The game of Oklahoma rummy has rules that are very similar to those of gin rummy. The main differences appear in scoring and not many others. Let us take a look at Oklahoma rummy rules in order to be sure that we know exactly what we are playing.

A game of Oklahoma rummy is usually played with just 2 players and a standard deck of 52 cards. The ace will have a point value of 1 and will not be usable as a high card. Every face card is worth 10 points and the rest of the cards have the same point value as their numeric value. The dealing rules state that a random dealer is chosen in the first hand and then every round winner will act as the dealer in the following round. Every player will start with 10 cards. The following card is placed face up so that a discard pile is started. The point value of the card that is exposed will show the maximum point value of deadwood that you can have when you knock. For instance, if the face card is a 7 then you need to hold 7 or less deadwood points when you knock.

Oklahoma rummy game rules state that each hand is played in turns. A turn will start with taking a card from either the discard pile or the stock and it will end with a discard.

Any player can knock before making their discard. You can knock when you have melds and the deadwood point value is as mentioned above. A valid meld is either a set or a run. One set is made out of 3 to 4 cards of the same numeric value but different suits and a run is similar to the straight flush in poker (consecutive cards of the same suit) but you can have a minimum of 3 to form a valid meld. When a knock happens the other player can add to the melds of the knocking player, thus reducing deadwood point value. The knocking player will get a bonus that is made out of the difference between the opponent’s deadwood and his own deadwood. A bonus of 10 points is also given. When you go gin (have only melds in your hand and one card to discard) you will receive a 25 points bonus. To get more info, read about the several oklahoma rummy variations of the game.