Pinochle Most books of post-1945 rules say that unless trump is led, there is no requirement to try to win the trick. It is only when trump is led that "heading" the trick is mandatory. In pinochle circles and tournaments the post-1945 rules are played about half of the time according to Pagat and Hoyle. If two identical cards are played, the first one outranks the second. After the first trick, the winner of each trick leads the first card for the next trick, until all the cards are played. Points are scored based on the tricks won in the hand.
Pinochle may also be used. There is an increased possibility that when one team declares trump another team may have an equal number of trump also, which may lead to an interesting game. An optional scoring rule rewards 1,000 points for a quadruple pinochle—four jacks of diamonds and four queens of spades in a meld. Alternate end games One variation on winning allows a team or individual to win instantly from any score by taking all the tricks in a hand. To win in this fashion, the winning player or team must play very skillfully to prevent opposing players from taking