Gulf · Trick-taking · Three against three

Kout Bo 6: rules and how to play

كوت بو 6

Kout Bo 6 is Kuwaiti Kout for six: two teams of three, partners in every other seat, and the whole 52-card deck plus two jokers. Everyone holds nine cards and the bidding runs from 5 to 9. Bid all nine tricks and you have called Kout, the Bawan, and a Kout made on the first hand wins the game.

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Kout Bo 6: Three against three · 54 cards · nine each · to 101

Players: 6, in two teams of three
Deck: 54 cards: 52 plus two jokers
Goal: First team to 101 points
A game: Hands of 9 tricks, to 101

How to play in one minute

Deal 9 cards each from 54: the full deck plus a red and a black joker.
Bid once each, from the dealer's right: 5 to 9 tricks for your team, higher than the last bid, or pass. Nine is Kout.
If the first five players pass, the dealer must bid 5. The highest bidder names trump and leads.
Follow suit if you can; if not, trump or throw any card. The jokers are the top trumps. All 9 tricks are played.
Make the bid and your team scores it; miss it and the other team scores double. The first team to 101 wins.

The rules

Teams and the deal

Six players in two teams of three: your partners are every second player round the table. 54 cards, the full deck plus two jokers, nine each, ranked from the ace down. Dealing, bidding and play go to the right, and the deal moves one seat to the right after each hand.

Bidding

Starting on the dealer's right, each player bids once: the number of tricks their team will take, from 5 to 9 and higher than the bid before it, or pass. A bid of 9 is Kout (the Bawan), a promise to take every trick. If the first five players pass, the dealer must bid 5.

Trumps and jokers

The highest bidder names trump and leads the first trick. Follow the suit led if you can. If you can't, play any card: you may trump, but you don't have to. The red joker is the highest card in the game and the black joker ranks between the ace and king of trump. Both count as trumps, so they follow a trump lead, and you may play one at any other time.

A joker may be led only once the ace, king, queen and jack of trump are out, or under a bid of 9 (either joker) or 8 (the red joker only).
A joker led against that rule has no rank, and the next card sets the suit.
The highest trump wins the trick; with no trump in it, the highest card of the suit led wins. All nine tricks are played.

Scoring

Bid made: your team scores the bid, not the tricks it took. A Kout made scores 36.
Bid missed: the other team scores double the bid, and your team loses nothing. A forced dealer bid that fails gives only the bid.
A Kout made on the first hand wins the game at once.
A team on 51 or more while the other is still on 0 wins. Otherwise the first team to 101 wins. Only one team scores in a hand, so there are no ties, and there is no doubling.

Example

Your team bids 6 and takes 8 tricks: you score 6. Take only 5 and the other team scores 12.

Tips from the table

Count the jokers as trumps when you bid: the red joker is a sure trick, and the black joker loses only to the red joker and the ace of trump.
A missed bid pays the other team double, so bid the tricks you can count, not the ones you hope your partners hold.
With partners in every other seat, an opponent always plays right after you. Let the partner who plays last in the trick finish it off.
On the first hand a Kout made ends the game. With long trumps and both jokers, it is worth the risk.

Qahwa · قهوة

Play it in Qahwa

Switch the house rules before you deal:

Play to 31, 51 or 101
Jokers on, or off: 36 cards (6 to ace), six each, bids 4 to 6
Dealer must bid when everyone else passes
Kout wins the game: on the first hand, on any hand, or never
51 against 0 wins the game

Join the early playersIn testing · soon onGoogle Play

Online, every computer player is labelled and the deal can be checked. How we keep it fair

Questions

What is the Bawan in Kout?

Bawan is another name for Kout, the bid of every trick: all nine in Kout Bo 6. Made, it scores 36, and on the first hand it wins the game outright.

How do the jokers work in Kout Bo 6?

The red joker is the highest card in the game and the black joker sits between the ace and king of trump. Both are trumps, and you can only lead one once the top trumps are gone or under a bid of 8 or 9.

What is the difference between Kout Bo 6 and Kout Bo 4?

Bo 6 is three against three, with nine cards each from the whole deck plus two jokers. Bo 4 is two against two. Qahwa has both, with the same house rules.