Pinochle The word is also possibly derived from the French word "binage" for the combination of cards called "binocle". This latter pronunciation of the game was adopted by German speakers. German immigrants brought the game to America, where it was later mispronounced and misspelled "pinochle." Auction pinochle for three players has some similarities with the German game skat, although the bidding is more similar to that of bid whist. During World War I, the city of Syracuse, New York outlawed the playing of pinochle in a fit of anti-German sentiment. Pinochle was the favorite card game of Ashkenazic American Jews and
Pinochle allowing the remaining players to follow the appropriate rules for the respective number of players. Check pinochle is a gambling variant of three-hand. It is the same as to 1000, except that players keep track of "checks". If playing for $1 stakes, each check gained means that the other two players owe a dollar. The following events cause a gain or loss of checks. Today "double-deck" pinochle is a popular form of the game, exclusively played by the National Pinochle Association, the American Pinochle Association, the Cambridge Pinochle Association, and in the "World Series of Pinochle". Double-deck pinochle is played