PAI
GOW POKER
Overview
Differences
between the online and physical experiences
Hand
Ranks
Interface
and Button Descriptions
Choose
another game
Overview
Pai
Gow Poker is a card game played with a 53-card deck—a standard deck of
52 cards and one Joker. In
this version of Pai Gow Poker, the banker (or house) always plays as the
dealer and covers all bets, and the player only competes against the
dealer. The player receives
seven cards, which must then be “set” or split into two poker hands:
a five-card hand and a two-card hand.
Once split, the player’s two hands are compared with the
dealer’s two hands to determine the winner.
The bank pays the winner—minus a 5% commission—and the game
ends. The commission is 5%
of the bet and is rounded up to the next quarter.
For example, a minimum bet of $6 would be a commission of 50
cents. (5%
of $6 = 30 cents, but since the commission is rounded up to the next 25
cents; the commission is actually 50 cents.
5% of $11 = 55 cents, which makes the actual commission 75
cents.)
The
Deal
For each game, the
dealer shuffles the deck and deals out seven cards into each hand—the
dealer’s cards remain unknown. The
player must then “set” or split their seven cards into two poker
hands: a five-card hand and
a two-card hand.
Splitting
cards and rules on the Joker
Pai Gow Poker places
only one restriction upon splitting the initial seven cards:
the five-card hand must have a higher poker rank than the
two-card hand. The only
other twist during the game is how to play the Joker.
The Joker can be used to complete a five-card flush, straight, or
straight flush. Otherwise,
the Joker counts as an ace.
Ranking
The Hands
The hands are ranked
according to standard poker rules with one exception:
the Ace-2-3-4-5 straight is the second highest straight.
Straights rank, from highest to lowest:
Ace-K-Q-J-10, Ace-2-3-4-5, K-Q-J-10-9 … 6-5-4-3-2.
Also, keep in mind that the best two-card hand is a pair of aces;
the two-card hand cannot have a flush (since a flush requires five
cards).
Determining
The Winner
The player’s two
hands are compared with the dealer’s two hands to determine the
winner. If both the
player’s five-card hand and two-card hand has a higher poker rank than
both the dealer’s hands (5 cards and 2 cards), the player wins.
If both of the dealer’s hands beat both of the player’s
hands, the dealer wins. If
either the player or the dealer wins only one of the two hands, the game
is a push and neither the dealer nor the player wins.
When either the five-card hands or the two-card hands rank
exactly the same, the equal hands are called “copies” of each other.
The dealer wins all copy hands.
For example, if the player beats the dealer in the five-card hand
but copies the dealer with the two-card hand, the game is a push.
The
Payout
When
the player’s two hands beat the dealer’s two hands, the player wins
an amount equal to the original bet minus a 5% commission.
The commission is 5% of the bet and is rounded up to the next
quarter. For example, a
minimum bet of $6 would be a commission of 50 cents (5%
of $6 = 30 cents, but since the commission is rounded up to the next 25
cents; the commission is actually 50 cents.
5% of $11 = 55 cents, which makes the actual commission 75
cents.) When the
dealer’s two hands beat the player’s two hands, the banker wins the
player’s original bet. When
the game ends in a push, neither the player nor the dealer wins and the
player keeps the original bet.
Pai
Gow Poker Differences – Physical vs. Online
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Physical:
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Players may
play more than one hand when sitting at a Pai Gow table with
fewer players than hands. The
extra hands are called “dragon” hands.
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Online:
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The player
may play only one hand; dragon hands are not supported.
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Physical:
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A player may
choose to be the banker and must cover all winning bets.
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Online:
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The dealer is
always the banker.
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Physical:
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Splitting the
seven-card hand incorrectly so the two-card hand has a higher
poker rank than the five-card hand forfeits the game.
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Online:
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The player
may re-split the hand. The
game only continues when the five-card hand has a higher poker
rank than the two-card hand.
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Physical:
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The player
can ask the house for help when deciding how to split the hand.
The house would then show how it would split the hand.
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Online:
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The online
version does not support asking the house for help.
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Pai
Gow Poker Hand Ranks (highest to lowest)
The hands are ranked
according to standard poker rules with one exception:
the Ace-2-3-4-5 straight is the second highest straight.
Straights rank, from highest to lowest:
Ace-K-Q-J-10, Ace-2-3-4-5, K-Q-J-10-9 … 6-5-4-3-2.
The best two-card hand is a pair of aces; the two-card hand
cannot have a flush (since a flush requires five cards).
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Hand
Name
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Description
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Example
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Five of a
Kind
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4 aces plus
the Joker
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AS, AH, AD,
AC, Joker
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Royal Flush
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10, J, Q, K,
A of same suit
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10H, JH, QH,
KH, AH
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Straight
Flush
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In sequence,
5 cards of same suit
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3S, 4S, 5S,
6S, 7S
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Four of a
Kind
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4 cards of
same rank
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6D, 6S, 6C,
6H
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Full House
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3 of a kind,
plus a pair
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2H, 2D, 2S,
3H, 3S
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Flush
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5 cards of
same suit
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2D, 4D, 6D,
8D, 9D,
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Straight
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5 cards in
sequence
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3H, 4C, 5H,
6S, 7D
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Three of a
Kind
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3 cards of
same rank
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7H, 7S, 7D
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Two Pair
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2 pairs of
different rank
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4H, 4S, 6D,
6S
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One Pair
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1 pair (2
cards) of same rank
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KD, KH
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High Card
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5 cards of
different ranks and suits
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AH, KS, 10D,
5C, 2
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Pai
Gow Poker Interface
Deal
Clicking on the deal
button after placing the initial bet starts a new game.
Split
After selecting two
cards to place into the two-card hand, clicking the split button
arranges the seven cards into two hands—a five-card hand and a
two-card hand—and continues the game.
To better see all
possible ways to split the initial seven cards, re-arrange the hand by
dragging cards to different locations.
