Joker Poker Rules

Spearheaded by famed poker professional Marcel Luske of the Netherlands, the International Poker Federation (FIDPA) has done just that and compiled a set of rules that, if adopted internationally, would avoid the vast majority of disputes that can be seen in casinos or poker tournaments around the world. The left inlane lights the draw poker saucer, located under the upper level next to the right ramp. May be shot from the left flipper, almost impossible to backhand unless the ball has exactly the right spin. Saucer spins the wheel in the backglass, and awards range from 10k to Special. Ball is ejected to B-E-T rollover lanes. How to play at Joker Poker. This is another prodigal child of Microgaming; the top online casino software producer in the world. A fantastic 53 cards game – 52-card deck + the joy-man joker. Ian Terry describes the Bluffing Joker variant, played in Florida, in which the basic rules are identical to the regular game, except that all cards played are played face-down. The player may declare the face-down card to be whatever they desire.

This page describes the ranking of poker hands. This applies not only in the game of poker itself, but also in certain other card games such as Chinese Poker, Chicago, Poker Menteur and Pai Gow Poker.

• Low Poker Ranking: A-5, 2-7, A-6
• Hand probabilities and multiple decks - probability tables

Standard Poker Hand Ranking

There are 52 cards in the pack, and the ranking of the individual cards, from high to low, is ace, king, queen, jack, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2. In standard poker - that is to say in the formal casino and tournament game played internationally and the home game as normally played in North America - there is no ranking between the suits for the purpose of comparing hands - so for example the king of hearts and the king of spades are equal. (Note however that suit ranking is sometimes used for other purposes such as allocating seats, deciding who bets first, and allocating the odd chip when splitting a pot that can't be equally divided. See ranking of suits for details.)

A poker hand consists of five cards. The categories of hand, from highest to lowest, are listed below. Any hand in a higher category beats any hand in a lower category (so for example any three of a kind beats any two pairs). Between hands in the same category the rank of the individual cards decides which is better, as described in more detail below.

In games where a player has more than five cards and selects five to form a poker hand, the remaining cards do not play any part in the ranking. Poker ranks are always based on five cards only, and if these cards are equal the hands are equal, irrespective of the ranks of any unused cards.

Some readers may wonder why one would ever need to compare (say) two threes of a kind of equal rank. This obviously cannot arise in basic draw poker, but such comparisons are needed in poker games using shared (community) cards, such as Texas Hold'em, in poker games with wild cards, and in other card games using poker combinations.

1. Straight Flush

If there are no wild cards, this is the highest type of poker hand: five cards of the same suit in sequence - such as J-10-9-8-7. Between two straight flushes, the one containing the higher top card is higher. An ace can be counted as low, so 5-4-3-2-A is a straight flush, but its top card is the five, not the ace, so it is the lowest type of straight flush. The highest type of straight flush, A-K-Q-J-10 of a suit, is known as a Royal Flush. The cards in a straight flush cannot 'turn the corner': 4-3-2-A-K is not valid.

2. Four of a kind

Four cards of the same rank - such as four queens. The fifth card, known as the kicker, can be anything. This combination is sometimes known as 'quads', and in some parts of Europe it is called a 'poker', though this term for it is unknown in English. Between two fours of a kind, the one with the higher set of four cards is higher - so 3-3-3-3-A is beaten by 4-4-4-4-2. If two or more players have four of a kind of the same rank, the rank of the kicker decides. For example in Texas Hold'em with J-J-J-J-9 on the table (available to all players), a player holding K-7 beats a player holding Q-10 since the king beats the queen. If one player holds 8-2 and another holds 6-5 they split the pot, since the 9 kicker makes the best hand for both of them. If one player holds A-2 and another holds A-K they also split the pot because both have an ace kicker.

3. Full House

This combination, sometimes known as a boat, consists of three cards of one rank and two cards of another rank - for example three sevens and two tens (colloquially known as 'sevens full of tens' or 'sevens on tens'). When comparing full houses, the rank of the three cards determines which is higher. For example 9-9-9-4-4 beats 8-8-8-A-A. If the threes of a kind are equal, the rank of the pairs decides.

4. Flush

Five cards of the same suit. When comparing two flushes, the highest card determines which is higher. If the highest cards are equal then the second highest card is compared; if those are equal too, then the third highest card, and so on. For example K-J-9-3-2 beats K-J-7-6-5 because the nine beats the seven.If all five cards are equal, the flushes are equal.

5. Straight

Five cards of mixed suits in sequence - for example Q-J-10-9-8. When comparing two sequences, the one with the higher ranking top card is better. Ace can count high or low in a straight, but not both at once, so A-K-Q-J-10 and 5-4-3-2-A are valid straights, but 2-A-K-Q-J is not. 5-4-3-2-A, known as a wheel, is the lowest kind of straight, the top card being the five.

6. Three of a Kind

Three cards of the same rank plus two unequal cards. This combination is also known as Triplets or Trips. When comparing two threes of a kind the rank of the three equal cards determines which is higher. If the sets of three are of equal rank, then the higher of the two remaining cards in each hand are compared, and if those are equal, the lower odd card is compared.So for example 5-5-5-3-2 beats 4-4-4-K-5, which beats 4-4-4-Q-9, which beats 4-4-4-Q-8.

7. Two Pairs

A pair consists of two cards of equal rank. In a hand with two pairs, the two pairs are of different ranks (otherwise you would have four of a kind), and there is an odd card to make the hand up to five cards. When comparing hands with two pairs, the hand with the highest pair wins, irrespective of the rank of the other cards - so J-J-2-2-4 beats 10-10-9-9-8 because the jacks beat the tens. If the higher pairs are equal, the lower pairs are compared, so that for example 8-8-6-6-3 beats 8-8-5-5-K. Finally, if both pairs are the same, the odd cards are compared, so Q-Q-5-5-8 beats Q-Q-5-5-4.

