Hearts beginner strategy: passing, ducking and the queen

Your goal in Hearts is the lowest score, so you win by avoiding tricks with penalty cards. This guide follows the four-player game on our Hearts rules page.

What to pass

You pass three cards before play. The usual aims are:

• Pass the queen of spades if you have her with fewer than four other spades. A short-suited queen is easy to force out.
• Keep the queen only if you hold enough low spades to duck safely.
• Pass high hearts and other high cards you might be forced to win with.
• Consider a void. If you pass every card of a short suit, you can discard your dangerous cards when that suit is led.

Ducking

Ducking means playing a low card so someone else wins the trick. Early on, your low cards are your safe exits. Do not waste them when no penalty card is in the trick.

Handling the queen of spades

• Avoid leading spades if you might be left holding the queen.
• If someone leads the ace or king of spades, the queen may fall on that trick. Watch the play and keep low spades for safety.
• After the first trick, if you hold the queen and an opponent is likely to win a spade trick, you can drop it on them.

Breaking hearts

Hearts cannot be led until a heart has been discarded. If you hold many hearts, you may be forced to lead them once they are broken. Try to shed your high hearts on other people’s tricks.

Watching for a moon shot

Shooting the moon means one player takes all 13 hearts and the queen of spades. If someone is collecting every penalty card, you can stop them by taking one heart yourself. Take it early enough that you can afford the points.

Tracking suits

Keep a mental note of which suits players have run out of. A player void in a suit will discard penalty cards on you.