2♥ 4♠ 8♣ Q♦ + A♦ cut = 4 points

What the ace of diamonds contributes

Holding 2 of hearts, 4 of spades, 8 of clubs, queen of diamonds with the ace of diamonds as the cut scores 4 points in the hand.

Scoring combinations involving the ace of diamonds contribute 4 points. The remaining 0 points come from combinations entirely within the four held cards.

• fifteen: ace of diamonds, 4 of spades, queen of diamonds — 2 points.
• fifteen: ace of diamonds, 2 of hearts, 4 of spades, 8 of clubs — 2 points.

Other available cuts of this rank: ace of clubs (4 points); ace of hearts (4 points); ace of spades (4 points). Changing only the cut suit leaves this score unchanged.

How this cut compares

For these four held cards, 36 possible cuts score less than 4, 8 score the same (including the ace of diamonds), and 4 score more.

Across all 48 possible cut cards, the score ranges from 0 to 7 points, averaging 2.08 points. This comparison treats every card outside the four-card hand as equally likely; it does not exclude known discards or other seen cards.