Tong-its (also Tongits or Tung-it) is a three-player rummy card game popular in the Philippines.
[2] Tong-its gained popularity in the 1990s in Luzon,[1] the largest island of the Philippines.
Its origin remains unknown [3] but it was believed to have been introduced by the US Military presence in the 1940s, most likely adapted from the 1930s American card game Tonk.
In case of a draw the last person to take a card from the central deck wins.
[4][5] Meld (Bahay) is a set of matching cards a player needs to collect in order to win the game.
If a player fails to lay down a meld and does not have either special melds when the game ends, the player is considered “Burned” and will neither be able to challenge a draw (if one is called) nor eligible to win in the end tally count (if the central stack runs out).
A player cannot call for a draw if their exposed hand(s) has been melded (sapaw) by any opponent within the round.
In the event of a three-way tie, the player who decides to challenge the drawer lastly wins.
If there is a tie for the fewest points, the player that picks up the last card from the deck wins.
[5][7] A player who does not expose any melds before an opponent calls Tong-its or Draw is considered burnt or sunóg.