Continental Card Game Rules including House Rules (a.k.a. "Contract Rummy", "Construction Rummy", "Progressive Rummy" or "May I?")

The number of players is not fixed.  In general, the more players there are, the slower the game proceeds, and the higher the scores become.  The number of decks shall be determined by dividing the number of players by 2 and rounding up, if needed.  For example:

3 or 4 players use 2 decks
5 or 6 players use 3 decks
7 or 8 players use 4 decks

Each deck consists of the normal 52-card pack, plus one joker.   No other wild cards are used.

A set consists of three or more cards of the same face value, e.g., three kings, or four aces, or three sevens.
A run consists of four or more cards of the same suit, in sequence.  If there is an ace in the run, it can serve as either high card or low card, but not both in the same run.  For example, A-2-3-4, or J-Q-K-A, or 4-5-6-7-8.  No run may contain more than 13 cards (2 through Ace-high, or Ace-low through King).

Seven different deals, or hands, make up one game of Continental.   Each hand consists of a combination of sets and/or runs, and there is a different opening requirement for each of the seven hands.  For example, the first hand requires a player to open, or go down, with two sets.  A minimum of six cards makes up the first hand's opening requirements, seven cards for the second hand, etc.   Each successive hand needs one more card for the opening requirements, until the seventh hand, which requires twelve cards to open.  Everyone moves on to the next hand together, regardless of whether they were able to go down during the previous hand, so that all players share a common goal in each hand.

Once a player has gone down by satisfying the requirements for that particular hand, he or she may not create any new sets or runs.  For example, while playing the first hand of two sets, no player may play three sets.  Cards that remain in a player's hand may only be played onto the sets and runs already established on the table.  The goal in each hand is to be the first player to go out, or play all remaining cards by laying down on existing sets and runs, and by discarding.

The exception to adding on to other players' cards comes during the seventh and final hand, when only one player goes down, and only when able to use every card in his or her hand in forming the required three runs, and discarding one card.  This ends the hand and the game, and no other players have a chance to go down or to play on that person's cards.

The sequence of seven hands is as follows:

                           Minimum # of cards
  Sequence & Description     needed to open

1. Two sets                       6
2. One set & one run              7
3. Two runs                       8
4. Three sets                     9
5. Two sets & one run            10
6. Two runs & one set            11
7. Three runs                    12

Click here for photo examples of each of the seven hands.  For those hands that require multiple runs, if a player goes down using the same suit for more than one run, the runs cannot be played with contiguous card values.  To be valid, runs in the same suit must either have a gap between them or overlap.  For example, 3-4-5-6 and 7-8-9-10 are not acceptable as two runs in a hand for a given player.  However, the two runs 3-4-5-6 and 8-9-10-J would be acceptable because of the gap between the runs.  Similarly, the two runs 3-4-5-6 and 5-6-7-8 are acceptable because there is some overlap.

For those hands requiring two or more sets, the sets must consist of different card values from each other.  For example, if a player has six Jacks, they cannot form two sets of three Jacks to satisfy a requirement to play two sets.

All players pick a card at random and return it to the deck, high card dealing first.  Each hand starts a new deal, with the turn to deal passing from player to player, to the left.  Cards are dealt one at a time, face down in clockwise rotation beginning at the dealer's left.  For the first four hands, the dealer deals ten cards face down to each player, places the remainder of the pack face down in the middle (this becomes the stock pile), and places the top card from the stock pile face up next to it (this becomes the discard pile). Play starts with the player to the dealer's left and proceeds clockwise.  If the first face-up card is a joker, it is played as any other card would be, i.e., the player to the dealer's left would have first choice to pick it up in turn.

Since the last three hands require ten or more cards for a player to open, the dealer deals twelve cards for hands 5, 6 and 7.   The player to the dealer's left becomes the dealer for the next hand.

Beginning with the player to the left of the dealer, a person's turn begins by selecting either the top card from the stock pile, or the top card from the discard pile.   If the player does not wish to select from the discard pile, any player in order of rotation to to the left of the player may claim that card, but must also draw the top card from the stock pile as a penalty for picking out of turn, without discarding.  In such a case:

• the order of play is not changed,
• the player picking out of turn may not play any cards on the table until his or her next regular turn,
• any remaining cards in the discard pile are ineligible for selection (dead), and
• the player whose turn was interrupted resumes play by selecting the top card from the stock pile

If the player has not yet opened, and has the necessary cards to meet the opening requirements for that hand, he or she may then lay down the sets and/or runs appropriate for that hand.  Having opened, the player is then free to play (in that same turn or in subsequent turns) additional cards onto existing sets or runs that have already been played on the table.  A player may not put any cards into play until he or she has opened.  Wild cards may be used to fill in missing cards in a set or a run, and there is no limit to how many wild cards may be used in any set or run.  If a player doesn't verbally declare the value of a joker being played as part of a run, its value is implied by the position in which it is originally placed.  If the player changes his or her mind as to which cards to play where, only the cards played in the current turn may be picked up for re-use.