8. Pair

A hand with two cards of equal rank and three cards which are different from these and from each other. When comparing two such hands, the hand with the higher pair is better - so for example 6-6-4-3-2 beats 5-5-A-K-Q. If the pairs are equal, compare the highest ranking odd cards from each hand; if these are equal compare the second highest odd card, and if these are equal too compare the lowest odd cards. So J-J-A-9-3 beats J-J-A-8-7 because the 9 beats the 8.

9. Nothing

Five cards which do not form any of the combinations listed above. This combination is often called High Card and sometimes No Pair. The cards must all be of different ranks, not consecutive, and contain at least two different suits. When comparing two such hands, the one with the better highest card wins. If the highest cards are equal the second cards are compared; if they are equal too the third cards are compared, and so on. So A-J-9-5-3 beats A-10-9-6-4 because the jack beats the ten.

Hand Ranking in Low Poker

There are several poker variations in which the lowest hand wins: these are sometimes known as Lowball. There are also 'high-low' variants in which the pot is split between the highest and the lowest hand. A low hand with no combination is normally described by naming its highest card - for example 8-6-5-4-2 would be described as '8-down' or '8-low'.

It first sight it might be assumed that in low poker the hands rank in the reverse order to their ranking in normal (high) poker, but this is not quite the case. There are several different ways to rank low hands, depending on how aces are treated and whether straights and flushes are counted.

Ace to Five

This seems to be the most popular system. Straights and flushes do not count, and Aces are always low. The best hand is therefore 5-4-3-2-A, even if the cards are all in one suit. Then comes 6-4-3-2-A, 6-5-3-2-A, 6-5-4-2-A, 6-5-4-3-A, 6-5-4-3-2, 7-4-3-2-A and so on. Note that when comparing hands, the highest card is compared first, just as in standard poker. So for example 6-5-4-3-2 is better than 7-4-3-2-A because the 6 is lower than the 7. The best hand containing a pair is A-A-4-3-2. This version is sometimes called 'California Lowball'.

When this form of low poker is played as part of a high-low split variant, there is sometimes a condition that a hand must be 'eight or better' to qualify to win the low part of the pot. In this case a hand must consist of five unequal cards, all 8 or lower, to qualify for low. The worst such hand is 8-7-6-5-4.

Deuce to Seven

The hands rank in almost the same order as in standard poker, with straights and flushes counting and the lowest hand wins. The difference from normal poker is that Aces are always high , so that A-2-3-4-5 is not a straight, but ranks between K-Q-J-10-8 and A-6-4-3-2. The best hand in this form is 7-5-4-3-2 in mixed suits, hence the name 'deuce to seven'. The next best is 7-6-4-3-2, then 7-6-5-3-2, 7-6-5-4-2, 8-5-4-3-2, 8-6-4-3-2, 8-6-5-3-2, 8-6-5-4-2, 8-6-5-4-3, 8-7-4-3-2, etc. The highest card is always compared first, so for example 8-6-5-4-3 is better than 8-7-4-3-2 even though the latter contains a 2, because the 6 is lower than the 7. The best hand containing a pair is 2-2-5-4-3, but this would be beaten by A-K-Q-J-9 - the worst 'high card' hand. This version is sometimes called 'Kansas City Lowball'.

Ace to Six

Many home poker players play that straights and flushes count, but that aces can be counted as low. In this version 5-4-3-2-A is a bad hand because it is a straight, so the best low hand is 6-4-3-2-A. There are a couple of issues around the treatment of aces in this variant.

• First, what about A-K-Q-J-10? Since aces are low, this should not count as a straight. It is a king-down, and is lower and therefore better than K-Q-J-10-2.
• Second, a pair of aces is the lowest and therefore the best pair, beating a pair of twos.

It is likely that some players would disagree with both the above rulings, preferring to count A-K-Q-J-10 as a straight and in some cases considering A-A to be the highest pair rather than the lowest. It would be wise to check that you agree on these details before playing ace-to-six low poker with unfamiliar opponents.

Selecting from more than five cards

Note that in games where more than five cards are available, the player is free to select whichever cards make the lowest hand. For example a player in Seven Card Stud Hi-Lo 8 or Better whose cards are 10-8-6-6-3-2-A can omit the 10 and one of the 6's to create a qualifying hand for low.

Poker Hand Ranking with Wild Cards

A wild card card that can be used to substitute for a card that the holder needs to make up a hand. In some variants one or more jokers are added to the pack to act as wild cards. In others, one or more cards of the 52-card pack may be designated as wild - for example all the twos ('deuces wild') or the jacks of hearts and spades ('one-eyed jacks wild', since these are the only two jacks shown in profile in Anglo-American decks).

The most usual rule is that a wild card can be used either

1. to represent any card not already present in the hand, or
2. to make the special combination of 'five of a kind'.

This approach is not entirely consistent, since five of a kind - five cards of equal rank - must necessarily include one duplicate card, since there are only four suits. The only practical effect of the rule against duplicates is to prevent the formation of a 'double ace flush'. So for example in the hand A-9-8-5-joker, the joker counts as a K, not a second ace, and this hand is therefore beaten by A-K-10-4-3, the 10 beating the 9.

Five of a Kind

When playing with wild cards, five of a kind becomes the highest type of hand, beating a royal flush. Between fives of a kind, the higher beats the lower, five aces being highest of all.

