"Before bridge there was whist, a much simpler card game to learn but nonetheless a challenging game of strategy for four players. Now there's Open Whist, a modern variation that two, three, or four players can enjoy." Open Whist was originally designed so that two or three players could enjoy whist. In the two-player variant the players have two hands each. They are playing both the role of themselves and their "partner" in standard Whist. The main difference is that all of the cards are played face-up in a pattern that only allows certain cards to be played at any given point in time.