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HOW TO PLAY THE CARD GAME LOO

Number of Players: 5 to 8. Cards: A regular deck of 52. Each player receives 3 cards, one at a time. An extra hand is dealt just to left of the dealer. This is the widow. The player at left of the widow, if he does not like his hand, may throw it away and take the widow instead. If he is satisfied with his hand, he must say so. Then each player in turn has a chance to take the widow, until somebody takes it or all refuse it. The Play ( Single Pool ): After the matter of the widow is settled, the player at left of the dealer makes the opening lead. A player must always follow suit to the lead when he can, must play higher than any other card on the trick when he can, and when a plain suit is led of which he has none, must trump if he can. The highest trump, or the highest card of the suit led, wins a trick. Ace is highest card. The cards played are not thrown together in the middle of the table. Everybody keeps possession of his cards, placing them face up on the table in front of himself as he plays them. Trumps: The play begins without any trump suit, and continues that way so long as everybody follows suit to every lead. When somebody fails to follow suit, play to the trick is finished, then the top card of the undealt remainder of the deck is turned over. This card decides the trump suit. The trick just played must be examined to see who won the trick, since a card that was merely "discarded" may turn out to be a trump. Scoring: To begin a game, all players receive equal numbers of counters. Each dealer must ante 3 counters to start a pool. When the pool contains no more than these 3, it is a single, and the play is as described above. After the play, the pool pays out 1 counter for each trick won. Every player who has won no trick must pay 3 counters into the next pool, thus making it a double (or jackpot).

Double Pool: This is formed by dealer's ante plus payments for loo (not winning a trick in the previous hand). After the deal, the next card.of the deck is turned, deciding the trump suit immediately. The players look at their hands and each in turn must say whether he will play or drop out. If all but the dealer drop out, he takes the pool. If only one player ahead of the dealer decides to play, the dealer is obliged to play, too. He may play for himself, in which case he cannot take the widow. Or he may play to "defend the pool," in which case he must throw away his hand and take the widow.

The nearest active player at left of the dealer leads first. The. other rules of play are the same as in a single pool. The double pool pays out one-third of its contents for each trick won. A player who stayed in and won no trick must pay 3 counters to the next pool. When the dealer plays merely to "defend the pool," he neither collects nor pays any counters; the pool settles with his opponent alone.

Related terms include flinch card game and child card game.