The Bug

Some games, especially five card draw, are often played with a bug. This is a joker added to the pack which acts as a limited wild card. It can either be used as an ace, or to complete a straight or a flush. Thus the highest hand is five aces (A-A-A-A-joker), but other fives of a kind are impossible - for example 6-6-6-6-joker would count as four sixes with an ace kicker and a straight flush would beat this hand. Also a hand like 8-8-5-5-joker counts as two pairs with the joker representing an ace, not as a full house.

Wild Cards in Low Poker

In Low Poker, a wild card can be used to represent a card of a rank not already present in the player's hand. It is then sometimes known as a 'fitter'. For example 6-5-4-2-joker would count as a pair of sixes in normal poker with the joker wild, but in ace-to-five low poker the joker could be used as an ace, and in deuce-to-seven low poker it could be used as a seven to complete a low hand.

Lowest Card Wild

Some home poker variants are played with the player's lowest card (or lowest concealed card) wild. In this case the rule applies to the lowest ranked card held at the time of the showdown, using the normal order ace (high) to two (low). Aces cannot be counted as low to make them wild.

Double Ace Flush

Some people play with the house rule that a wild card can represent any card, including a duplicate of a card already held. It then becomes possible to have a flush containing two or more aces. Flushes with more than one ace are not allowed unless specifically agreed as a house rule.

Natural versus Wild

Some play with the house rule that a natural hand beats an equal hand in which one or more of the cards are represented by wild cards. This can be extended to specify that a hand with more wild cards beats an otherwise equal hand with fewer wild cards. This must be agreed in advance: in the absence of any agreement, wild cards are as good as the natural cards they represent.

Incomplete Hands

In some poker variants, such as No Peek, it is necessary to compare hands that have fewer than five cards. With fewer than five cards, you cannot have a straight, flush or full house. You can make a four of a kind or two pairs with only four cards, triplets with three cards, a pair with two cards and a 'high card' hand with just one card.

The process of comparing first the combination and then the kickers in descending order is the same as when comparing five-card hands. In hands with unequal numbers of cards any kicker that is present in the hand beats a missing kicker. So for example 8-8-K beats 8-8-6-2 because the king beats the 6, but 8-8-6-2 beats 8-8-6 because a 2 is better than a missing fourth card. Similarly a 10 by itself beats 9-5, which beats 9-3-2, which beats 9-3, which beats a 9 by itself.

Ranking of suits

In standard poker there is no ranking of suits for the purpose of comparing hands. If two hands are identical apart from the suits of the cards then they count as equal. In standard poker, if there are two highest equal hands in a showdown, the pot is split between them. Standard poker rules do, however, specify a hierarchy of suits: spades (highest), hearts, diamonds, clubs (lowest) (as in Contract Bridge), which is used to break ties for special purposes such as:

• drawing cards to allocate players to seats or tables;
• deciding who bets first in stud poker according to the highest or lowest upcard;
• allocating a chip that is left over when a pot cannot be shared exactly between two or more players.

I have, however, heard from several home poker players who play by house rules that use this same ranking of suits to break ties between otherwise equal hands. For some reason, players most often think of this as a way to break ties between royal flushes, which would be most relevant in a game with many wild cards, where such hands might become commonplace. However, if you want to introduce a suit ranking it is important also to agree how it will apply to other, lower types of hand. If one player A has 8-8-J-9-3 and player B has 8-8-J-9-3, who will win? Does player A win by having the highest card within the pair of eights, or does player B win because her highest single card, the jack, is in a higher suit? What about K-Q-7-6-2 against K-Q-7-6-2 ? So far as I know there is no universally accepted answer to these questions: this is non-standard poker, and your house rules are whatever you agree that they are. Three different rules that I have come across, when hands are equal apart from suit are:

1. Compare the suit of the highest card in the hand.
2. Compare the suit of the highest paired card - for example if two people have J-J-7-7-K the highest jack wins.
3. Compare the suit of the highest unpaired card - for example if two people have K-K-7-5-4 compare the 7's.

Although the order spades, hearts, diamonds, clubs may seem natural to Bridge players and English speakers, other suit orders are common, especially in some European countries. Up to now, I have come across:

• spades (high), hearts, clubs, diamonds (low)
• spades (high), diamonds, clubs, hearts (low)
• hearts (high), spades, diamonds, clubs (low) (in Greece and in Turkey)
• hearts (high), diamonds, spades, clubs (low) (in Austria and in Sweden)
• hearts (high), diamonds, clubs, spades (low) (in Italy)
• diamonds (high), spades, hearts, clubs (low) (in Brazil)
• diamonds (high), hearts, spades, clubs (low) (in Brazil)
• clubs (high), spades, hearts, diamonds (low) (in Germany)

As with all house rules, it would be wise to make sure you have a common understanding before starting to play, especially when the group contains people with whom you have not played before.

Stripped Decks

In some places, especially in continental Europe, poker is sometimes played with a deck of less than 52 cards, the low cards being omitted. Italian Poker is an example. As the pack is reduced, a Flush becomes more difficult to make, and for this reason a Flush is sometimes ranked above a Full House in such games. In a stripped deck game, the ace is considered to be adjacent to the lowest card present in the deck, so for example when using a 36-card deck with 6's low, A-6-7-8-9 is a low straight. 3 card poker strategy.

Playing poker with fewer than 52 cards is not a new idea. In the first half of the 19th century, the earliest form of poker was played with just 20 cards - the ace, king, queen, jack and ten of each suit - with five cards dealt to each of four players. The only hand types recognised were, in descending order, four of a kind, full house, three of a kind, two pairs, one pair, no pair.

