How to play Rummy 500

Rummy 500 has also become a part of the regular Rummy game among many others. The winner of this game is when the first player gets a cumulative score of 500 or more over a series of hands. You can take more than one card in this game and not just the card from the discard pile. This will help reach the card lower down which you can use in a meld. Another way to calculate the points in this game are points for melded cards and lost for ones that are not.

Sometimes, it is also 500 Rum but mostly sticks to 500 Rummy or Rummy 500. The version where you involve jokers becomes Joker Rummy version. The other variants are 1500 Rummy, 2500 Rummy, 5000 Rummy. The only difference here is that the target score is higher, and the number of cards that you deal are also different. Also, the ranks of aces and wild cards differ here. 500 rummy is also known as Pinochle rummy, Michigan rummy, or Persian Rummy.

You can play Rummy between 2 to 8 players, but the game becomes more interesting when played between 3 to 5 players.

The objective of Rummy 500

The game’s objective is to become the first player to earn 500 points. In this game, players have to lay matched number sets of 3 or 4 and/or sequences of 3 or more cards of the same suit to be the first player to obtain 500 total net points.

What You Need

Number of Players: 2-8 players

Number of Cards: A standard deck of 52 cards, where the Joker is optional

Age Group: 18 and above

The rank of Cards:
Ace (high or low), K, Q, J, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, A.

The Deal

It would be best to have a 52 card deck to play rummy 500. Some versions use the Joker Cards as well. For more than five players, you have to use two decks. In games with two players, the dealer gives out cards one at a time, and it starts from the left. Each player gets seven cards, whereas, in 2 player games, each player gets 13 cards.

To play rummy 500, you have to deal seven cards to each player. The ones which are not dealt become the stockpile. Only turn the top card face up and place it beside the stock as the upcard, also called the discard pile. The discard pile needs to be slightly spread so that players can see all the cards. Players can then rearrange the cards in their hands automatically.

The Gameplay

The card game begins with the first player to the dealer’s left, and it continues clockwise.

  • In the beginning, the player takes a card from the draw pile (or stockpile). Players can also draw a card from the discard pile, leaving the top card.
  • Players can meld combinations of cards. Place them face-up on the table. Players can also “lay off” their cards on pre-existing melds, which can be for you or other players. A meld can be of any type: 3 or 4 cards of the same rank or a set, or in sequences of three or more cards of the same suit.
  • Players can discard. You have to discard one card face up on top of the discard pile, except if you used every card in your hand to meld immediately. If you draw a single card from the top of the discard pile, you cannot discard that card. If you draw multiple cards, you can discard one from the discard pile.
  • You can immediately meld the rest of the cards in the same turn or simply add to the player’s hand. Cards are laid off on the stock pile in front of the player. Sequences cannot “go around the corner,” A player’s meld can be A, K, Q, or A, 2, 3 but not K, A, 2.
  • The game play continues until either a player has no cards left in their hand (this happens when all cards or all but one are melded, and the remaining card goes to the discard) OR if the stockpile runs dry and the player whose turn it is does not want to draw from the discard. After this, gameplay ends, and the hands are scored.

How to form a Meld

  • A meld is a set of 3 or 4 cards of equal value. Some examples are King of Hearts, King of Clubs, and King of Spades. In a game where you require more than two decks, the meld cannot have two cards in a group that belongs to the same suit. Suppose,
  • In games with more than one deck, the meld can not have two cards in a group from the same suit. For example, you can not have 2 five of diamonds and one five of hearts; they must be all different.
  • A meld can also be a sequence of 3 or more cards that are both consecutive cards from the same suit.
  • To extend the sequence, you can also add melds. This process is ‘laying off.’ Jokers become the wild cards and can substitute any card in a meld. Nonetheless, announce the rank of the Joker before the game that remains unchanged throughout the game.

Calling rummy

In between the game, a player can discard a card that could be one of the melded cards or leaves it because you can meld it without any additional cards. There can be unmelded cards remaining too. Except for the player who has discarded it, any other player can call “RUMMY.” They can take the portion of the discard pile with the relevant cards before the next player draws. The player who has called Rummy completes the remaining turn, and the game then passes to the left. You cannot call Rummy when the game has ended. If several players call Rummy for the same card, the player closest to the discarding player takes the card. This is “calling rummy.”

Scoring

The game ends when one player has no cards left, or the stockpile is dry and does not wish to draw any more cards from the discard pile. To calculate the score, each player adds the sum total of the melded cards and subtracts the unmelded cards (value of the remaining cards). After the game ends, you cannot meld any. You can have a negative score as well.

