Basic Steps
The major activity of any game of Rummy is the arranging of cards into what are known as “runs” and “sets”

• Runs are built from cards in the same suit, and must contain three more cards, in order. An example of a run is the seven, eight, nine, and ten of hearts.
• A set is built on cards of the same rank. For instance, a player holding the two of hearts, clubs, and diamonds could meld them to the table.

A set is simply three or more cards of the same rank.
OR

A run is a sequence of three or more cards, but all in the same suit and in order.
OR

The most basic tool of play is the deck of cards:
Rummy uses a traditional deck of 52 playing cards, with the Jokers removed. All numeric cards are assigned points by the face value. For instance, the ten of hearts is worth ten points, etc. All face cards have a ten point value, and all Aces have a value of one point each.

The four suits

The cards and their values
2 points 3 points 4 points 5 points   6 points 7 points 8 points 9 points 10 points  10 points10 points10 points11 points15 points

How to Play a Game of Rummy
A game begins when all players are given 10 cards each. After dealing out the appropriate number of cards, the dealer then places the remaining cards, face down, in the center of the table. They turn the top card over and lay this next to the deck facing upwards. The pile of cards facing downward is known as the “stock pile”, and the pile with the overturned card is the “discard pile”.
Each player will then take a turn, which requires that they first take a single card from one of the two piles, and add this to their hand. If the player is holding a valid set or run they can lay them on the table, facing upwards. It is not obligatory, however, to place existing melds on the table. Holding melds is often a strategy used by players to prevent others from reducing the cards in their own hands. This is because anyone can add one or more cards to a meld already on the table.
For example, let’s say you are holding a single card with the face value of four, and your neighbor has laid the meld of the other three suits in the four value; you can add your card to that pile.
If, at any time, the players work their way to the bottom of the stock pile, and have only two cards remaining in the deck, the dealer must shuffle the cards from the discard pile and lay them face down as the new stock pile. The final discarded card remains in place as the first in the new discard pile.
Games continue in this way until a single player brings the game to a close. This is done by:

• Going Out –when a player disposes of all of their cards gradually (in more than one turn); or
• Going Rummy –when a player disposes of all of their cards in one turn without putting any previous melds down.

Scoring the Game
To determine a winner requires the scoring to be done. The scoring must follow some guidelines based on the way the winner actually finished the hand. For instance:

• Going Out – opponents must be penalized by the sum of the remaining cards in their hand; or
• Going Rummy- opponents are penalized by the sum of the remaining cards in their hand PLUS 25 Penalty Points.

The Payout Table
If a game of Rummy has a pool it is usually distributed along a pre-set plan. Generally the winner gets 75% of the prize, and the remainder is divided between the remaining opponents. Any player who is over 80 points behind the winning score does not get a share.



Click here to see examples.