Pedro
How to Play Pedro
Pedro is a four-player All Fours cousin for two teams. Partners sit across. You deal one standard 52, 9 each, leftover 16 unused face-down. Bid 6 through 14 for the right to name trump. Score High, Low, Jack, off-jack, Ten, Pedro, and off-pedro. First to 51 wins.
This page is kitchen-table Pedro. Also called Cinch at some tables — CardPractice house name is Pedro. Short enough to deal tonight. This is not Pitch. Pitch on this site is deal 6, High/Low/Jack/Game to 11, no 5s worth 5 — the cousin, labeled not Pedro: how to play Pitch. This is not euchre. Euchre is a 24-card pack and hash marks to 10. Not Bid Euchre (cutthroat, bid tricks, to 21). Not Bid Whist (54, kitty, books over 6, to 7). Four people is a tonight pick. Three people: Pedro itself is four. Pick cutthroat euchre, 3-hand Five Hundred, or cutthroat Pitch from tonight.
What you need
- Four people. Partners sit across from each other, never side by side. 4 is this game. Not on chip 2, 3, or 5.
- One standard 52-card deck. No jokers. Deal 9 each. Remaining 16 unused, face-down — nobody looks.
- Paper with two running totals. Game is 51.
Sit, pick a dealer, agree on the house
Partners sit across and play as a team. Cut for the first deal, or point at someone. After each hand, the deal moves clockwise.
Say these out loud before the first card:
- 52 cards. 9 each. 16 unused face-down. Nobody looks at the leftover.
- Bid 6 through 14, or pass. Left of dealer first. One round. A later bid must be higher. Highest bid names trump. All pass: throw in, next dealer deals.
- Off-jack and off-pedro are trump. Same-color jack and same-color 5 follow a trump lead, not their printed suit.
- First to 51. Makers who make the bid score the points they actually took. Set: minus the bid. Opponents always score what they took. Not Pitch to 11. Not euchre to 10.
Deal 9. Sixteen sit unused.
Shuffle the 52. Deal clockwise until each player has 9. Put the remaining 16 aside, face down. You do not look. Those cards are out of this hand — a point-card might still be in the unused pack. If someone has 8 or 10, you misdealt. Throw it in and deal again.
Four people: 36 cards in play, 16 unused. Left of the dealer speaks first.
Bid 6 through 14, then name trump
Starting left of the dealer, each player may bid or pass. A bid is how many of the point-cards you think your side will take — 6 through 14 — not a suit yet, and not a number of tricks. Each later bid must be higher. Pass and you are out of this auction. One round.
The highest bid names trump. That is the contract. Your side now has to take at least that many of the 15 points in the pack.
If everyone passes, throw the hand in. Next dealer deals. There is no forced bid tonight.
Bid a number you can see. An ace of a long suit is High if that suit becomes trump. A 5 of that suit is Pedro (5 points). The same-color 5 is off-pedro (also 5). Do not bid 14 on a wish.
Trump rank — say off-jack and off-pedro out loud
Trump, high to low:
| Order | Card |
|---|---|
| Ace | A♥ |
| King | K♥ |
| Queen | Q♥ |
| Jack | J♥ |
| Off-jack — same color, it is trump | J♦ |
| 10 | 10♥ |
| 9, 8, 7, 6 | 9♥ through 6♥ |
| Pedro — 5 of trump | 5♥ |
| Off-pedro — same-color 5, it is trump | 5♦ |
| 4, 3, 2 | 4♥, 3♥, 2♥ (Low) |
Off-suit is ordinary: ace, king, queen, jack, 10 down to 2 — except the off-jack and off-pedro have left that suit. Diamonds with hearts trump have no jack and no 5. They are trump now.
Off-jack and off-pedro follow a trump lead, not their printed suit. If hearts are led as trump, J\u2666 and 5\u2666 must follow if you have no other heart. Say that out loud before the first trick.
Play 9 tricks
Left of the dealer leads first — not the bidder. After that, the winner of a trick leads the next. You play until the hands are empty. Nine tricks.
- You must follow suit if you have a card of the suit that was led. Off-jack and off-pedro count as trump, not as their printed suit.
- If you cannot follow, you may trump or throw off a side suit.
- The highest trump in the trick wins. If nobody played trump, the highest card of the led suit wins.
You may trump when void. You do not have to. Saving Pedro, off-pedro, or the 2 of trump to take Low is the whole game.
The 15 — night-one freeze
Some tables still say \u201cthe 14.\u201d Tonight both 5s are worth 5, so 15 in the pack. Freeze as 15 to 51. Bid 6–14.
| Point | Who scores | Value |
|---|---|---|
| High | Who takes the ace of trump | 1 |
| Low | Who captures the 2 of trump — not who was dealt it | 1 |
| Jack | Who takes the jack of trump | 1 |
| Off-jack | Who takes the same-color jack | 1 |
| Ten | Who takes the 10 of trump | 1 |
| Pedro | Who takes the 5 of trump | 5 |
| Off-pedro | Who takes the same-color 5 | 5 |
| Total in the pack | Some of these may sit unused | 15 |
Scoring, in the amount you need tonight
After the nine tricks, count the point-cards in each side's tricks.
| What happened | Who scores |
|---|---|
| Makers take at least the bid | They score the points they actually took, not just the bid |
| Makers take fewer than the bid (set) | Minus the bid |
| Opponents | The point-cards they captured — they always score what they took |
| All 15 (cinched it) | Still just those 15 toward 51. Say it. |
| A side reaches 51 | That side wins. Going past 51 is fine. |
Made: write the points you actually took if you made the bid. Set: minus the bid. Opponents always score the point-cards they captured, even if you made it. A side that takes all 15 has cinched it — still just those 15 toward 51. You do not race to 11. That is Pitch. You do not hash-mark to 10. That is euchre.
Walk through one first-night hand
You sit South. Partner sits North. You bid 8. Hearts trump.
Your side takes the ace of trump, the jack of trump, the 10 of trump, and the 5\u2665 (Pedro). That is 1+1+1+5 = 8. You made the bid: +8.
They took the 2 of trump (Low) and the off-pedro (5\u2666). That is 1+5 = 6 for them. They always score what they took.
Write 8 for you, 6 for them. Race to 51.
Night-one habits
- Count trump including off-jack and off-pedro. The ace might still be in the unused 16.
- Left of dealer leads first — not the bidder.
- Off-jack and off-pedro follow a trump lead. Say it.
- Low is captured. The 2 of trump scores for who takes it, not who was dealt it.
- Pedros are the 5s. Trump 5 is 5. Same-color 5 is 5. First to 51.
- Four people, partners across. Three people deal cutthroat euchre, 3-hand 500, or Pitch — not a made-up Pedro.
You know enough to deal. Keep this page beside the pad. Four people is a tonight pick. There is no Pedro trainer on CardPractice — this how-to is the product. If you wanted deal 6, High, Low, Jack, Game to 11, that is Pitch — not Pedro. If you wanted five tricks and hash marks to 10, that is euchre.