No Unbeatable Hand

In standard poker a Royal Flush (A-K-Q-J-10 of one suit) cannot be beaten. Even if you introduce suit ranking, the Royal Flush in the highest suit is unbeatable. In some regions, it is considered unsatisfactory to have any hand that is guaranteed to be unbeaten - there should always be a risk. There are several solutions to this.

In Italy this is achieved by the rule 'La minima batte la massima, la massima batte la media e la media batte la minima' ('the minimum beats the maximum, the maximum beats the medium and the medium beats the minimum'). A minimum straight flush is the lowest that can be made with the deck in use. Normally they play with a stripped deck so for example with 40 cards the minimum straight flush would be A-5-6-7-8 of a suit. A maximum straight flush is 10-J-Q-K-A of a suit. All other straight flushes are medium. If two players have medium straight flushes then the one with higher ranked cards wins as usual. Also as usual a maximum straight flush beats a medium one, and a medium straight flush beats a minimum one. But if a minimum straight flush comes up against a maximum straight flush, the minimum beats the maximum. In the very rare case where three players hold a straight flush, one minimum, one medium and one maximum, the pot is split between them. See for example Italian Poker.

In Greece, where hearts is the highest suit, A-K-Q-J-10 is called an Imperial Flush, and it is beaten only by four of a kind of the lowest rank in the deck - for example 6-6-6-6 if playing with 36 cards. Again, in very rare cases there could also be a hand in the showdown that beats the four of a kind but is lower than the Imperial Flush, in which case the pot would be split.

Hand probabilities and multiple decks

The ranking order of poker hands corresponds to their probability of occurring in straight poker, where five cards are dealt from a 52-card deck, with no wild cards and no opportunity to use extra cards to improve a hand. The rarer a hand the higher it ranks.

This is neither an essential nor an original feature of poker, and it ceases to be true when wild cards are introduced. In fact, with a large number of wild cards, it is almost inevitable that the higher hand types will be the commoner, not rarer, since wild cards will be used to help make the most valuable type of hand from the available cards.

Mark Brader has provided probability tables showing the frequency of each poker hand type when five cards are dealt from a 52-card deck, and also showing how these probabilities would change if multiple decks were used.

This page is mainly based on information from Bill and Barb Bigger and from John and Linda Bristol.

Introduction

Pegs and Jokers is a North American race game for four, six or eight players, using playing-cards to move pegs around a board. It is also sometimes known as Jokers and Pegs. Some board designs use marbles instead of pegs as the playing pieces in which case it may be called Marbles and Jokers or Jokers and Marbles.

Pegs and Jokers is clearly derived ultimately from the Indian race game Pachisi, a race game using dice for movement, probably via its American derivative Sorry!, in which pawns are moved according to cards drawn from a special deck.

Pegs and Jokers is a partnership game played with standard playing-cards on boards that are generally home-made. It allows extra scope for strategy by giving players a choice of cards to play. Each player has five pegs, and the winners are the first team to move all their pegs from their START area to their HOME areas.

Players and Equipment

The players are divided into two teams - two against two, three against three or four against four. They sit alternately - each player seated between two opponents.

Standard decks of cards are used, with two jokers in each deck. Three decks (162 cards including 6 jokers) may be enough for up to six players: eight players should use four decks (216 cards including 8 jokers).

Four players use a four-sided board; six players use a six-sided board; eight players use an eight-sided board - one side for each player, each associated with a different color. Each player has five pegs in the color that corresponds to the side of the board nearest to them. Each side of the board has a straight section of track 18 units long: there is a corner hole at each end, shared between two adjacent sides, and 17 holes between them. The 8th hole after the corner is the 'come out' position for the pegs on that side, and next to it is the colored 'start' area with five holes where the pegs of that color are stored at the start of the game. The 3rd hole after the corner is the 'in-spot' for that color, and branching off at the 'in-spot' is a colored private track of 5 holes, which is the 'home' or 'safe' area or 'castle', where the pegs end their journey. The diagram below shows one side of the board.

Here two examples of boards:

Board made by Bill Bigger following a design by Dave Vowells.
It has tracks for 4, 6 or 8 players on a single board: 8 players use
the outer track, 6 use the middle track and 4 the inner track.

Board made by Lonnie Beagles in sections that fit
together to accommodate any number of players.

Marbles and jokers board by Wizard Woodworks.The black
and white board sections can be used to expand to 8 players.

Pegs and Jokers boards are available from Don Strenz Woodworking in Rochester, NY.

Wizard Woodworks, based on Whidbey Island, WA supplies boards in sections for 6 or 8 player versions of Pegs and Jokers and Marbles and Jokers.

Some people use colored golf tees as the pegs for this game. Others use the small colored plastic bulbs that fit into ceramic christmas trees - supplies of these bulbs can be obtained from Ceramic Art Space.

Basic Game

Deal and play of cards

Five cards are dealt to each player, and the remaining cards are stacked face down. As usual players hold their cards so that they can see their faces but no one else can. Played cards form a face up pile on the table. Players take turns in clockwise order. At your turn you do the following:

1. Draw one card from the top of the face-down deck, so that you hold six cards.
2. Play one card of your choice from your hand face up onto your discard pile.
3. Move according to the power of the played card.

If you have any card (except a joker) that allows you to move a peg, you must play such a card, even if the move is disadvantageous. However, if you have no cards (except jokers) that enable you to move you may discard one card of your choice without moving and draw a card to replace it. This ends your turn. Discarding without moving normally happens only at the start of the game, when a player has no aces or pictures to move any peg out of the start area.

