trick in a clockwise direction around the table. The leader can play any card of his choice to the trick, but the other players must play a card of the suit led to the trick if they have one. If a player has no cards of the suit led they may play any card from their hand, including a card from the trump suit. The highest trump card in a trick wins it, but if there were no trump cards played to the trick, the highest card of the suit led wins the trick. The winner of each trick plays the first card to the next trick. In a bid of Open Misere, after the play of the first trick, the Contractor places his entire hand face up on the table and must play the remainder of the hand with his hand so exposed.
In any suited bid, the Joker is considered the highest card of the trump suit. When playing at No Trump, Misere or Open Misere the Joker has some other special properties governing its use depending on if the Joker is held by the Contractor or one of his opponents: Game

If the

Contractor holds the Joker he may decide which suit the Joker is considered to be a member of. He must declare this before the start of play of the first trick in the hand. For the remainder of that hand, the Joker is considered the highest card of that suit. If for any reason the Contractor fails or declines to make this declaration, then the Joker can only be played as per the rules as if another player other than the Contractor possessed it.
If a player other than the Contractor possesses the Joker, it is considered a member of none of the four suits, and is the highest card in the deck. However, it can only be played in specific circumstances.

A Joker led to a trump always wins the trick, with the player of the Joker indicating the suit the trick must be played in

The Joker cannot be played to a trick if the holder contains any cards of the suit led to the trick.
In a Misere or Open Misere contract, the Joker must be played if it's holder has no cards of the original suit led.
When leading to a new trick, the Joker can be led with the player of the Joker declaring the suit in which the trick should be played. When played in this manner, the Joker always wins the trick. However, the suit called may not have already been led by any player. If all four suits have already been led during the hand, the Joker cannot be led to any but the last trick.

If bidder and his partner are able to win at least as many tricks as bid, they earn the appropriate number of points as per their bid in the standard Five Hundred Scoring Table above. If they win less than the number of tricks bid, they lose the number of points per the table of their bid. The opponent partnership always wins 10 points per trick won during the hand. If the Contractors' team wins a slam (all 10 tricks) they score 250 points if their winning bid value was less than 250.
If the Contractor is able to make a contract of Misere his partnership wins 250 points, but loses a like amount if he wins even one trick. A successful bid of Open Misere earns the players partnership 500 points but he must subtract this amount if he wins even one trick. In a Misere or Open Misere bid the opponent partnership does not win any points for taking tricks.
The first partnership to reach or exceed 500 points is declared the winner. However, a partnership may never win the game on defensive tricks. They must score as the Contractors on a hand to win the game. Otherwise, their score can never exceed 490 until they play and win a contract. If a partnership reaches negative 500 the other partnership is also immediately declared the winner of the game.
Some four player games of Five Hundred eliminate the Joker from the deck. In those cases the rules are the same except for the ranking of the trump suit (no Joker included) as well as the widow containing only two cards.

Two Player Five Hundred: There are actually two accepted versions of Five Hundred that are commonly used with two players (both to be described below). The main difference is the deck used for the game.

Variant 1 - Standard Five Hundred Deck: This game uses the same deck (including the Joker) as the regular three player version. After determination of the first dealer, the deal procedures are identical to that in the three player version. Thus, three actual hands are dealt out as well as the normal widow. However, the 10 card hand dealt out to the dealer's immediate left is actually a dummy hand in which no player uses or sees during the hand. Other than the fact there are only two active players, the game is played exactly the same as the standard three player version. The first player to reach or exceed 500 total points (totaled at the end of each hand) is declared the winner. If both players reach this total on the same hand, the Contractor is declared the winner. If one player reaches a minus 500 total (at the end of a hand) his opponent is declared the winner.
Variant 2 - 24 Card Deck: This version of Five Hundred for two players uses a reduced 24 card deck. This deck is created by removing the 7's and 8's from the standard deck used for Five Hundred. Each player is dealt 10 cards and the widow consists of four cards with the Contractor gaining access to it as normal. The remainder of the rules for this version is the same as in the three player variant. As before, the first player to have reached or exceeded 500 total points at the end of a hand is declared the winner (with the Contractor scoring first). If a player reaches minus 500 or lower, his opponent is declared the winner.

