Husarengolf (Klopfspiel)

Objective of the Game

The goal of Husarengolf is to achieve the lowest possible score over several rounds. It is a card game played with a standard 52-card deck.

Game Materials

• A standard deck of 52 playing cards
• Paper and pencil for scoring

Setup

1. Shuffle the deck thoroughly.
2. Deal each player 4 cards, which are placed face down in front of them in a 2x2 grid. Players may not look at these cards.
3. Place the remaining deck in the center of the table as a draw pile and turn the top card face up next to it as the discard pile.
4. Each player may secretly look at two of their four cards and must remember them.

Gameplay

• The game proceeds clockwise.
• The player to the left of the dealer starts.

Each Turn Consists of the Following Options:

1. Draw a card from the draw pile.
2. The player can either place the drawn card into their layout, replacing one of their existing cards, and place the replaced card face-up on the discard pile, or discard the drawn card immediately.

3. When replacing a card from the layout, the player can look at the replaced card before discarding it.

4. Take the top card from the discard pile.

5. This card must then be swapped with one of the cards in their layout, and the swapped card is placed face-up on the discard pile.

6. Knock (when a player believes they have the lowest score or all their cards are known).

7. When a player knocks, the current round continues and all other players can make one final move.

End of the Round and Scoring

• After knocking and the final move by other players, all cards are revealed.
• The card values are summed:
• Ace = 1 point
• Number cards (2-10) = face value
• Face cards (Jack, Queen, King) = 10 points
• The player with the lowest score receives 0 penalty points, all other players receive the difference between their score and the lowest score as penalty points.
• The game is played over several rounds (usually 9), until a predetermined total score is reached, or an agreed number of rounds have been played.

Winning the Game

The player with the fewest penalty points after the last round wins the game.

Strategic Tips

• Remembering the cards: Try to memorize the positions and values of your cards to always make strategically good decisions.
• Drawing from the discard pile: Taking discarded cards can be useful since you know their value and can use them strategically.
• Knocking: Consider carefully when to knock; do this only if you are reasonably sure you can win the round scoring.