A player is never forced to play a joker: if you have no other move you may keep the joker and discard another card.

Movement of pegs - general rules

All the pegs begin in their own start areas. From there they move to the neighbouring 'come out' hole, and then around the board clockwise. On reaching its own 'in-spot' a peg may take the branch into its safe 'home' track. No peg may ever move into any start or home area other than its own.

In the basic game, except in special circumstances described below, you may only move your own pegs.

You may never land on or pass over a hole occupied by one of your own pegs, but you may pass over or land on other player's pegs. Passing over a peg of a different color has no effect on it, but landing exactly in the hole occupied by a peg of a different color has the following results:

• When a peg lands on an opponent's peg, the opponent's peg is immediately moved back to its start area.
• When a peg lands on a partner's peg, the partner's peg is immediately moved to its 'in-spot', provided the partner does not already have a peg there. It is illegal to land on your partner's peg if that partner already has a peg on his or her own in-spot.

Movement of pegs - effects of individual cards

In order to move your peg out of your start area, you must play a jack, queen, king, ace (to move it to its 'come out' hole) or a joker (to move it to the hole occupied by a peg of a different color anywhere on the main track).

When playing a 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 9 or 10, you move one of your own pegs that is not in your start area forward that number of holes along the track.

When playing an ace, you may either move one of your pegs from your start area to your 'come out' hole, or move one of your pegs forward one hole.

When playing a jack, queen or king you may either move one of your pegs from your start area to your 'come out' hole, or move one of your pegs forward 10 holes.

When playing an 8, you must move one of your pegs backwards 8 holes.

When playing a 7, you may either move one of your pegs forward 7 holes, or split the 7 between two of your pegs, moving them 1 and 6, 2 and 5 or 3 and 4 holes forwards. Of course the split move can only be made if you have at least two pegs in play.

When you play a joker, you move any one of your pegs (for example one in the start area) into a hole on the main track that is occupied by another player's peg, belonging either to a partner or to an opponent. This has the effect of sending that peg to its in-spot or start area respectively, as described above. A joker cannot be used to move to an empty hole, so if there are no pegs of any colour on the main track a joker cannot be played.

You must always use the full value of the card played. For example when playing a 6 you must move a peg forward 6 holes, no less. If you play a 6 when you have a peg on your in-spot and all your other pegs in the start area, you must move your peg on along the main track, since there is not room in the home track for a move of 6.

Endgame

For a team to win the game, all its pegs must be in their respective home areas. Pegs move along the home tracks in the usual way. Since they cannot land on or pass over each other, the first peg to arrive must eventually be moved all the way to the end of the home track to leave room for the others, the second to the next space behind it and so on.

'Backing in' to the home track is not allowed. In other words, pegs cannot turn into their home track while moving backwards. Also, pegs that are already in their home areas are not allowed to move backwards.

However, it is legal to use a backward move on the main track as a means to get from start to home. For example: you could use a picture to move from the start area to 'come-out'; use an 8 to move back 8 spaces to the corner (NOT into the home track); use a 4, 5, 6 or 7 to move forward into your home track.

Joker Poker Pinball Rules

When, and only when, all five of your pegs are in the home (safe) position, occupying the five holes of your home track, you use your turn to move the pegs of your left-hand partner, if that player still has playable pegs. If left partner's pegs are also all home, you move the pegs of the next partner around the table who still has playable pegs.

The first team that manages to get all its pegs into their respective home areas wins the game.

Advanced Game: Arizona Rules

This more interesting version of Pegs and Jokers developed in Arizona, from where it has spread to Texas and perhaps other places. It uses four full decks of cards including 8 Jokers. The rules differ from the basic game as follows:

1. 5 cards are dealt to each player as usual, but a turn consists of first playing a card to your discard pile, then moving a peg or pegs using the power of the played card, and finally drawing a card from the face down deck so that you have 5 cards again. So for each turn you have 5 cards to choose from rather than 6.
2. Throughout the game, you may move any of the pegs belonging to your team (so for example any of 20 pegs in the 8-player game with 4 on each team). Therefore you may discard without moving only if you are unable to play a card (other than a joker) that moves any of your team's pegs.
3. A peg cannot land on or pass over another peg of the same color.
4. When playing a 9 you may either move one peg forward 9 holes, or split the 9 between two different pegs belonging to your team, moving one forward and the other backward - for example moving one peg 3 holes forward and another 6 holes backward.
5. When using a 7 or 9 for a split move, you may move any two different pegs belonging to your team - either the same color or different colors.
6. When you play a joker, if your team has any pegs in their start areas, you must move one of these pegs to replace any peg of a different color (belonging to either team) that is on the main track. If your team's start areas are all empty (but only in that case), you can move one of your team's pegs from anywhere on the main track to displace any peg of a different color on the main track.

Here is a brief summary of the Arizona Rules in the form of a Word document. New players may find it useful to refer to this during their first few games. Brad Clark has provided a Spanish translation of the summary sheet.

Naturally a 9, like a 7, can only be split if your team has at least two pegs in play. If your team only has one peg left that is not in its final home position, then 7 and 9 can only be used to move forward that number of holes.

