A running scorecard to 100 for two players, with the hand scoring and every end-of-game bonus — game, boxes, shutout — printed on the sheet so the maths argument never starts.
| Hand | Player 1 | Running | Player 2 | Running |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ||||
| 2 | ||||
| 3 | ||||
| 4 | ||||
| 5 | ||||
| 6 | ||||
| 7 | ||||
| 8 | ||||
| 9 | ||||
| 10 | ||||
| 11 | ||||
| 12 |
| Bonus | Points | Bonus | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| Game bonus (reaching 100) | 100 | Box — each hand won | 25 |
| Shutout — loser won no hands | ×2 total |
Gin Rummy hands are quick; the scoring is where tables slow down. This sheet keeps the running game score on top and moves the once-per-game arithmetic — bonuses — into its own table, because mixing the two mid-game is how totals go wrong.
You may knock when your deadwood — unmelded cards — totals ten or less. Both players count deadwood; the knocker scores the difference. Going gin (no deadwood at all) adds 25 to the difference, and nobody may lay off against a gin hand.
The undercut is the rule new players forget: if the defender's deadwood ties or beats the knocker's, the defender scores the difference plus 25. Knocking on ten with a weak hand is a genuine risk, not a formality.
First to 100 ends the game, then the bonuses land: 100 for reaching game, 25 per hand won (the "box" bonus — this is why the sheet tracks hands separately), and if the loser never won a hand, the winner's total doubles. Margins that looked close during play often aren't after boxes.
Face cards count ten, aces one, everything else face value. Runs must be one suit; sets are three or four of a kind; a card can't belong to both at once.
When can you knock? With deadwood of ten or less. Some tables play "knock on the count of the upcard" as a variant — agree first.
What is big gin? Going gin with all eleven cards before discarding. Many groups score it higher than regular gin (31 is common) — it's a variant, so settle it before playing.