To play Old Maid, follow these steps:
- Prepare the Deck
Use a standard 52-card deck and remove one queen. This creates an unmatched card called the "Old Maid"
- Deal the Cards
Shuffle and deal all the cards evenly to the players. Some may have one more card than others, which is fine
- Discard Initial Pairs
Each player looks at their cards and immediately discards any pairs (two cards of the same rank) by placing them face up or face down on the table
- Determine Who Goes First
The player to the left of the dealer goes first. Play proceeds clockwise
- Gameplay
On a player's turn, they draw one card at random from the hand of the player to their right. If this card forms a pair with a card in their hand, they immediately discard the pair. If not, they keep the card
- Continue Playing
Play continues clockwise with each player drawing a card from the player to their right, discarding pairs as they form
- Ending the Game
The game continues until all pairs are discarded, and only the unmatched "Old Maid" card remains. The player left holding this card loses and is called the "Old Maid"
Additional Tips and Variations
- Some play pairs face down to keep track of played cards, while others play them face up
- Instead of removing a queen, some use a joker as the Old Maid card
- There are also dedicated Old Maid decks with special cards
- Players can try to bluff or hide the Old Maid card by placing it in the middle of their hand to avoid being picked
This simple game is suitable for 2 to 8 players, commonly 3 to 6, and is great for all ages due to its mix of luck and light strategy
