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Introduction: This game can also be called Boodle, Stops, or Newmarket (the British name), and is ideally played with anywhere from three to eight players. Is it pretty simple; the goal of this game is to be the first person to get rid of all of your cards, and to play certain cards so you can win stakes.

One variation is called Three in One; prior to the stops part, each player makes a five-card poker hand out of the cards they were dealt. This particular variation can also be called Michigan Rummy, although, if you look in the game books, what is known as "Michigan Rummy" is actually a version of 500 Rummy.

Cards and Layout: This game is played using a standard deck of 52 playing cards. The cards in each suit rank in ascending order, from the two up to the ace.

The stakes are placed on a layout to start the game play. The layout can be made from any board or a piece of fabric, or even by using cards from another deck of cards.

The board layout has different areas that are labeled with specific cards: Ace of Hearts, King of Clubs, Queen of Diamonds, and Jack of Spades. These are known as the "pay cards" or "boodle cards."

Putting Down Stakes and Dealing: Prior to dealing the cards, the dealer puts two chips on each of the boodle areas, then the other players follow up by placing with one chip on each area.

Following every hand, the deal moves to the left in a clockwise direction. In addition to dealing each player a hand, the dealer also deals out one extra hand. The entire deck of cards is dealt out at the start; don't worry if some players have an extra card, it really does not matter. After the deal is completed, the players look at and organize their hands, while the spare hand is set aside.

Play: A play is made when a player puts a card face-up on the table. The cards from the different players are not mixed together at all, they are played right in front of each player and they stay there until the hand is completed.

The game starts with the person sitting on the dealer's left. Any suit can be played, but the player must play the lowest card that they are holding in that suit. The player holding the next sequential card in that suit must play it, followed by the next card and so on, until the ace is played or no one has the next card in sequence. If a player puts down a card that nobody can follow because no player has the next card, that card is called the stop card.

After playing a stop card or the ace, the last player resumes play. Remember that each player can play any suit they want, as long as they play the lowest card in their hand from that suit.

While the game is being played, if a player can match one of the boodle cards, he gets to take all of the chips that are on that card.

The game concludes when a player runs out of cards. Players that are still holding cards must pay the person who went out a penalty of one chip per card remaining in their hands. The player who went out keeps these chips.

If there are any chips left on the board, they are left there for the next hand.

Variations: Free Placement of Chips -- In some variations, you begin with each player placing a set number of chips on the board, but you can place them anywhere you want. If you wanted you could put all of your chips on a single card. Because this happens before the players are dealt their cards, there is no way to know which are the best cards to bet on.

Dealer Takes or Auctions the Spare Hand: In some variations, the dealer has the option of taking the spare hand if he does not like the hand that was dealt. Players are not permitted to look at the spare hand before deciding whether or not to exchange. If the dealer does not want to make an exchange, he can auction the hand to the highest bidder. The player who makes the winning bid for the spare hand places their original hand face down on the board, and gives the dealer the chips to pay for it.

Required Change of Suit: Some players have a rule that says after a stop occurs or an ace is played, the next card that is played must be from a different suit, if possible.

In the event that you are unable to play a card in another suit, two things can happen:

1) As a last resort, you can play the same suit.

2) If you do not have a different suit than the card last played, you must pass your turn to the player on the left. If no player has any other suit to play, the round ends at that point, and the players do not have to pay for any cards left in their hands.

Michigan Rummy/Three in One: When you are playing this game, after all of the cards are dealt but before the Michigan, each player will choose five cards from their hand to form their best poker hand. The players lay out the stakes differently than in a regular Michigan/Boodle layout.