ranked games and Elo ratings

Ranked games are more competitive games that do not allow bots to start. You can, however, invite bots if someone leaves the table after the game has started.

To play at ranked Hearts, Spades, Euchre, Double Deck Pinochle, or Twenty-Nine tables:
  1. Register. You are registered if you have chosen a unique user name. The link to register is in the upper right corner of the home page.
  2. Complete 10 games. You can see how many games you have finished under the 'stats' link in the upper right corner of the home page.
  3. Look for the purple 'ranked' table in the 'list of tables'. The link to that is in the lower left corner of the home page. Choose a seat at a ranked table, and wait for the game to get started.
  4. You can also get to ranked tables by clicking the Menu button for your game, and clicking the "Play Ranked" link (see screenshot below).
  5. Once you've played at a ranked table, you will get an Elo rating.
You can see your Elo rating by clicking on the 'stats' link in the upper right corner, and clicking the radio button for Hearts, Euchre, etc. Keep playing - and winning - to improve your rating!

You must play a ranked game at least once every two weeks, otherwise your name will be hidden from the leader board. The leader boards contain the top 30 players:

Spades leader board
Hearts (Standard Rules) leader board
Hearts (Tournament Rules) leader board
Euchre leader board
Double Deck Pinochle leader board (new!)
Twenty-Nine leader board

The Elo rating for Hearts is computed with a winner-take-all formula. The Elo ratings for Spades and Euchre are computed independently for each team member, but the win is awarded to two players for each table, since there are two players on each team.

Ranked tables are designed for more serious and committed players. If you leave the table for any reason, you will get penalized with a loss, and you will not be allowed to play at ranked games for 2 hours. This is meant to discourage people from quitting such games, a behavior which is widely disliked. Note: Rankings are final; no rankings will be changed, even if you had a good excuse for leaving the table.

There's one exception: if you get disconnected from your ranked game, but you are able to return within 3 minutes, you will be reconnected to the game and will not immediately take a loss.

Ranked games are similar to regular games at the site: if you "time out", the computer will play a card for you. So do not delay for too long in playing you cards. If you time out too many times, you will get kicked from the game automatically. Do not expect that the table will wait indefinitely for you to return while you do chores etc.

Currently, Hearts, Spades, Euchre, Double Deck Pinochle, and Twenty-Nine tables are available as ranked games... Follow the same instructions listed above for each game type.

ranked tables can be accessed via the "Menu" button, or....
list of tables shows ranked tables in purple
make sure your "Rank me" settings are checked in order to play ranked games