While many card games rely on luck there are individuals who seem to consistently perform well regardless of the hand they’re dealt. Chances are strategies are being applied at the table to bend the odds in their favour. Here is a toolkit of strategies you can use to give yourself the upper hand.

Euchre

Count Trump Cards – You must at the very least keep track of how many trumps have been dealt. Keeping track of the trump suits that have been played comes next. Make every effort to be informed of which cards each suit’s boss card is. Keeping track of every card is more advance so at the very least remember the number of trump cards dealt.

Promote – It can be advantageous to lead the lower card when you have two (or even three) cards of the same suit in order to bring out the cards with better rankings. Later on, you might be able to use it to completely win a trick or at the very least, draw trump.

Second Hand Low – This is how you should play in a variety of scenarios in order to attempt and acquire the most assistance possible from your partner by giving them a chance.

Poker

When the hands are off suit, these are the pre-flop hands to think about playing: AK, AQ, AJ, AT (MAYBE A9 and A8), KQ, KJ, QJ – raise these hands.

Consider playing the ace high flush (generally the best hand if you get it), KQ-K9, QJ-Q8, JT, T9, 98, 87, 76, 65, and other hands where the cards are suited. If you have these hands, think about raising them, but if they fail, fold and accept a loss. If you hit a draw, check if you can to see the turn and river for free, or place a blocking bet.

Anything less than 88 when the cards are paired before the flop should be seen cheaply in the hopes of hitting three of a kind; otherwise, you should try to escape. If your score is 88 or higher, you might want to change how you play, boost the stakes, etc. In contrast, if the flip is 7, 5, 2, you are probably ahead of the game if you have 99 and the other cards are K, A, or J. Accordingly, the higher the pair preflop, the better; if you can, you should try to go all in with AA and KK. QQ Although I would rather watch the flop, you should probably raise with such a strong hand. You can play JJ and TT in a variety of ways, but I would just call the preflop if I had these hands or shove them.

President

1. Throw low pairs first

2. Put high pairs on top of low pairs.

3. When possible, clear the stack before throwing pairings.

4. As your final cards, you want to have face cards. This will make it impossible for someone to toss it if, for example, their last card is a 6.

5. Have quick reflexes to finish number sets when available (group cards appropriately).

Signal

The best way to win signal is to have a good signal. Here are some signal ideas you can use to get your partners attention and trick opponents.

Simply tell your partner you have signal. This may seem counterintuitive but the trick is to do this when you have 3/4 of the card you’re collecting. This will trigger your opponent’s blocks while letting your partner know that they need to start looking at you. As soon as they see you pick up a card they can yell signal.

Use your fingers to hold the back of your cards. You can use the number of fingers holding your cards to communicate how many cards you collected.