How to Play Cinch

Objective

Win tricks that contain the scoring trumps. Only six cards score: the ace, jack, ten and two of trumps are worth one point each, and the five of trumps (Right Pedro) and the other five of the same color (Left Pedro) are worth five each. That makes 14 points available in every hand.

The team that wins the bidding must take at least as many points as it bid. Points are added up over several hands until one team reaches 51.

Setup

Partners sit across from each other. Cut for the first deal; the deal then passes to the left each hand. The dealer gives each player nine cards, three at a time, and sets the remaining sixteen cards aside face down.

Starting with the player to the dealer’s left, each player gets one chance to bid or pass. A bid is a number from 1 to 14: the points your team promises to take if you name trumps. Each bid must be higher than the one before, and the dealer bids last. The highest bidder names the trump suit. At most tables, if all four players pass, the hand is thrown in and the next player deals.

How to play

Once trumps are named, everyone discards every non-trump card from their hand, face up. The dealer then gives each of the other players, in turn from the left, enough cards from the undealt pile to bring their hand back to six. Last, the dealer “robs the pack”: they look through all the cards that are left and keep any they like to make their own hand six. If you somehow hold more than six trumps, you keep six and show the table the trumps you throw out.

Trumps rank from high to low: A, K, Q, J, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, Right Pedro, Left Pedro, 4, 3, 2. The Left Pedro counts as a trump for the whole hand: if hearts are trumps, the five of diamonds is a heart in every way that matters. The other suits rank in the usual order with ace high.

The high bidder leads to the first trick with any card. If a trump is led, you must play a trump if you have one. If a plain suit is led, you may either follow suit or play a trump, whichever you like; if you have neither, play anything. The highest trump wins the trick, or the highest card of the suit led if no trump was played. The winner leads to the next trick. Play all six tricks.

1. 1Bid once, from 1 to 14, or pass
2. 2High bidder names trumps and everyone discards non-trumps
3. 3Dealer fills each hand to six, then robs the pack
4. 4Follow a trump lead; on other leads, follow or trump
5. 5Win tricks holding the six scoring trumps

Scoring

After the six tricks, each team counts the scoring trumps in the tricks it won.

If the bidding team takes at least its bid, the team that took more points scores the difference between the two counts. If the bidders fall short, the other team scores 14 plus the number of points the bid missed by. The first team to reach 51 wins. If both teams pass 51 on the same hand, the bidders count first, so they win if they made their bid.

Variations

Many tables play to 62 instead of 51, and some to 61. Agree the target before the first deal.

Stuck dealer: if the first three players pass, the dealer must bid. Some groups also set a minimum bid of 6 or 7 so that every hand is a real contest.

Simpler scoring: each team scores what it takes, and if the bidders fall short they lose the amount of their bid instead. This makes it easier to keep score, though it gives weaker bids a little more room.

Cinch grew out of Pedro and Auction Pitch. If you know Pitch, the main differences are the two Pedros, the discard and refill, and the dealer’s right to rob the pack.

Tips from the table

The Pedros decide most hands. A five is a low-ranking trump, so it is easy to lose. Hold yours back until your partner has already won the trick with a high trump, then drop it in.

When you bid, count the Pedros you might win, not just the high trumps. A hand with the ace, king and a Pedro is a strong bid; a hand of middle trumps with no five is usually not.

Bid a little higher from the dealer’s seat. Robbing the pack lets the dealer pick the best remaining trumps, which is worth a point or two on average.

Frequently asked