Dealer
Definition
The player who deals the cards. The deal rotates clockwise after each hand. The player to the dealer's left gets first chance to pick.
Dealer in play
The deal rotates clockwise, and seat position relative to the dealer drives the whole hand: the player to the dealer's left gets the first chance to pick and also leads the opening trick. Being the dealer is a quiet positional edge on defense, because you act last in the picking round and last in many tricks, seeing the most information before you commit a card.
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Related Terms
Hand
A complete round of Sheepshead, from dealing through scoring. Also refers to the cards a player is holding.
Blind
The two face-down cards dealt in the center of the table. The player who "picks" takes these cards into their hand.
Pick
To take the blind cards. The picker leads their team against the defenders and must choose what to bury and which Ace to call.