Nomination Whist

The name Nomination Whist, sometimes abbreviated to Nominations, Noms or Nommies, is used in Britain to refer to at least three different card games. They are all based on Whist in the sense that they are plain-trick games with trumps played with the Anglo-American 52-card pack. 'Nomination' refers to the fact that after the deal, players nominate the number of tricks they intend to take. Three games that have this name are described on three different pages of this website. They are:

1. A game that is essentially the same as Oh Hell! All players must predict how many tricks they will take, and there is a bonus for a prediction that is exactly correct. Usually the number of cards dealt to each player changes by one on each deal. This is described in detail on the Oh Hell! page.
2. A game also known as Clag, which is similar to the above, but with some extra deals played according to special rules. This is described in detail on the Clag page.
3. A rather different game for four players in which all 52 cards are dealt. In this game the bidding is competitive, and the highest bidder chooses a partner by calling a card. The bidder and partner together try to take at least the number of tricks that were bid. The partnerships become clear only when the called card is played. This game is described in detail on the Noms page.

The first and third of these games are said to be popular in the Royal Navy. According to Barry Scott's Navy Song website, game #1 - similar to Oh Hell! - is Nomination Whist with 'Big Ships Rules', while game #3 - Noms - is Nomnation Whist with 'Small Ships Rules'.