Notes on Strategy

1. 8 spaces backward from the start takes you to the corner, which is a risky position to occupy, because you are 10 holes away from your neighbour's come-out hole. So after coming out of Start it is good to begin by moving 1, 2 or 3 spaces forwards. Then 8 spaces backwards will take you to or beyond your in-spot, putting you in a position to go home with less risk of being killed meanwhile by your right-hand opponent.
2. If you move 4 or more spaces forward from your come-out hole, moving 8 backward is no longer useful, since this does not reach your in-spot. Your peg now becomes a runner - a peg to be sent on a journey around the board to harass opponents or move into partner's area.
3. You can try to set up a home run by positioning your 'runner' peg in teammate's come-out hole so that a peg coming out of START lands on your peg and sends it to its in-spot. Even better is the double play: a peg is left in its own come-out hole so that a teammate's arriving runner sends come-out peg directly to its in-spot. Then the next peg to come out of the start area sends the runner to its in-spot. Occasionally it is even possible to set up a longer 'chain reaction' in which a series of different colored pegs displace each other in a single move. Also a 7 or 9 could be split to use one part to send a partner's peg to its in-spot and the other part to move that peg home.
4. It is important to watch the board! When a player sees a runner approaching a start area, he should position a peg in the adjacent come-out hole to allow a home run.
5. 10's and face cards move a peg 10 holes, and there are 64 of these 'tens' in the four decks, making 10 the easiest distance to move. So when moving a runner to a partner's area or attacking opponents, it is good to lurk 10 spaces short of partner's come-out hole, or opponent's in-spot. Note also that a peg sitting 10 spaces away from its teammate's come-out happens also to be 8 spaces in front of its opponent's come-out, where it is (almost) safe from attack (since 8's move backwards). Another good place to wait is 3 spaces forward from a peg's come-out. This is 10 away from opponent's in-spot and also within reach of its own in-spot by moving backward 8. Also, when the team only has one peg left in the game and is approaching HOME, they should try to maneuver so the last several moves are 10's.

Common Errors

1. Not having enough pegs on the board. 9s, 7s, and (offensive) Jokers need at least two pegs to work. Teams should have a minimum of 2 movable pegs per player on the board at all times (a 4-man team should have 8 pegs!)
2. Concentrating on moving into HOME. It is best to wait until an exact count card can be played to move all the way into Home (unless the peg is in imminent danger of being killed). Rely on your partners.
3. Getting bound up: one or more pegs in HOME area but not all the way in. This is the Kiss of Death!
4. Playing a joker too soon. Hold it until you can get a double or triple play or use it in the endgame to save your team from defeat. Don't be too eager to play it!
5. Attacking an opponent instead of putting a teammate into a scoring position. An opponent sent to START is after all only two moves from his home entry space (a face card plus an 8 or 9).
6. In the endgame: playing high cards so that the team is too close to enter HOME on an exact count. If you can't go all the way HOME, play your smallest card and give your teammates more chances to enter HOME.

Note on Table Talk

As in most card games, players are not allowed to reveal the cards in their hands to partners or opponents. It is sometimes very tempting to offer advice or suggest moves to your partners, or to seek advice when it is your move, especially when playing by the Arizona rules which allow players to move any of their team's pegs. This kind of table talk almost inevitably gives away information about the cards held by the players, and is not allowed in games between experienced players.

1. Draw one card from the top of the face-down deck, so that you hold six cards.
2. Play one card of your choice from your hand face up onto your discard pile.
3. Move according to the power of the played card.

If you have any card (except a joker) that allows you to move a peg, you must play such a card, even if the move is disadvantageous. However, if you have no cards (except jokers) that enable you to move you may discard one card of your choice without moving and draw a card to replace it. This ends your turn. Discarding without moving normally happens only at the start of the game, when a player has no aces or pictures to move any peg out of the start area.

A player is never forced to play a joker: if you have no other move you may keep the joker and discard another card.

Movement of pegs - general rules

All the pegs begin in their own start areas. From there they move to the neighbouring 'come out' hole, and then around the board clockwise. On reaching its own 'in-spot' a peg may take the branch into its safe 'home' track. No peg may ever move into any start or home area other than its own.

In the basic game, except in special circumstances described below, you may only move your own pegs.

You may never land on or pass over a hole occupied by one of your own pegs, but you may pass over or land on other player's pegs. Passing over a peg of a different color has no effect on it, but landing exactly in the hole occupied by a peg of a different color has the following results:

• When a peg lands on an opponent's peg, the opponent's peg is immediately moved back to its start area.
• When a peg lands on a partner's peg, the partner's peg is immediately moved to its 'in-spot', provided the partner does not already have a peg there. It is illegal to land on your partner's peg if that partner already has a peg on his or her own in-spot.

Movement of pegs - effects of individual cards

In order to move your peg out of your start area, you must play a jack, queen, king, ace (to move it to its 'come out' hole) or a joker (to move it to the hole occupied by a peg of a different color anywhere on the main track).

When playing a 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 9 or 10, you move one of your own pegs that is not in your start area forward that number of holes along the track.

When playing an ace, you may either move one of your pegs from your start area to your 'come out' hole, or move one of your pegs forward one hole.

When playing a jack, queen or king you may either move one of your pegs from your start area to your 'come out' hole, or move one of your pegs forward 10 holes.

When playing an 8, you must move one of your pegs backwards 8 holes.

When playing a 7, you may either move one of your pegs forward 7 holes, or split the 7 between two of your pegs, moving them 1 and 6, 2 and 5 or 3 and 4 holes forwards. Of course the split move can only be made if you have at least two pegs in play.

When you play a joker, you move any one of your pegs (for example one in the start area) into a hole on the main track that is occupied by another player's peg, belonging either to a partner or to an opponent. This has the effect of sending that peg to its in-spot or start area respectively, as described above. A joker cannot be used to move to an empty hole, so if there are no pegs of any colour on the main track a joker cannot be played.

You must always use the full value of the card played. For example when playing a 6 you must move a peg forward 6 holes, no less. If you play a 6 when you have a peg on your in-spot and all your other pegs in the start area, you must move your peg on along the main track, since there is not room in the home track for a move of 6.

