A♦ 5♠ 8♦ 9♠ + A♠ cut = 8 points

What the ace of spades contributes

Holding ace of diamonds, 5 of spades, 8 of diamonds, 9 of spades with the ace of spades as the cut scores 8 points in the hand.

Scoring combinations involving the ace of spades contribute 6 points. The remaining 2 points come from combinations entirely within the four held cards.

• fifteen: ace of spades, 5 of spades, 9 of spades — 2 points.
• fifteen: ace of diamonds, ace of spades, 5 of spades, 8 of diamonds — 2 points.
• Pair: ace of diamonds, ace of spades — 2 points.

Other available cuts of this rank: ace of clubs (8 points); ace of hearts (8 points). Changing only the cut suit leaves this score unchanged.

How this cut compares

For these four held cards, 45 possible cuts score less than 8, 3 score the same (including the ace of spades), and 0 score more.

Across all 48 possible cut cards, the score ranges from 2 to 8 points, averaging 4.83 points. This comparison treats every card outside the four-card hand as equally likely; it does not exclude known discards or other seen cards.