Oftentimes we have a group together, and we cannot find a card game for specifically 4 people. Here are 2 fairly popular card games played with 4 players. First, Golf, and second, Spades.
No, not golf, like little white ball golf, the card game golf. Although they both have something in common, the lower score wins.
Golf
Golf starts off by grabbing a deck of cards, and 3 other friends. Assuming you already have that, let's get into the game.
Pass out 6 cards to each player, one at a time. The players do not look at their cards. Place the remaining deck in the middle, and flip the top card over. Each player sets up their cards, face down in 2 rows of 3.
Your main goal is to match cards in the same columns, resulting in fewer points.
Player left of the dealer flips up 2 of their cards, followed by either switching one of their cards with the flipped over card OR can draw the top card of the deck. If they draw from the top of the deck they can either switch for one of their own OR place it in the discard pile. If a card switch occurs the player must place the switched card in the discard pile.
Then goes the next person, note, you can only flip up 2 cards on your first turn, 1 on your next. When a player has all of their cards flipped up, their round is over. Then the other players get 1 more turn to switch their cards.
After the last turn, if any cards are not flipped, flip them now. The players' scores are calculated with the cards they have. Here is how the scoring works:
Aces count for 1 point.
Two’s count as -2 points.
Numbered cards from 3-10 scores face value.
Jacks or Queens score 10 points.
Kings score 0 points.
A pair of equal cards in the same column scores 0 points (even if they are 2-Two’s).
The game ends after 9 rounds, again, lowest score wins!
If you would like a visual representation of the game, watch this video on how to play Golf.
Spades
You may have heard of Spades, it’s a fairly popular game, and for good reason. It’s also pretty similar to Hearts.
Spades originated around World War II. Since it was a fast paced game, and could be interrupted anytime, it was perfect for that era. Veterans then brought that game back to the USA and made it mainstream.
Again, assuming you have a deck of cards and 3 other friends, let's get started.
Spades is played with 2 teams of 2. Each person is dealt 13 cards, 1 at a time.
The goal of the game is to predict how many tricks you will win, and try to win that amount. Another reason this game is so popular is that it favors strategy over luck.
A trick is won by playing the highest card in a round. Cards are ranked as follows; (highest-lowest) Ace, King, Queen, Jack, 10-2. Spades always outrank any card. (Ex. 4 of spades outranks the ace of hearts). You will need a scorekeeper to keep track of points.
The player that is to the left of the dealer starts off. They must play a card, then players that follow must play suit. (if they cannot play suit, they can play any other suit).
Whoever wins that trick, starts the next round. When everyone has played all of their cards, tally up your points. The Scoring System follows:
Matching or Exceeding their bid, they will get 10 points and 1 point for each trick won. Each trick won over the amount bid, results in a “bag.” If you get 10 bags, you get -100 points. If you do not meet your bid amount, you lose 10X the points of the amount bid. Another way to earn points in Nil, or Blind Nil bids. Nil is when you predict 0 tricks won, if you win 0 you get 100 points, if you win a trick you lose -100 points. A blind nil, is when you predict you will win 0 tricks, but you don't look at your cards. Points are earned the same, but with 200.
Another thing to note is that you cannot play a spade first, unless the player has no other suits to play, or if spades have been broken. Spades are broken when they cannot follow suit, and must play a spade instead.
First team to 500 points wins, if both teams get to 500 in the same round, highest number wins.
If you would like a visual representation of the game, watch this video on how to play Spades.
What Cards Should You Use?
Card games like these sometimes get pretty intense, and spilled drinks or other things may happen to your cards. If you want to avoid spending money on a replacement deck. Get some 100% plastic playing cards. They are by far the most durable playing cards, and can last you many more game nights to come.
Shop Them Below.