Five Hundred for Five Players: When Five Hundred is to be played by five players, the standard 52 card deck is used with the addition of one Joker. As in the standard game, 10 card hands are dealt and a three card widow is dealt face down to the center of the table. Depending on the high bidders contract, he may select one or two other players as his partner. If his bid is 6 or 7 the Contractor would state a specific high card in a suit (obviously, a card he does not already have). The player who possesses that card would then become his temporary partner, although the Contractor would not be aware of which other player this was, probably until the card was played to a winning trick. he may select any other player of his choice as a temporary partner for the duration of the hand. If he has bid 8 or more, he may select any two other players as temporary partners. He does this by simply declaring which two other players to be his partners temporarily for the duration of the current hand. If at the end of the hand, the player and his partners have won enough tricks to reach or exceed his high bid, each of these players earns the appropriate number of points from the Five Hundred Scoring Table displayed in the standard game section above. If not, he and his temporary partners would each lose the same amount as per the chart. The defenders win 10 points for every trick won during the hand. If, at the end of any hand, a player reaches or exceeds 500 points, he is declared the winner. In the event two ore more players reach or exceed this total, if one of these players is on the contracting team for the hand, they would be declared the winner, otherwise the player with the highest total is the winner. Six spades is worth 40 points, six clubs 60, six diamonds 80, six hearts 100, and six no trumps 120. Seven spades is worth 140, seven clubs 160, seven diamonds 180, seven hearts 200, and seven no trumps 220. Eight spades is worth 240, eight clubs 260, eight diamonds 280, eight hearts 300, and eight no trumps 320. Nine spades is worth 340, nine clubs 360, nine diamonds 380, nine hearts 400, and nine no trumps 420. Ten spades is worth 440, ten clubs 460, ten diamonds 480, ten hearts 500, and ten no trumps 520. You score ten points for every trick you take while in opposition to a calling team, but you cannot add to a score of plus 490 except by completing a successful bid.

I.E.

6	7	8	9	10
Spades	40	140	240	340	440
Clubs	60	160	260	360	460
Diamonds	80	180	280	380	480
Hearts	100	200	300	400	500
No Trumps	120	220	320	420	520

You score 10 points for every trick you take while in opposition to a team which has won the bidding, and you can score right up to, but not past 490. You cannot get to 500 except by completing a successful bid.

A 'hand' 500 consists of 10 cards, and each hand is played as ten 'tricks'. A trick is won by the player who plays the highest card in any suit which is led, or by the player who being unable to follow the suit led, plays the highest 'trump'. You must follow the suit led while you have cards of that suit in your hand. If you do not have cards of the suit led, you must either discard cards from other suits, or if the hand is not being played as 'no trumps', you may play a trump card. Trumps are determined by the last bidders call. The last bidder in the calling of the hand determines by his last call whether the hand is played in any of the four suit calls or as no trumps.

When playing in no trumps, the cards are valued as ace high, then king, queen, jack, ten, down to four.

When spades are trumps, the joker is the top trump, then the jack of spades, the jack of clubs. ace, king, queen, ten down to five of spades.

When clubs are trumps, the joker is the top trump, then the jack of clubs, the jack of spades, ace, king, queen, ten down to the five of clubs.

When diamonds are trumps, the joker is the top trump, then the jack of diamonds, the jack of hearts, ace, king, queen, ten down to the four of diamonds.

When hearts are trumps, the joker is the top trump, then the jack of hearts, the jack of diamonds, ace, king, queen, ten down to the four of hearts.

Note the special treatment of the jacks in suit calls. The jack of the suit which is trumps is known as the right bower, and the other jack of the same colour as the trump suit is known as the left bower. Jacks in the other colour suit to trumps have their normal no trump ranking. Take special care to notice then that when hearts or diamonds are trumps there are thirteen trump cards. When either of the black suits are trumps there are twelve trump cards.

