What Is Pai Gow
For the poker fan with a taste for the Orient, Pai Gow Poker offers an interesting twist on the century’s old gambling game from China. Rather than utilizing the distinctive Chinese tiles of the traditional game with poker cards for a relaxed gambling experience. Generally speaking, for people who already know how to play poker, Pai Gow poker is a quick and easy transition, which allows you to sit down with confidence at your nearest land based casino or online format. As with most free casino games, the player will place their bet prior to getting their 7-card hand, and the fun begins from there in a contest best described as a double-handed poker game.
Pai Gow Poker has become one of the most popular casino table games. It involves the player competing against the banker to make the better low and high hand than the house. This is a slow-paced, relaxing game. The low number of hands dealt per hour and the number of. That is traditional Pai Gow Poker. Even before the pandemic shut-down this game was starting to disappear. Stations had removed it from their casinos, and it was also disappearing on the Strip. My last visit Dec. 2019, Boyd still had the traditional game, with $5 minimum at Orleans and $10 at Gold Coast.
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Playing Pai Gow Poker
Generally speaking, a good Pai Gow Poker game will have six players and a dealer with each being dealt seven cards from the 53-card deck including the joker that can be used to substitute in the making of a straight, or any suit to complete a flush. If it can’t be used for either of those purposes, the joker will not only be an always be an ace, but in the two-card hand a joker is always an ace, which can have strategic implications when assembling your hands.
Your primary objective when playing Pai Gow poker is create two separate poker hands out of the seven cards you are dealt. The two hands must be comprised of a larger 5-card hand, also known as the “In front,” “behind,” or “on top.” Conversely, the second hand you need to assembly will be created from the remaining two cards. That second hand is variously styled “small,” “little,” or “low” hand. When assembling your two hands, the only requirement that you must adhere to is that the larger poker hand must outrank the smaller one with a higher poker value.
To begin, the five-card hand is ranked according to conventional poker rules, whereas the only possible poker hand in the two-card hand is a pair or no pair, after which the individual cards determine the value. Once you have set your hand to your satisfaction, the dealer will turn over their cards and divide the hand in the same manner, according to specified rules known as the “house way”
Once completed, the two high hands are contrasted, and the two low hands, the hand with the higher poker value winnings. Should the comparison result in a tie, say for example that both small hands are ace/king, then the tie has go to the “banker.”
Unlike most casino games, the player may bet against the dealer, and other players in Pai Gow poker. In a process known as “banking,” the banker function rotates around the table, but at some casinos the banking role zig-zags between the dealer and each player in turn giving everyone at the table the chance to participate. The player may always decline to bank, which is typically what happens, in which case the banker option will slip back to the next player, or dealer.
Perhaps you’re already well versed in playing Pai Gow Poker. But if not, then you’ll want to read this section on how to play the game.
Pai Gow Poker is played with a fifty-two-card deck, plus a joker.
Each player receives seven cards, and they must make both a five-card and two-card hand. The goal is to beat the dealer with both of your hands and win your bet.
Your five-card hand must rank higher than the two-card hand. The only hands that you can form with the two-card hand include a pair and high card.
The five-card hand is based on standard poker rankings, for the most part. The only exception is that the “wheel” (A 2 3 4 5) is the second-highest straight.
This contrasts regular poker games, where the wheel is the lowest-ranking straight.
What Does Pai Gow
Also note that the joker can be wild in the five-card hand. This allows you to complete powerful hands with the joker, such as three-of-a-kinds, straights, and flushes.
The joker always acts as an ace in the two-card hand, unless otherwise stated.
Once you and other players have set both hands, the dealer will turn over their cards and divide them the same way (a.k.a. “house way”).
What Is A Pai Gow Hand
The two hands are then compared to see who has the stronger holdings. Here are the different outcomes that can occur:
- You win both hands; you’re paid 1:1 on your bet, minus a 5% commission.
- You win one hand and tie the other; your bet is a push.
- You win one hand and lose one; your bet is a push.
- You lose one hand and tie the other; you lose your bet.
- You lose or tie both hands; you lose your bet in both cases.
What Is Pai Gow
Casinos gain their edge over players based on the commission for winnings hands and how dealers win all ties.
Also note that you can act as the banker in Pai Gow Poker. This is preferable because you’ll be facing a lower house edge.
Practice Pai Gow Poker
The only catch is that you need a bankroll to pay all of the players who beat you. Provided you don’t have much money, you can always decline to be the dealer.
What Is Pai Gow
A new player is offered the chance to be the banker in every new round.