No bidding — a trump suit is turned up from the deck each round.
Each player melds from their hand, but may only choose one meld class per round:
- Class A — Marriages, Runs & Dix
- Class B — Aces/Kings/Queens/Jacks Around
- Class C — Pinochle
Players take tricks and count card points. Both players score meld + tricks each round.
Bidding: Players bid on points they can earn. The highest bidder names trump and must meet their bid through meld + trick points or go SET.
Partnership: In 4+ player partnership games, teammates combine meld + tricks to meet the bid. All players may meld freely (no class restriction).
All players score meld + tricks. The bidder risks losing their bid amount if SET.
Deck Types
Single (48): A-10-K-Q-J-9 × 4 suits × 2 copies
64-Card: A-10-K-Q-J-9-8-7 × 4 suits × 2 copies
Double (80): A-10-K-Q-J × 4 suits × 4 copies (no 9s)
Meld Values (Single & 64-Card Deck)
| Marriage (K+Q same suit) | 20 |
| Royal Marriage (K+Q of trump) | 40 |
| Run (A-10-K-Q-J of trump) | 150 |
| Pinochle (J♦ + Q♠) | 40 |
| Dix (9 of trump) | 10 |
| Aces Around (A in each suit) | 100 |
| Kings Around (K in each suit) | 80 |
| Queens Around (Q in each suit) | 60 |
| Jacks Around (J in each suit) | 40 |
| Roundhouse (K+Q in all 4 suits) | 240 |
Additional Melds (Double Deck)
Double deck = two Pinochle decks, no 9s (80 cards, 4 of each card). Dix is not available.
| Double Pinochle (both J♦ + both Q♠) | 300 |
| Triple Pinochle (3x J♦ + 3x Q♠) | 600 |
| Quadruple Pinochle (4x J♦ + 4x Q♠) | 1200 |
| Double Marriage (2x K+Q same suit) | 40 |
| Double Royal Marriage (2x K+Q of trump) | 80 |
| Double Run (2x A-10-K-Q-J of trump) | 1500 |
| Aces Abound (2x A in each suit) | 1000 |
| Kings Abound (2x K in each suit) | 800 |
| Queens Abound (2x Q in each suit) | 600 |
| Jacks Abound (2x J in each suit) | 400 |
Card Point Values
| Ace | 11 |
| Ten | 10 |
| King | 4 |
| Queen | 3 |
| Jack | 2 |
Going Set
If the bidder's meld + trick points don't meet their bid, they "go set" and lose points equal to their bid amount. In partnership, the entire team loses.
Winning
First player/team to reach the target score wins!