Endgame

For a team to win the game, all its pegs must be in their respective home areas. Pegs move along the home tracks in the usual way. Since they cannot land on or pass over each other, the first peg to arrive must eventually be moved all the way to the end of the home track to leave room for the others, the second to the next space behind it and so on.

'Backing in' to the home track is not allowed. In other words, pegs cannot turn into their home track while moving backwards. Also, pegs that are already in their home areas are not allowed to move backwards.

However, it is legal to use a backward move on the main track as a means to get from start to home. For example: you could use a picture to move from the start area to 'come-out'; use an 8 to move back 8 spaces to the corner (NOT into the home track); use a 4, 5, 6 or 7 to move forward into your home track.

Joker Poker Pinball Rules

When, and only when, all five of your pegs are in the home (safe) position, occupying the five holes of your home track, you use your turn to move the pegs of your left-hand partner, if that player still has playable pegs. If left partner's pegs are also all home, you move the pegs of the next partner around the table who still has playable pegs.

The first team that manages to get all its pegs into their respective home areas wins the game.

Advanced Game: Arizona Rules

This more interesting version of Pegs and Jokers developed in Arizona, from where it has spread to Texas and perhaps other places. It uses four full decks of cards including 8 Jokers. The rules differ from the basic game as follows:

1. 5 cards are dealt to each player as usual, but a turn consists of first playing a card to your discard pile, then moving a peg or pegs using the power of the played card, and finally drawing a card from the face down deck so that you have 5 cards again. So for each turn you have 5 cards to choose from rather than 6.
2. Throughout the game, you may move any of the pegs belonging to your team (so for example any of 20 pegs in the 8-player game with 4 on each team). Therefore you may discard without moving only if you are unable to play a card (other than a joker) that moves any of your team's pegs.
3. A peg cannot land on or pass over another peg of the same color.
4. When playing a 9 you may either move one peg forward 9 holes, or split the 9 between two different pegs belonging to your team, moving one forward and the other backward - for example moving one peg 3 holes forward and another 6 holes backward.
5. When using a 7 or 9 for a split move, you may move any two different pegs belonging to your team - either the same color or different colors.
6. When you play a joker, if your team has any pegs in their start areas, you must move one of these pegs to replace any peg of a different color (belonging to either team) that is on the main track. If your team's start areas are all empty (but only in that case), you can move one of your team's pegs from anywhere on the main track to displace any peg of a different color on the main track.

Here is a brief summary of the Arizona Rules in the form of a Word document. New players may find it useful to refer to this during their first few games. Brad Clark has provided a Spanish translation of the summary sheet.

Naturally a 9, like a 7, can only be split if your team has at least two pegs in play. If your team only has one peg left that is not in its final home position, then 7 and 9 can only be used to move forward that number of holes.

Notes on Strategy

1. 8 spaces backward from the start takes you to the corner, which is a risky position to occupy, because you are 10 holes away from your neighbour's come-out hole. So after coming out of Start it is good to begin by moving 1, 2 or 3 spaces forwards. Then 8 spaces backwards will take you to or beyond your in-spot, putting you in a position to go home with less risk of being killed meanwhile by your right-hand opponent.
2. If you move 4 or more spaces forward from your come-out hole, moving 8 backward is no longer useful, since this does not reach your in-spot. Your peg now becomes a runner - a peg to be sent on a journey around the board to harass opponents or move into partner's area.
3. You can try to set up a home run by positioning your 'runner' peg in teammate's come-out hole so that a peg coming out of START lands on your peg and sends it to its in-spot. Even better is the double play: a peg is left in its own come-out hole so that a teammate's arriving runner sends come-out peg directly to its in-spot. Then the next peg to come out of the start area sends the runner to its in-spot. Occasionally it is even possible to set up a longer 'chain reaction' in which a series of different colored pegs displace each other in a single move. Also a 7 or 9 could be split to use one part to send a partner's peg to its in-spot and the other part to move that peg home.
4. It is important to watch the board! When a player sees a runner approaching a start area, he should position a peg in the adjacent come-out hole to allow a home run.
5. 10's and face cards move a peg 10 holes, and there are 64 of these 'tens' in the four decks, making 10 the easiest distance to move. So when moving a runner to a partner's area or attacking opponents, it is good to lurk 10 spaces short of partner's come-out hole, or opponent's in-spot. Note also that a peg sitting 10 spaces away from its teammate's come-out happens also to be 8 spaces in front of its opponent's come-out, where it is (almost) safe from attack (since 8's move backwards). Another good place to wait is 3 spaces forward from a peg's come-out. This is 10 away from opponent's in-spot and also within reach of its own in-spot by moving backward 8. Also, when the team only has one peg left in the game and is approaching HOME, they should try to maneuver so the last several moves are 10's.

Common Errors

1. Not having enough pegs on the board. 9s, 7s, and (offensive) Jokers need at least two pegs to work. Teams should have a minimum of 2 movable pegs per player on the board at all times (a 4-man team should have 8 pegs!)
2. Concentrating on moving into HOME. It is best to wait until an exact count card can be played to move all the way into Home (unless the peg is in imminent danger of being killed). Rely on your partners.
3. Getting bound up: one or more pegs in HOME area but not all the way in. This is the Kiss of Death!
4. Playing a joker too soon. Hold it until you can get a double or triple play or use it in the endgame to save your team from defeat. Don't be too eager to play it!
5. Attacking an opponent instead of putting a teammate into a scoring position. An opponent sent to START is after all only two moves from his home entry space (a face card plus an 8 or 9).
6. In the endgame: playing high cards so that the team is too close to enter HOME on an exact count. If you can't go all the way HOME, play your smallest card and give your teammates more chances to enter HOME.

