It arose in America before 1900 and was promoted by the US Playing Card Company, who copyrighted and marketed a deck with a set of rules in 1904.

[3] The US Playing Card Company released the improved Avondale scoring table to remove bidding irregularities in 1906.

[5] It continues to be popular in Ohio and Pennsylvania, where it has been taught through six generations community-wide, and in other countries: Australia, New Zealand, Canada (especially Ontario and Quebec) and Shetland.

In some versions, if a player does not receive a face card this is considered a misdeal and a redeal may be required.

Bower is an Anglicization of the German Bauer, a word meaning farmer, peasant, or pawn.

If no trump is played, the highest card of the lead suit wins the trick.

In no trumps (including misère) the joker can be played only when the player cannot follow suit.

This variation usually (not always) results in a longer game and generates more complex bidding and play.

Some variations allow for the final card placed in the kitty to be turned upright for all players to see.

An opponent is set when they fail to fulfill a contract by a predetermined number of bids.

The point system and scoring remain as per standard, but an opponent who is awarded the kitty and is subsequently set is not allowed to bid in the next round.

In the case of a set occurring during double misère the player who touches the kitty first is not allowed to bid in the next round.

Typically, the set occurs at one trick more than is actually necessary to break the bidding team's contract.

As opposed to the Setting rule, Breach must be called on a per hand basis, and does result in additional scoring.

Typically, a breach occurs at one trick more than is actually necessary to break the bidding team's contract.

After each trick any exposed face down cards from the partner's hands are turned up and revealed.

This variant is permitted due to the relative rarity of seven-trick bids outside of team play.

If the high bid is 8♥,[19] then the team wins the hand if they take 8, 9, or all 10 tricks and are awarded points according to the table below.

The following table is the most commonly used "Avondale" Scoring (and bid precedence) convention[23][24][25]} Scoring for each family of tricks is reduced by 20 points (see table below), causing 10NT (the highest bid) to be worth exactly 500 points.

These are options that may be agreed upon amongst players at the outset, or regional variations of the usually-assumed rules.

[28] [29]John McLeod states it is allowed in Saint Paul, Minnesota to bid "no trumps" (for instance 6 no trumps) if one holds strong cards and "no" (for instance 6 no) when one holds the joker or two jacks of opposite colors (red and black).

[6] Two jacks of opposite colors ensure that the partnership will hold one of the three highest trumps regardless of suit chosen.

[31] Openings 6♠/♣/♦/♥ can be bluffs in order to bid misère when auction reaches the level 7.

[32] Opening 7NT shows strong hand but lack of aces and the joker (for instance 4 kings).

[32] In the Francis' system it is also possible to show kings and even queens and jacks.

While the number of tricks one feel one's partner will be able to win will vary in each situation, one should bid based on that assumption and not only on the cards in one's hand.

A simple strategy to bidding is to attempt to predict how the unaccounted-for trump cards (the ones one don't actually hold in one's hand) would be distributed among the remaining players, excluding the kitty, with all things being equal.

The resulting strategy is to then play the low card first, with the assumption that one will lose the trick to the player holding the ace of that suit, and then when one have regained control of the table the king is played under the assumption that it will be a winning card.

For example, if a player who has bid 7♥ is left holding the red joker and ♦J ♥AKQ4, then they have five of the six highest cards (and six total).

This alternative strategy would force the player holding the ♥J to decide between either playing the jack, or throwing away a lower trump card to intentionally lose to the queen.