Note this document borrows heavily from http://www.jord.ca/45s.html , with permission.
The game is played with 4 players, in teams of two (those sitting opposite each other are on a team).
Each player receives 5 cards, dealt in a group of 3, followed by a group of two. There is also a "kitty" of four cards from which the winning bidder can draw. The dealer deals 3 cards to the person to his left and to each subsequent player (including himself), then 2 to the kitty and 2 more to each player as well as two more to the kitty.
Each "trick" is worth 5 points, except the trick involving the best card in play which is worth 10 points. Thus, with 5 cards each, the total points for each hand is 30. Starting with the player to the left of the dealer, each player bids (or passes) in multiples of 5 starting at a minimum of 15. A player bids the number of points they assume they (and their partner) can win in the hand. A player may pass or bid higher than the bid currently on the table. A player that has passed once may not bid again in the current hand.
When the bid reaches the dealer, he may choose to "hold" it. If the bid stands at 20, and the deal holds it, he is exercising his privilege of bidding 20 as well. The high bidder and the dealer may then auction up until one gives up.
example: Player 1 bids 15. Player 2 passes. Player 3 bids 20. The dealer holds the bid. Player 3 bids 25. The dealer, not wanting to bid 25, allows Player 3 to take the bid at 25.
The high bidder gets to pick through the kitty for any better cards that may be within in, then declares the trump suit to complete the contract.
If someone bids 30, which means they must take all of the tricks, this is called a 30 for 60 bid. This means that if they manage to take all of the tricks, they add 60 points to their score as opposed to 30. If they loose their bid they still only loose 30.
If a player/team is "in the hole" (has less then 0 points), then they may bid up past a 30 bid to a "60 for 120 bid".
After the winner of the bid calls the suit, players may discard. A player may discard any, all or none of his cards. Normally a player discards all of their non-trump, but this can vary depending on individual strategy.
Once players have discarded, the dealer fills each hand back up to 5, dealing no more than 3 cards at a time, as above.
| Suit | Face cards | Lower cards | |
|---|---|---|---|
| As trump | 5, J, A♥, A, K, Q | ♥, ♦ | 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2 |
| ♠, ♣ | 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 | ||
| Non-trump | K, Q, J | ♥, ♦ | 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2 (, A♦) |
| ♠, ♣ | A, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 | ||
The rank of cards within a suit can change based on whether the suit is trump or not trump. The lower valued cards are worth the same in the hierarchy whether they are trump or non-trump, though their value varies based on their colour. The "rule of thumb" is "highest in red, lowest in black," that is to say that the 2 of clubs is the second-best non-face club, and the 10 of diamonds is the best non-face diamond.
To simplify, here is the breakdown from best to worst for each suit:
The person to the left of the winning bidder plays the first card. Play then proceeds in clockwise order until it reaches the winning bidder. The best card laid takes the trick.
NOTE:
The winner of each round leads, then each player lays a card in turn, going clockwise (to the left).
If the player/team who took the bid doesn't get points equal to or great than their bid, then they are "set". This means that, regardless of the points earned in the hand, the bidding player/team has the value of their bid deducted from their score.
The non-bidding player/team gains any points from the tricks they manage in the hand. An exception is if they are past 100 points, in which case they have to have placed a bid in order to increase their score. Note that it isn't necessary for teams in this situation to have the winning bid to score points, only that they have placed any bid other than 'pass'.
If trump is the first card laid, all other players must also play trump if they have any trump in their hand. The exception to this is the 5 of trump which can be "reneged" against all other trump cards.
If trump isn't lead, then the suit does not have to be followed. Any player can play the card of their choice. A common strategy is for the person leading in the first hand to play a low value non-trump card but for another player to play trump before the person who has taken the bid in order to force him or her to play trump to take the trick.
The first player/team to 125 wins the game.