The participants then continue to play hands until one player reaches or exceeds 500 points. The player with the highest score wins. Players deal another hand when there is a tie until the player/dealer decalres the winner.

You can score points by laying down and laying off cards like in a regular Rummy game, in matched number sets of 3 or 4, and sequences of 3 or more cards of the same suit. Case in point, three or four of 8s is a valid or a 3,4,5 of Spades is laid as a sequence.

Example:

The meld cards score=100

in hand cards score=70

The total score of the round= 30

If, however, the stockpile is over and the round ends, then players do not subtract the value of their hands.

Floating in Rummy 500

Among the rules of 500 Rummy, there is a term called Floating. It is basically a variant where you can blend all the cards, but here there is no discard; the game remains as Float. The game does not end either. When your turn comes:

After drawing a card from the stock, you can immediately discard it. This eventually ends the game.

Draw out multiple other cards from the discard pile and collate them together, which will put an end to it.

Compile all the cards that you or another player discards from stock or all the cards withdrawn from the discard pile, and float again for another round.

Withdraw the card from the discarded pile, combine, and now you have one or more cards in your hand. Everything returns to the same state, and the card game continues.

Also Read: Rummy Joker Strategies for Beginners

Aces in Rummy 500

Aces in rummy 500 are either the highest card (King, Queen, Ace) or the lowest card (Ace,2,3)

In some games, you can make one sequence, where you can count the Ace as both high and low (like Queen, King, Ace, and 2 of Spades). This is termed as “going around the corner.”

If “going around the corner” is not allowed, you have to make separate runs like a King, Queen, or Ace of Spades.

Value of aces

When an ace is a high card, then the points are 15. If it is a low card, then the points are  9. An ace (as a low card) can have 1 point or 5 points in some games.

Scoring in Rummy 500

This section will cover the rummy 500 card values and how to score rummy 500.

Rummy 500 card values

  • The face cards- 10 points.
  • Aces (high card)- 15 points
  • Ace ( low card)- 9 points
  • Joker (wildcard) – 15 points.
  • All other cards (2-9)- Points are the same as face value. In some games, Ace (low card) can have 1 point or 5 points. To simplify things, some players keep all Ace-9 cards as 5 points.

Number of players that can play 500 Rummy

In this game, the number of decks and cards changes depending on the number of players.

  • For 2-4 players- one deck of cards.
  • In some games, for five or more players- use two decks of cards
  • For 3-8 players- Each player gets seven cards
  • If there are 5-8 players- The player gets only six cards
  • In the case of 2 players- Each player has 13 cards

Variations of Rummy 500

  • Without Jokers:  You have to play this game without Jokers
  • 5/10/15: The value cards from 2-9 are 5 points in some versions. Other cards like 10, J, Q, K are worth 10 points. The Joker is 15 points.
  • Dealer’s gambit– A common phenomenon here is the use of two jokers. In some versions, there are four jokers. Additionally, there are no penalties for holding a joker in hand once a round is over.
  • Partnership 500 rum– This is a game of partnership. Four players form 2 teams, and the partners face each other across the table. The partners will have to play off on each other’s matched sets and run to go out promptly.
  • Persian Rummy– Players have to use a 56 card deck (52+4 jokers). Jokers cannot be wildcards, but they have to meld into sets of three or four jokers (like any other card). The players cannot use Jokers in a sequence. One joker card has 20 points.

FAQs

Is 500 Rummy the same as Rummy?

While Rummy 500 is a card game belonging to the Rummy family, there is a slight difference in their point value. In Rummy, the player who scores 100 points is the winner. For some games, the winner has to score 250 points. In Rummy 500, the player who gets 500 points is the winner.

Can you play 500 Rummy with two players?

Yes. It can be a two-player game, where you have to use only one deck of cards, and each player gets 13 cards.

What happens when the discard pile is over?

If the cards in the drawing pile get exhausted, the hand ends, and nobody can subtract the score from their hand. The player who reaches 500 points wins the game. If two or more players get 500 points on the same hand, the one who goes out becomes the winner.

How does a discard pile work in Rummy?

In the Rummy card game, you place all the undealt cards and keep them like a face-down pile. Just place the top card face up to start the discard pile. The players have to spread the pile slightly to see the cards easily.

Is Rummy 500 the same as Gin Rummy?

The official rules of Gin-Rummy are similar to Rummy. The difference is when players do not have to lay down their sets and round until they decide to end the round. If the opponent has valid runs in his hand, they do not count as points.