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Bid Whist

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description Bid Whist Overview

Bid Whist is a traditional American partnership trick-taking card game played with a standard 52-card deck. It introduces a bidding phase to determine the trump suit and includes a kitty of buried cards. The game also features unique rules where cards can be played in either ascending or descending order depending on the specific bid. Heavily popularized within African-American communities, it is designed for four players in two fixed partnerships.

help Bid Whist FAQ

How many cards are dealt in a standard four-player Bid Whist game?

Four players use a 52-card deck, with 12 cards dealt to each player. The remaining 4 cards form the kitty.

What does the bidding phase decide in Bid Whist?

The highest bidder usually determines the trump suit or chooses no-trump, along with whether the hand is played uptown or downtown. The bid also sets the target the bidder's partnership must reach.

What is the kitty used for in Bid Whist?

The four-card kitty is buried after the deal and is normally taken by the winning bidder. The bidder then discards an equal number of cards before play begins.

What do uptown and downtown mean in Bid Whist?

Uptown means high cards are strongest in the usual ascending order, while downtown reverses the emphasis so low cards become powerful. This ranking choice is one of Bid Whist's defining features compared with many ordinary trick-taking games.

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