A♠ 3♣ 4♣ 8♦ + A♦ cut = 4 points

What the ace of diamonds contributes

Holding ace of spades, 3 of clubs, 4 of clubs, 8 of diamonds with the ace of diamonds as the cut scores 4 points in the hand.

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

• Pair: ace of spades, ace of diamonds — 2 points.

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

How this cut compares

For these four held cards, 4 possible cuts score less than 4, 23 score the same (including the ace of diamonds), and 21 score more.

Across all 48 possible cut cards, the score ranges from 2 to 8 points, averaging 4.92 points. This comparison treats every card outside the four-card hand as equally likely; it does not exclude known discards or other seen cards.