Scoring

Scoring

Aces are scored at 1 point, face cards at 10, and all other cards are scored at their numerical values. The number of points awarded for bonuses may vary from region to region. No matter what the bonus amounts are, points are scored in Gin for the following:

Knock Points 

After a player knocks, and the lay offs are made, the knocking player receives a score equal to the difference between the two hands. For example, if a player knocks with 8, and the defender has 10 deadwood points in his or her hand after laying off, the knocking player receives 2 points for the hand.

Gin Bonus 

After going gin, a player receives a bonus of 25 points plus the entire count of deadwood in the opponent's hand. There is no chance to lay off when a player goes gin.

Undercut (or underknocking) 

Occurs when the defending player has a deadwood count lower than or equal to that of the knocking player (this can occur either naturally or by laying off after a knock). In this case, the defender scores an undercut bonus of 25 points plus the difference in deadwood in the knocking player's hand. (In some rule sets, the bonus is only 10 or 20 points, or is not awarded in case of a tie.)

Game Bonus 

Once a player has acquired 100 points (or some other agreed-upon number) the game is over, and that player receives a game bonus of 100 points (or another agreed-upon number).

Line Bonus or Box Bonus 

Added at the end of the game. For every hand a player won during the game, 25 points is added to his or her score.

Big Gin 

Prior to knocking, if all 11 cards in a player's hand form a legal gin, the player can retain the extra card as part of his or her hand, and is awarded 31 points plus entire count of deadwood in his or her opponent's hand. (In some rule sets players may be awarded 50 points or another established amount plus the entire count of deadwood in the opponent's hand)

Shutout Bonus 

If a game is completed with the winner having won every hand, the points for each hand are doubled before adding the line bonus.

Variations

Straight Gin

In Straight gin players are required to play until one of them can go gin. Knocking is not allowed. Scoring and rules remain the same as standard Gin Rummy.

Mahjong Gin

Similar to Straight gin, knocking is not allowed. However, more than one card may be taken, in order, from the top of the discard pile. If more than one card is taken, the lowest position card taken must be used in a hand(i.e. <bottom> 8 3 5 <top of discard> 8 is the lowest position card and must be used in a hand; continue with 1 discard). Cards are shown to the table, with opponents being able to add on to straights of the same suit or finish a three of a kind with the fourth card for points. After a player has gin, points are added, with cards on the table being added up and cards in hand being subtracted. The player, who gins receives 25 addition points, 2-9 = 5 points, 10-K = 10 points, A = 15 points.

Oklahoma Gin

In this version of Gin Rummy, the value of the first upcard is used to determine the maximum count at which players can knock. If the upcard is a spade, the hand will count double. So if the first upcard is a 4, you can knock and go out with only 4 or fewer points in your hand; and if the 4 was a spade, you would get double points that hand.

Another version in this variation (mostly in match play) and in Hollywood Gin (see below), a second deck of cards will be used to determine the knock value of a hand. The knock value card will be dealt from the bottom and turned over on top. Above rules apply but both players are dealt ten cards with the last hand winner picking first from the deck.

Hollywood Gin

This is a scoring style, not a rules change to the game of Gin. In Hollywood Gin scoring is kept for three different games at the same time. A player's first win will be recorded in their column in Game One. A player's second win will be recorded in their columns for both Game One and Game Two. Their third win will be recorded in their column for all three games.

Hands are played until all three games are finished.

Single match

When a single match is to be played, the players will continue to play rounds until one player has 100 points or more. This player wins the match.

Multi-match

In multi-match games, match scores are reset to zero with the start of each match, while game scores accumulate until a predetermined winning score is reached, perhaps 500 or higher. Each individual match ends when one player scores 100 match points. At the end of the match, players' match scores are credited toward their game scores, as well as:

• 25 game points for each individual round won,
• 100 game points to the winner of the match, and
• 100 bonus game points to the match winner if the loser won no rounds.

Notable players

• Stu Ungar, widely regarded as the greatest gin rummy player of all time, described by many as having a clairvoyant ability to see his opponents' hands
• Bill Ingram, winner of the International Gin Rummy Tournament of Champions during the late 1990s.
• Harry "Yonkie" Stein, a renowned big-money player from Canada, regarded as one of the top players of his time
• John Hainline, a greeting-card distributor from San Francisco who has won more than 30 gin rummy tournaments and is considered among the best players after Stu Ungar's death.
• Drew McGlinchey is considered the best current Rummy player, champion of the 2013 Fall Classic and 2016 Holiday Classic in Las Vegas