01How it works
A player goes alone and their partner lays down their cards. One defender, usually the first to speak after the call, may announce they are defending alone. Their partner also sits out, so the hand is played one against one, with the two partners’ ten cards out of play.
If the lone defender takes three or more tricks, the defenders score 4. If the maker takes three or four, the maker scores 1; all five scores 4 as usual.
02When it is worth it
Only with a hand that can take three tricks against the maker’s best five. That usually means two trump including a bower, plus an ace in a suit the maker is likely void in, or three trump.
The cost of failure is small, because the maker was going to score anyway. The risk is giving up your partner’s tricks in a hand you could have euchred together.
03Questions
- How many points is it for euchring a lone hand?
- In standard euchre, 2 points to the defenders. Under the defend-alone house rule, a lone defender who euchres a lone maker scores 4.
- Is defending alone allowed in standard euchre?
- No. It is a house rule, also part of some variants such as railroad euchre.
04Related rules
- Dealer’s partner must go aloneWhen the dealer’s partner orders the turned card into the dealer’s hand, house rules at some tables require that player to go alone.
- Stick the dealerIf every player passes in both rounds of bidding, the dealer may not pass a second time. The dealer must name a trump suit, other than the suit that was turned down.