One game of Euchre followed from the deal to the finish, move by move, with the reason for each choice.
You and Bo play against Ada and Cleo, with partners opposite. Cleo deals five cards each from the 24-card deck and turns up 10♥. You, on her left, decide first whether hearts should be trump.
Your hand: J♦, A♥, Q♥, K♠ and 9♣. With hearts as trump, J♦ is the left bower — the second-highest trump, and a heart for the whole hand.
Count what hearts would give you: the left bower, the ace and the queen of trumps. That is three trumps and a fair chance at three tricks with your partner's help. You order it up, so hearts are trump and your side must take at least three of the five tricks.
Because you ordered it up, Cleo, the dealer, picks up 10♥ and discards a card face down. You do not go alone: your hand is good, but not good enough to take all five without Bo.
You lead the first trick, and you lead J♦, the left bower, to draw out trumps. Ada plays J♥ — the right bower, the only card in the game that beats yours. Bo plays K♥ and Cleo 10♥. Ada wins.
Ada leads A♠. Bo plays 10♠, Cleo Q♠, and you have to follow with K♠. Ada wins again, and Ada and Cleo are one trick away from euchring you.
Ada leads K♦. Bo plays Q♦ and Cleo takes it over with A♦. You have no diamonds — your jack of diamonds is a heart now, and it has already been played — so you trump with Q♥ and win the trick.
That is the point of holding trumps: a suit you are void in becomes a suit you can win.
You lead A♥, the highest trump left. Ada has to follow with 9♥, her last trump. Bo and Cleo have none, so Bo throws K♣ and Cleo J♠. Your side has two tricks.
You lead your last card, 9♣. Ada plays 10♣, Bo takes it with A♣, and Cleo throws 9♦. Your side has made three tricks, exactly what ordering up promised.
Three or four tricks for the side that made trump scores 1 point, so you and Bo have 1. Had Bo not held the A♣, you would have taken only two tricks and been euchred, and Ada and Cleo would have scored 2.
The deal passes to the dealer's left, which is you. The first partnership to 10 points wins.