The most commonly accepted practice is that the joker can only be used as a trump card if the player holding the joker cannot follow a suit led. However a player may use the joker to call it any suit and lead it at any time. Put in another way, if an ace is led to which you hold the king, you must follow the suit led, even if the king is the only card you hold in that suit. However if you hold the joker, you may call it any suit you nominate, and lead it even though you hold other cards in that suit.In four handed 500 you must first determine who are partners. It is not good to get into the habit of always playing with the same partner, so it is suggested that you cut for partners, and rotate partners as you continue to play. If you give one point to each partner of a winning team as games are won, you will finish up with one player as overall winner for the night.

Free Five Hundred Card Game

If you play regularly with the same players over a period of time, keep on recording points to see who is the top player. This will add to the effort you make, and means that you try that much harder to play accurate 500. It also means you never give away a game without playing as hard as you can for it, and you will think twice before committing suicide and over bidding a call you cannot really afford, unless of course you know your opponents call will win the game for them if you allow them to pick up kitty. Partners sit opposite each other.

Make sure the cards are well shuffled between hands. Select the first dealer by draw, and alternate dealer in a clockwise manner for every new set of hands dealt. The accepted method of dealing is to commence dealing to the player on dealers left, then clockwise, three cards to each player, one into the 'kitty', then four to each player and one into kitty, then three more to each player, and the last card into kitty.

To save time I suggest you use two packs with different patterns on the backs. One partnership uses one of these packs, and the other uses the other one of course. The pack not being dealt is placed in front of the next dealer, so you will always see who is next dealer. This person will often get the opportunity to deal the next round of cards, on the table in front of him or her, face down of course, and they can be passed ot the appropriate player as soon as the last hand has been played. This saves you both the shuffling and the dealing time.

Check that you have ten cards. Sort your cards into groups of suits. Get into the habit of keeping your cards in descending order from left to right or vice versa. Try to separate the red and black suits, so that two suits of the same colour do not merge with each other.

You will not know when you pick up your cards what suit your jacks may become bowers, so put your jacks with what looks the strongest suit, as this will help you evaluate your call. In the event that the hand is played in another suit, you can either shift the jack, or jacks, into a more appropriate position, or just be careful to remember if it is out of position in your hand. If an opponent sees you shift a card in your hand after kitty has been picked up, he will probably recognise that as a jack being shifted, and this may help them attain their call.

Some players consider that they have a right to ask for a redeal if their hand holds no court cards, that is no joker, or any ace, king, queen or jack. I can find no logic to support this practice. The worse your hand is the better your partners may be. You have to learn to take the strong and weak hands without showing excitement or disappointment. In the long run your hands will balance out. Hands without court cards can be good supporting hands especially when they contain say five or more of the same suit, and that is the suit your partner wants to go. And it can also cause the downfall of your opponents call.

Cards below the Jack, i.e. 4's up to 10's, are usually referred to as 'rags'.

There are many various 'local' rules for playing 500, and you must establish that all players are going to play by the same set of rules. When calling, the most commonly accepted rules are adhered to in the calling system outlined later. These are... If only one call is made by one player, the other three players having passed, the hand must be played at that single call. However if more than one person calls which is normal, any player may change his call at any time provided he is always escalating the bid.

500 Card Game App

Any player changing the suit of any call he makes at any time gives all players the right to re-enter the bidding. Any player left with the bid after the other three finally pass may escalate the call, and if it is escalated in the same suit, no other player may re-enter the bidding.

You have to be on your guard for players who call less than they can get, knowing that the scoreboard says you can leave them, and then call higher in that suit to lock you out and win the game. Be careful also of calls where getting all 10 tricks gives 250 points, which may be enough to win a game.

500 Card Game Chart

The player on the left of the dealer has first bid. Calling is clockwise. If a player does not want to make a bid he must say 'pass'. The successful bidder is the one with the highest bid, and the other three players pass. The highest bid therefore determines the suit the hand will be played in. Remember all bids must be for a higher points value than the previous bid.

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