Cribbage: The King of Games
Cribbage has a long tradition dating back to it's creation in 17th century England. The game made its way to North America and has been passed down through generations of American and Canadian families. For many people cribbage has a sentimental association of the people we've played the game with. It invokes a sense of nostalgia of playing with friends, grandparents, parents, or siblings.
Cribbage is also a forum to meet new people. It's an opportunity to play a one-on-one game with someone for 20-30 minutes. There are many local cribbage clubs and groups to get to know other players with a passion for cribbage.
PLAY CRIBBAGE
The game of cribbage involves both skill and luck. Cribbage is played with a deck of cards, a cribbage board, and cribbage pegs. Pegging is the method of tracking each player's score. The advantage goes to those who have mastered the nuances of the game, the statistical probabilities for the various combinations of cards, and the rules of cribbage.
To win at cribbage you must be the first player to reach 121 points. Players track their acores by pegging on a cribbage board. To peg, players "leap-frog" one peg over the other peg each time they score points. Points are scored during each deal, first during the pegging round and then by counting the total amount of points in each player's hand.
Points are scored for pairs, trips, 4 of a kind, runs of three or more, flushes, and combinations of 15s. Points are also awarded for nobs and nibs. For more information on scoring points in cribbage click here.
ORDER OF PLAY
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THE DEAL (six cards per player) > ​
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BOTH PLAYERS DISCARD TWO CARDS INTO THE CRIB (each player puts two cards (face down) of their choice in to the crib) >
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CUT THE DECK (the player to the right of the dealer cuts the deck and the dealer flips the top card. Both players use this card to count points in the hand) >
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PEGGING ROUND (players alternate playing cards and pegging when points are scored. the player who's not the dealer plays the first card) >
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POINTS IN THE HAND (the player who's not the dealer counts their points first. player pegs the amount of points scored) >
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POINTS IN THE CRIB (dealer counts the crib hand and pegs his/her points) >
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NEW ROUND BEGINS (the next player deals).
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WINNER (the first person to peg 121 points or more)
In Cribbage, players score points by forming certain combinations of cards, such as pairs, runs, and combinations of 15's. Points are scored during the pegging round, player hands after each pegging round, and the dealer's crib (a separate hand for the dealer).
Here are a few ways to score points in Cribbage:
-PAIRS: 2 points for forming a pair in your hand or the pegging round
-RUNS: 1 point for each card in a run of three or more cards during the pegging round or in your hand
-FLUSHES: 4 points for having a flush in your hand (all 4 cards of the same suit). 5 points if the cut card is also that suite.
-FIFTEENS: 2 points for forming a combination of cards that add up to 15 in your hand
-3 OF A KIND: 6 points for having three of a kind during pegging or in your hand.
-DOUBLE PAIRS: 12 points for having Four of a kind
-GO: 1 point for playing the last card in each pegging round (to 31)
-LAST CARD: 1 point for playing the last card in the round
-PEGGING: 2 points for laying a card that equals a combined total of 15. 2 points for laying a card that equals a combined total of 31.