Why is Michigan Fascinated with Euchre?

What is Michigan’s fascination with Euchre?

Wait…did I just pick up on someone saying “What’s that? Yootch-ree? Yucker? Ee-yoo-kra?” For anyone who is uninformed, it’s pronounced YOO-ker…and I am well aware the majority of you already knew that.

I am not going to go over the how-to-play rules, as it too confusing to the novices. Have you ever tried to teach someone how to play? It takes awhile, doesn’t it? Trump, bowers, etc. Plus, you’ll be asked “Whaddya mean, the Jack in the other same-color suit is the next best trump card?” And that explanation and mistake will be made over and over again until they understand it.

So what is Michigan’s fascination with the game? Nobody knows for sure. A theory found on clickondetroit.com states:

It’s probably because of Midwestern family values…..who taught you how to play Euchre? Probably a parent, aunt/uncle, cousin or sibling…..The game brings families together for a game, keeping those connections alive.

Actually, I learned how to play in college where the kids would play euchre for most of the day, skipping classes. Nowadays, these kids are grown and attend weekly euchre tournaments, hoping to take home a few extra bucks.

How-to-play, according to cardgames.io, is briefly

A player leads with a suit, other players must follow suit if they have it, but are otherwise free to play any card if they have nothing in the lead suit. Cards are ranked from high to low, trump beats lead suit, lead suit beats other suits. The person who takes a trick leads in the next trick.

Euchre was introduced to North America in the early 1800s but from where? Some sources say Germany, others say France. The best bet would be Germany, as brittanica.com states the name ‘euchre’ “derives from a 19th-century Alsatian game called juckerspiel from the fact that its two top trumps are Jucker, meaning “jack.”

But it is a lotta fun to play with people who are familiar with the rules.
It also gives people an extra reason to booze it up.

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