Note on Table Talk

As in most card games, players are not allowed to reveal the cards in their hands to partners or opponents. It is sometimes very tempting to offer advice or suggest moves to your partners, or to seek advice when it is your move, especially when playing by the Arizona rules which allow players to move any of their team's pegs. This kind of table talk almost inevitably gives away information about the cards held by the players, and is not allowed in games between experienced players.

When teaching the game to beginners, this rule may be relaxed to allow possible moves to be discussed by the team. In this case, when discussing moves, players should do their best to avoid exchanging information about the cards that they hold.

North Carolina Rules

Here the game is more often called Jokers and Pegs. The safe 'home' area is known as the castle. The rules are as follows:

1. As in the basic game, a turn consists of first drawing, then playing one of your six cards and moving as appropriate.
2. As in the basic game, you can only move your own pegs until your last peg is home. After that you move the pegs of the partner nearest to your left. You can use a split move to take your last peg home and move your left hand partner's peg with the remainder.
3. As in the basic game, a joker moves one or your own pegs from anywhere on the board to any hole on the main track that is occupied by a peg.
4. With an ace you can come out, or move one space forwards, or move one space backwards, or move 11 spaces forwards.
5. The two is a special card that allows the player either to move forward 2 or to exchange the positions of any two different coloured marbles/pegs that are on the main track (not in the start or home areas).
6. Sevens can be split to move two pegs forwards, as in the basic game.
7. Nines can be split to move one peg forwards and a different peg backwards, as in the Arizona rules, but they must both be your own pegs (until all your pegs are home).
8. Tens must be split between two different pegs. These can be any two pegs on the board - your own, your partner's or your opponent's, except that opponents' pegs can only be moved on the main track, not if they are within their safe area or castle. These pegs can both move forwards, both backwards or one forwards and one backwards (but as usual backwards moves are only allowed on the main track, not into, within or out of a peg's safe area). For example you could move two of your team's pegs from their come out spots back 5 to their in spots. But you cannot move a single peg 10 holes. If you 'hit' one of your team's pegs it goes to its in spot, even if you hit it using an opponent's peg; if you hit an opponent's peg it goes to back its start area, even if you hit it using a peg of another color from the same team.
9. If you are unable to move - for example all your pegs are at start or in your castle and after drawing you have no 'come out' card (A, K, Q, J, joker), no ten and no card small enough to move within your castle - you discard a card without moving. This is known as 'counting'. If this happens on three consecutive turns, then on the third turn, after discarding any card you must move one of your pegs to your 'come out' hole for free. Note that counting applies to a player, not a team: if more than one player in a team is unable to move they each count separately (even if they are both moving the same pegs because one of them has already brought all their pegs home). Also on the third turn you have the privilege of discarding any card and coming out free even if you drew a 'come out' card. Note that normally you cannot count if you hold a ten, since this card can move any two pegs (with the exception of pegs at start or in their final positions, and opponents' pegs in their safe areas).

Some play that when counting you do not come out free until your fourth turn. Note that if while counting you have a peg that is in your castle but not all the way in, and you draw a small card that can move this peg, you must move it on that turn, and restart your count from 1 again on your next turn if once again unable to move.

Other Variations

In the rule sheet distributed by Wizard Woodworks a two is a special card that can either moves a peg forward 2 or exchange two different coloured pegs on the main track. Other rules are in the basic game, except that as in the Arizona version players first play a card, then move and draw a replacement card at the end of their turn, and nines can be split, moving one peg/marble forward and another backward.

Eileen Becker from Alaska describes a variation in which a 10 can be used to move a peg either forward 10 spaces or backward 1 space. Apart from this the game is similar to the basic game described on this page, but using the 'counting rule' from the North Carolina rules, allowing a player to come out with any card on the fourth turn after being stuck for three turns.

Kilpatrick Rules

Susan McIntosh describes the 'Kilpatrick Rules' - a variant of the Arizona Rules with the following differences:

• Only 3 cards each are dealt instead of 5.
• A peg cannot be moved forwards along the main track past its in-spot. When moving forwards it must turn into its home track when it reaches the in-spot and if there is not enough clear space there for the value of the played card to be fully used, that peg cannot be moved on that turn.

Bluffing Joker

Ian Terry describes the Bluffing Joker variant, played in Florida, in which the basic rules are identical to the regular game, except that all cards played are played face-down. The player may declare the face-down card to be whatever they desire.

Before the player moves their piece, the opposing team has the chance to doubt the player's declaration. The next opponent player clockwise from the player whose turn it is has the option of doubting first. If no doubt is raised by the first opponent, it passes to the next opponent, and so on around the table.

If no doubts are raised, the peg is moved and the card is discarded, still face down, thus ending the turn.

Joker Poker Game Rules

If a doubt is raised, one of two things can happen:

• If a bluff is doubted successfully, the team that doubted successfully chooses one of the bluffing player's pegs to send back to start and ​the turn ends immediately. If the bluffing player has no pegs out of start yet, the player that doubted successfully has the option to take an extra turn on their next chance to play.
• If a doubt is raised incorrectly, the truthful player chooses one of the incorrectly doubting player's pegs to send back to start. If the unsuccessful doubter has no pegs out of start yet, the truthful player has the option to take an extra turn on their next chance to play.​

Jokers Wild Poker Rules

Other Pegs and Jokers web sites

Here are archive copies of the former Pegs and Jokers page of the D'Antiques Board Games Database which included rules of the game.