How to Shoot the Moon in Hearts

Last Updated: January 21, 2022

The card game Hearts has an unusual scoring system: the winner is the player who accumulates the fewest number of points, by avoiding the Queen of Spades (13 points) and every Heart card (one point per card). However, if a player "shoots the moon" by taking every point card, he or she will instead collect no points at all, while giving 26 points to each opponent. Some play groups even subtract 26 points from the successful player's score as a reward, or use a different, less common reward for shooting the moon. Regardless of the benefit, use these strategies to increase your odds of winning a round in style.

Part 1

Part 1 of 2:

Passing Cards

1
Identify hands with a great chance of shooting the moon. Most hands dealt to you in a game of hearts are unlikely to ever shoot the moon successfully, at least if you are playing against opponents with a similar skill level. If the following sentences describe your hand, however, you have a great shot at success:
- You have the Ace, King, and Queen of Hearts, or at least
- You have additional high cards. Aces and Kings are especially useful. Keep in mind that people will usually use up their high Diamonds and Clubs early, making Queens and Jacks in that suit more valuable for shooting the moon. If you are relying on high Spades or Hearts, however, you probably need at least a couple Aces or Kings, as your opponents will probably keep high cards in those suits until later on, and use them to disrupt your attempt.
- You have six or more cards of the same suit. This helps you stay in the lead once your opponents have run out of cards in the same suit. Rarely, you may be dealt so many high cards that you can switch between suits while staying in the lead, but usually you will need a "long run" in the same suit to shoot the moon.
2
Learn how to pass when you have a great shooting hand. When passing cards to your opponent, get rid of your lowest cards, especially your lowest hearts. This is the "all in" method, and should only be used when you're confident of the attempt.
- Because the first trick starts with club and doesn't risk any points (in most rules), "mid" cards such as the 9, 10, and J of clubs are more valuable for shooting attempts than similar cards of other suits, since the higher clubs are often played on the first trick.
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3
Identify hands that have a decent chance of shooting the moon. More commonly than the perfect scenario described above, you are dealt some useful cards for a shooting attempt, but you need to find out what you're passed before you know whether an attempt is wise. This will change your passing strategy as described in the next step. Here are several types of this hand:
- You have two of the Ace, King, or Queen of Hearts, but not the third. You will have a hard time shooting the moon unless you get passed the missing heart, or possibly if your opponents are inexperienced players who are eager to get rid of high hearts.
- You have all three high hearts, but only a couple high cards in other suits. You'll have to hope to get passed additional high cards (preferably Queen through Ace) in order to reasonably shoot the moon.
- You have seven or more cards in one suit, including three high cards (Jack through Ace). It's a little tricky to shoot the moon with this hand, but you can leave your options open relatively safely by passing as described below.
4
Figure out how to pass while leaving your options open. Pick your weakest suit (few cards, no high cards), and pass three cards in that suit. This is a move that's beneficial for a normal hand, since it lets you "void" a suit early and get rid of points cards. However, if you are passed the cards you need to help you shoot the moon, you will still have the high cards necessary for the attempt.
- You are least likely to be passed high diamonds, so this is the best choice if available.
- Passing low spades can backfire if you do not end up shooting the moon, since you may be passed a high spade and be forced to pick up the Queen of Spades.
5
Make your passing less obvious when playing against advanced players. If you are passing to someone with a good sense of hearts strategy, keep in mind that they may know this advice as well. Passing a low heart is a sure sign that you plan to shoot the moon, since these are usually excellent cards for a "normal" strategy.^{[1]
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Research source} Similarly, passing a spade lower than the Queen may set off a red flag, since good players usually keep these in case they are passed the queen and need to avoid playing it. Try to pass low diamonds or clubs instead, since this sets off fewer "alarm bells."

Part 2

Part 2 of 2:

Playing Cards

1
Remember which cards have been played. If you are trying to shoot the moon, it's vital that you pay attention to which cards have been played, so you know whether you can win the next trick. Most players cannot memorize every single card without practice. Start by keeping track of the highest card in each suit still left in players' hands, and don't play your highest cards until they're certain to win. With practice playing hearts and improving your memory, you may learn to keep track of all cards Jack or higher, or even more.
- If you are having trouble remembering the highest card left in each suit, arrange your hand by suit, then mentally repeat to yourself the four highest cards left in that order. For instance, say the highest cards left unplayed in each suit are the Jack of Diamonds, Ten of Clubs, King of Hearts, and Queen of Spades. Arrange your hand in Diamond-Club-Heart-Spade order, and repeat silently to yourself "Jack-Ten-King-Queen."
2
Count how many times each suit has been played. Usually, at least one player runs out of a particular suit after the first two or three tricks of that suit are played. Expect points to show up after that, and lead with a high card in those suits if you want to take those points.
3
Take the lead as early as possible if you're confident about the attempt. If you have a great hand for shooting the moon, you could take the lead early and try to take all the tricks in a particular suit. This helps ensure that you get important cards, such as the Queen of Spades or high hearts, but can be quite risky against experienced players
4
If you are not confident about your hand, wait a few tricks before taking the lead. If you are missing some vital high cards, you can try to play out three or four tricks and see what happens. If you take the lead, play a low card in the suit you are worried about to see if the missing high card gets played on a hand without points. After a few tricks, your high cards may be more likely to win tricks, and you can move in on shooting the moon.
5
If you have a hand only strong in one suit, remain cautious until you can take control. A hand with many cards in one suit, including many ones, may have a chance to shoot the moon. However, if the other suits are weak, it's probably not a good idea to make the attempt right away. Instead, play your low cards in the strong suit, until the competing high cards have been played. Take the lead, and run through your entire strong suit from highest to lowest. If you calculated correctly, and the other players don't realize what you're doing in time, you should be able to take many or all of the high hearts and the Queen of Spades. This will make collecting the last few points somewhat easier, although you will often still need to have a couple high cards in other suits to end get them.
6
Learn how to play a run of cards. Often, you'll hold two or more cards in the same suit that are "adjacent" to each other, meaning there are no cards that come between them. For example, the Five, Six, and Seven of Clubs is a run of cards. No matter which of these three cards you play on a particular trick, the result will always be the same. However, you should still try to play the least "suspicious" card to disguise your attempt to shoot the moon from other players. After you decide to play a card in a run, stop and think which of the cards you should play:
- Early in the game, and especially the first two times a suit is played, play the highest card in the run. Most players are trying to get rid of their high cards before points show up, so your behavior will not be seen as unusual.
- Late in the game, and especially on tricks where points are likely to appear, play the lowest card in the run. This makes you look more like a normal player, trying to avoid taking tricks that might have points.

Community Q&A

Question

When I shoot the moon, why does my zero score sometimes go to another player?

Community Answer

You must've forgotten to take one of the cards. Make sure the Queen of Spades is there, that card is very easy to miss!

Warnings

No matter who your opponents are, many attempts are likely to end with disappointing scores of 24 or 25 points instead of the successful 26-point result. You may not enjoy attempting to shoot the moon if you get upset or frustrated by suddenly losing.

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Against experienced players, shooting the moon is extremely difficult.

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