Cribbage
How to Play Cribbage with 3 Players
Same scoring as two-hand cribbage. The deal is the only real change: five cards each, one discard each, and the dealer feeds the crib one extra card from the pack so it stays four. Peg clockwise. First to 121. Pairs, fifteens, runs, and nobs are the two-player how-to.
What you need
- Three people. Everyone for themselves.
- A standard 52-card deck. No jokers.
- A cribbage board with three peg colors, or a three-track board. Paper is a poor substitute. How the board works: the cribbage board explained.
Need a picture of the streets and the two pegs: the cribbage board explained.
Deal five, crib stays four
Cut for first deal, low card deals. Shuffle. Deal five cards to each player, clockwise. The leftover pack sits in the middle.
- Each player discards one card face down to the crib.
- The dealer takes the top card of the leftover pack and puts it in the crib, still face down. The crib now has four cards, same as two-hand.
- The player left of the dealer cuts the remaining pack. The dealer turns the starter.
His heels still scores 2 for the dealer if the starter is a jack. Nobs is still 1 in a hand that holds the jack of the starter suit.
Peg clockwise, then count
The player to the left of the dealer plays the first card. Play goes clockwise. Go, 31, pairs, and runs count the same as two-hand. Each person still holds four cards after the discard, so the play is three hands of four, not two.
After the cards are played, count in this order:
- Player left of the dealer counts their hand.
- The next player counts.
- The dealer counts their hand, then the crib.
First to 121 wins. A skunk is still 121 plus a full street, if your table plays it. Scoring chart: cribbage scoring.
What changes from two-hand
| 2 players | 3 players | |
|---|---|---|
| Cards dealt | 6 each | 5 each |
| Discards to crib | 2 each | 1 each, dealer adds 1 from the pack |
| Crib size | 4 | 4 |
| Who plays first | Non-dealer | Left of dealer |
| Game | 121 | 121 |