The Deal

After a dealer has been selected, five cards will be dealt face-down to each player.  The dealer will deal clockwise until all the players received their five cards.  Traditionally, the cards are dealt in pairs of two’s and three’s.  Any player who was dealt two cards in the first pass will get three cards in the second pass and vice versa.  Example:

1st Player 2nd Player 3rd Player 4th Player(Dealer)
First Pass 3 cards 2 cards 3 cards 2 cards
Second Pass 2 cards 3 cards 2 cards 3 cards

The four remaining cards will be placed face-down in front the dealer, and the top card is turned face up. The stack of cards in front of the dealer is referred to as the kitty.  The card turned face-up is called the up-card.

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Picking a Dealer

Players may random select a person to be the first dealer, but a more equitable way is to use the rule first black jack deals. One person will deal cards face up in front of each player. The first person to receive a black jack will become the dealer for the initial hand. In subsequent hands, the deal is rotated clockwise. After shuffling the cards, the dealer must offer the player to the right an opportunity to cut the cards. If the dealer fails to offer a cut to the player, the opposing team may call a misdeal as long as the cards are still being dealt or no play on the hand has been made.

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