Overview

Chicago is a card game combining poker hand evaluation with trick-taking, played with a standard 52-card deck. Over multiple rounds, players draw and discard cards to form the best poker hands, scoring points for the highest-ranked hand each phase. The game concludes with a trick-taking segment where winning the final trick earns bonus points. The first player to reach 52 points wins. The game includes a bold “Chicago” declaration mechanic where a player can attempt to win all five tricks for a large bonus (or penalty).

Components

• 1 standard 52-card deck
• Pen and paper for scorekeeping
• 2-4 players

Setup

1. Choose a dealer. The dealer shuffles the deck.
2. Deal 5 cards to each player, one at a time.
3. Place the remaining deck face-down as the draw pile.
4. Prepare pen and paper for tracking scores.

Turn Structure

Each round consists of three phases (two poker phases and one trick-taking phase):

Phase 1 (First Poker Round):

1. Starting with the player to the dealer’s left, each player may discard unwanted cards.
2. The dealer replenishes each player’s hand back to 5 cards from the draw pile.
3. Each player announces their poker hand ranking or passes.
4. Only the player with the highest-ranked poker hand scores points for that phase.

Phase 2 (Second Poker Round):

1. Another discard-and-draw round occurs, same as Phase 1.
2. Poker hands are compared again; highest hand scores.

Phase 3 (Trick-Taking):

1. A third discard-and-draw round occurs.
2. Trick-taking begins. The player to the dealer’s left leads the first trick.
3. Players must follow suit if possible. The highest card of the led suit wins the trick.
4. The trick winner leads the next trick.
5. After all 5 tricks, the winner of the final (5th) trick scores 5 points.
6. Additionally, the player with the best poker hand among their won cards also scores.

Actions

Discard and Draw: During each phase, players may discard any number of cards from their hand and draw replacements from the deck to return to 5 cards.

Announce Poker Hand: After drawing, declare your poker hand ranking (or pass). Only the highest hand scores.

Play a Trick: In Phase 3, play one card per trick. Must follow the led suit if possible. Highest card of the led suit wins.

Declare “Chicago”: Before the trick-taking phase, a player with at least 15 points may declare “Chicago,” attempting to win all 5 tricks. Success earns 15 bonus points; failure costs 15 points.

Show Broken Hands: If you break apart a winning hand from Phase 1 or 2 to use cards in trick-taking, you must show the hand to all players first.

Scoring / Victory Conditions

Poker Hand Points (per phase):

Hand	Points
Royal Flush	52
Straight Flush	8
Four of a Kind	7
Full House	6
Flush	5
Straight	4
Three of a Kind	3
Two Pair	2
One Pair	1

Additional Points:

• Winning the final (5th) trick in Phase 3: 5 points
• Successful “Chicago” declaration: 15 bonus points
• Failed “Chicago” declaration: -15 points

Winning: The first player to reach 52 points wins the game.

Special Rules & Edge Cases

• Only the single highest poker hand each phase scores; other players receive nothing.
• The “Chicago” declaration requires a minimum of 15 accumulated points. If declared, the player must win all 5 tricks or lose 15 points.
• Players with 46 or more points cannot discard in subsequent rounds (they play with their dealt hand).
• If breaking a winning poker hand to use those cards in trick-taking, the hand must be shown to all players.
• Ties in poker hands follow standard poker tiebreaker rules (highest kicker, etc.).

Player Reference

Phase	Activity	Scoring
Phase 1	Discard/draw, announce poker hands	Best hand scores
Phase 2	Discard/draw, announce poker hands	Best hand scores
Phase 3	Discard/draw, trick-taking (5 tricks)	Best hand scores + 5 pts for last trick

Chicago Declaration: 15+ points required. Win all 5 tricks = +15 pts. Fail = -15 pts.

Win Condition: First to 52 points.