The Tonk Card Game and Its Rules

Before you play a game of tonk with unfamiliar players, it is wise to lay down some house rules are in effect. You should look up a typical version, and follow those directions throwing in your own alternatives.

In a tonk card game, any amount of players can play, but it is always agreed that the best amount of players is two or three players. You will use a standard 52 deck of cards. The cards have value which are as follows: the pictures cards Jack, Queen, and the King, all count as 10 points, aces count 1 point and other cards count face value.

Dealing and playing the tonk card game

You deal five cards to each player, clockwise, one at a time. After dealing 5 cards to each player, the next card will start the discard pile. The remaining undealt cards are placed face down beside the discard pile which will now be called your Stock pile. Look, at your hand and if it contains 49 to 50 points you must say this aloud and show your cards. This is called tonk. If this happens then the hand is not played and the player with 40 to 50 points is paid twice the amount of the basic stake by the other players. If more than one player has 49 to 50 points, then there is no payments made, and the cards are thrown in and the next player deals.

Now you are ready to play.
If no one tonks, then the play begins. Your objective by drawing and discarding, to form your cards into spreads, which can be books of 3 or 4 equal ranked cards or runs of 3 or more cards in suit, or to dispose of your cards by adding them to existing spreads. You win if you manage to get rid of all of your cards, or if you have the lowest value of unmatched cards when someone stops the play. Note that once the play has begun, it's no longer any use to collect 40 or more points, this only wins in your original hand, before the play starts.

The person to the left of the dealer plays first and the turn to play passes clockwise. At your turn, you have two options. If after drawing from the stock or discard pile you have a spread of three or more cards, you may place them face up on the table. These cards them no longer count towards the total in your hand. There are two types of spread.