Cribbage strategy for your first games

Cribbage asks you to make three connected decisions: which four cards to keep, which two to send to the crib, and how to order your cards during pegging. Start by counting what is guaranteed, then consider what the starter and opponent might add.

Count the keep before the crib

For each possible four-card keep, count the points already present before imagining a favourable starter:

• fifteens;
• pairs;
• runs; and
• a four-card flush when applicable.

A flexible keep can improve with many starters. Connected cards such as 4-5-6 can gain runs and fifteens from several ranks, while four unrelated high cards may depend on one lucky cut.

Do not chase one spectacular starter while giving up several guaranteed points.

Change discards with crib ownership

The dealer scores the crib, so the same discard changes value depending on who owns it.

• Your crib: cards that work together can be worth feeding to it, especially a pair, cards totalling 15, or connected ranks.
• Opponent’s crib: avoid donating an easy five, a pair, or two cards that already total 15 when a comparable keep is available.

This is a trade, not an absolute ban. Keeping a strong hand can justify an uncomfortable discard. Compare the points preserved in your hand with the risk or help sent to the crib.

Treat fives carefully

Any 10-value card combines with a 5 for fifteen. Sending a 5 to the opponent’s crib gives many unseen cards a way to score. Keeping a 5 can also make your own hand flexible because there are sixteen 10-value cards in the deck.

During pegging, leading a 5 lets any 10-value response make 15. Lead it only when the rest of your hand or the board score gives you a reason.

Plan a pegging order

Before the first card, identify:

• which cards can pair an opponent;
• which cards can make 15 or 31;
• which adjacent ranks might form a run; and
• which low card can remain playable late in the sequence.

You cannot know the opponent’s hand, so use these as options rather than promises. A low card kept for later can help answer a high running total, but holding it too rigidly may miss a pair or run now.

Watch the board, not only the hand

Strategy changes near 121. If the non-dealer is close enough to win during pegging or the first count, the dealer’s crib may never be counted. Immediate pegging points and denying the opponent can matter more than building a large crib.

Farther from the finish, expected value across the hand and crib matters more. Recheck the score before every discard; dealer and non-dealer have different counting order and different urgency.

Announce and peg cleanly

Say the running total and the score made by each card. Keep played cards separated and visible so the sequence can be reconstructed. Move the rear peg in front of the leading peg; the distance between them preserves the previous score and makes mistakes easier to catch.

Good procedure is strategic protection. It prevents uncertainty about a run, go, or board total from consuming attention needed for the next decision.

Review one decision after each hand

Do not try to memorise a complete discard table immediately. Pick one choice:

• Did another keep preserve more guaranteed points?
• Did crib ownership change the best discard?
• Could the pegging order have created or denied a score?
• Did board position require a safer choice?

One reviewed decision per deal builds a useful pattern library without turning the game into homework.