How to play Gin Rummy: strategy and when to knock

Gin Rummy is a race to a low-deadwood hand. Good players throw the right cards, watch what their opponent wants, and knock at the right moment.

The rules

Each player has 10 cards. On your turn, draw from the deck or the discard pile, then discard one. Arrange cards into sets (three or four of a rank) and runs (three or more in a row of one suit, Ace low). Cards outside melds are deadwood: Aces 1, number cards their value, face cards 10. Knock when your deadwood is 10 or less; go gin with none. Lower deadwood scores the difference, gin scores 25 plus the difference, and an undercut scores 25 plus the difference for the defender. First to 100 wins.

Throw high cards early

Kings, Queens and Jacks cost 10 points each if they’re stuck in your hand when your opponent knocks. Unless they’re part of a meld or close to one, get rid of them first.

Keep flexible cards

A card that could join two melds is valuable. The 6 of hearts next to a 6 of clubs and a 7 of hearts can become a set or a run.

Watch what your opponent picks up

If the computer takes a discarded 8, it probably has other 8s or nearby cards of that suit. Avoid throwing those.

When to knock

Knocking early, as soon as you can, wins most hands. Waiting for gin earns more, but gives your opponent turns to improve and maybe undercut you. A good rule: knock early in the hand, and consider waiting for gin only when your deadwood is very low and few cards have been drawn.