5♣ J♣ J♦ Q♦ + A♠ cut = 8 points

What the ace of spades contributes

Holding 5 of clubs, jack of clubs, jack of diamonds, queen of diamonds with the ace of spades as the cut scores 8 points in the hand.

The ace of spades contributes no scoring combinations. The remaining 8 points come from combinations entirely within the four held cards.

Other available cuts of this rank: ace of clubs (9 points); ace of diamonds (9 points); ace of hearts (8 points). The cut suit changes the score here because of a flush or nobs.

How this cut compares

For these four held cards, 0 possible cuts score less than 8, 16 score the same (including the ace of spades), and 32 score more.

Across all 48 possible cut cards, the score ranges from 8 to 17 points, averaging 10.79 points. This comparison treats every card outside the four-card hand as equally likely; it does not exclude known discards or other seen cards.