Two-Handed Euchre

Most of the time, the Euchre card game is played by 4 people. They form 2 teams and compete against each other. But like many widely spread games, Euchre also has multiple variations.

So what about Euchre with 2 players? Is it possible to play the game only with 2 people? Yes, you can do that. There are some similarities to the classic version, but we will take a closer look at the changes in the rules.

This can be as fun as the 4-player Euchre. It is a great option when there aren’t enough people for the traditional game. Here are the rules of the Two-Handed Euchre.

1. Cards and Dealing

Players use the standard Euchre deck with 24 cards. Cards rankings are the same as well.

The dealing process is quite interesting. The dealer puts one card in front of the other player and one in front of them. Each player gets 4 cards turned face-down and 4 more that are face-up and placed on top of the others. Cards are dealt one by one and are set in front of the players. After that, both players get 4 more cards that can be seen only by themselves.

So the end goal is for both players to have 4 cards in their hands, 4 cards turned down, and 4 cards turned up. Meaning all 24 cards are dealt.

2. Bidding

The bidding phase is somehow similar to the one when playing Spades. The players must name the number of tricks they will win during the round. The minimum bid is 7 tricks.

It is highly recommended that players assess their hand and all 8 visible cards before making the bid. The non-dealer announces their bid first.

The player with the higher bid names the trump suit. Only the player that makes trump can score points for the current round.

3. Playing and Scoring

The non-dealer always starts the game. Players can use a card either from their hand or the face-up ones positioned in front of them. When a face-up card is played, that placed underneath is turned.

Scoring works as follows:

• 1 point for 7 tricks
• 2 points for 8 tricks
• 3 points for 9 tricks and so on, up to 12 tricks.

If the maker fails to win at least 7 tricks, they don’t score points.

The first player that reaches 10 points wins the whole game.

4. Strategy

You can play a card from your hand or those in front of you. But remember that you must have non-visible cards throughout the round because otherwise, you are easy to beat. Your opponent will see all of your cards.

Sometimes it is better to give up a higher-ranked visible card. And who knows, the card underneath could be a trump.

Check out our article about common Euchre strategies.

5. Other variation

There is another approach when playing 2-handed Euchre. A standard hand of 5 cards is dealt to each player. They get 3 more cards but can see them only after the trump suit has been named.

The bidding is the same as in the classic Euchre. Then all 8 cards can be used to potentially form the best 5-card hand.

When a player wants to score more points going alone is an option. They can not use the additional cards at all.

If you are a brand new player, you can read the most asked questions article. Play for free at Euchre. com and experience the joy of the game.