During a player's regular turn, and only if they have already opened, a wild card already laid on the table as part of any run may be replaced by the card which it represents, taken from the player's hand.  The wild card must then be played on the table to represent any card in any set or run.  Wild cards that are part of a set may not be replaced.

The end of a turn occurs when a player discards one card onto the discard pile.   Play then continues with the next player to the left.

Twice-Around Rule
If all players have opened during a hand, but none have gone out, play continues only until each player has had two additional turns or until one player goes out, whichever comes first.   This is in the interest of saving time by terminating a hand in which the point differential between players will be minimal.  These last two turns begin with the player following the last person to open.

Once a player has gone out (or the Twice-Around Rule has been invoked), ending the hand, each player counts the points remaining unplayed in his or her hand. These points are recorded, and count as penalty points against the player.  The object of the game is to be the player with the fewest amount of penalty points after playing all seven hands.  Penalty points for each hand are calculated as follows:

• Two through seven count five points each
• Eight through king count ten points each
• Aces and jokers count fifteen points each

Stock Pile Depletion
It is possible when many cards have been taken out of turn in a hand, resulting in many penalty cards, that the stock pile may dwindle down to nothing before any player has gone out.  Should this happen, the stock pile is turned over once, without shuffling, and play continues in order.  If the remaining cards in the stock pile are depleted a second time without any player going out, the hand ends and all points remaining in all players' hands are tallied as they would be had someone gone out.

Incomplete Hands and Games
If all players agree, a game may be suspended between hands and later resumed, but only if all players are available when play resumes, and only if the game resumes in the same calendar year as it started.  Players must be seated in the same relative positions to each other when the game resumes.

Any player not finishing a full game (one or more hands not played to completion) will post a game total equal to the sum of the two highest complete game totals posted by other players in that game.  If two other complete game totals are not available in that game, all statistics for that game are discarded.

Similarly, any player not providing a score for a particular hand that he or she played will post a score equal to the sum of the two highest scores posted by other players for that hand.  If two other scores are not available in that hand, the hand is re-played.

Play Out of Turn

If a player going out of turn is not stopped before discarding, it stands as a play in turn and intervening players lose their turns.  If the player out of turn has chosen to take the top card of the stock pile, it is too late for rectification after the player has added that card to his or her hand.

If it is not too late, as defined, to correct the error, the offender restores the card drawn, takes back any cards that he or she may have played, and play then reverts to the correct person.  The next paragraph (Illegal Draw) may apply.

Illegal Draw

If, by playing out of turn or by drawing more than one card from the top of the stock pile, a player sees a card to which he or she is not entitled, that card is placed face up on top of the stock pile.  The next player in turn may either take the card or may have it placed face down in the center of the stock pile, and proceed to play as if no irregularity had occurred.  If more than one card is so exposed at the top of the stock pile, the option of each player in turn is only to take the top such card remaining there, or the top face-down card of the stock pile, or (as always) the previous player's discard.  That is, players have three options to draw from instead of the normal two, as long as exposed cards remain at the top of the stock pile.

A player's illegal draw may not be corrected after discarding, but the section on Incorrect Hand may apply.

Premature Discard

Any player who discards without drawing may then draw from the stock pile (but may not lay down any cards after discarding) to restore their hand to the proper number of cards; except that if the next player in turn has already drawn, the section on Incorrect Hand applies.  A player who discards more than one card may retract either one, unless the next player has drawn it or unless the next player has already ended their turn.

Incorrect Hand

A player with too many cards discards without drawing; a player with too few cards draws without discarding; one card in each turn until the player's hand is restored to the correct number.  (This also applies to a player who draws too many cards and adds them to his hand before correction is required.)  A player may not lay down any cards in a turn when the hand is still incorrect.  If, after a player goes out, another player has too many cards, he or she simply counts the value of all cards in the hand.   If a player has too few cards, he or she is charged 10 points for each missing card.  If any player goes out and is found to have too few cards, they take back all cards that were laid down in that turn, and play continues.

Redeal

There must be a redeal (by the same dealer) if more than one card is exposed in dealing or if more than one card is found face up in the pack.  A player who is dealt an incorrect number of cards may demand a redeal before drawing in their first turn, but not after that.  There must be a redeal at any time it is discovered that the pack is incorrect, but the results of previous deals are not affected.

Cards Laid Down Illegally

Any cards which are superfluous in an otherwise correct set or run must be returned to the original player's hand as soon as they are discovered.  Any cards that may have been added to the incorrect set or run remain on the table.  Play then proceeds as if no irregularity had occurred.

Scoring Errors

An error in counting a hand may not be corrected after that hand has been mixed with other cards.  However, if an error in scoring is discovered when there had previously been no dispute, an agreed upon correction may be made at any time.