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Bring up the game of poker in any casino, and you’ll inevitably hear people talk about Texas Hold’em and televised tournaments like the WSOP. Every so often, a table game enthusiast might mention Three-Card Poker or Caribbean Stud Poker, but you’ll seldom hear Pai Gow Poker enter the conversation.
Las Vegas Pai Gow poker is a playing-card variation of the traditional Pai Gow Chinese gambling game (which is played using dominoes). Players create two poker hands—a five-card hand and a two-card hand—out of the seven cards each is dealt, with the ultimate goal of defeating the dealer’s two corresponding hands. Pai Gow Poker was invented in 1985 by Sam Torosian, owner of the Bell card club in southern California. However, his is a name few people recognize. While other have made millions inventing casino games, Sam received some bad legal advice that card games were not patentable, and never filed one for his game. Start playing Pai Gow Poker online now or learn more about the Pai Gow Poker Table Games game here. Create Account Logout Login Play Now. 24/7 USA Toll Free: 1-866.
Despite the popularity of traditional poker, and its offshoots spread in the table game pit, Pai Gow Poker became the “black sheep” of the family. And that’s a shame, because this complex seven-card poker affair is actually better than most table games, even if most gamblers ignore it anyway.
Brief History and Introduction to Pai Gow Poker
The year was 1985, and California casino owner Sam Torosian found himself in a bind. With card clubs sprouting up like weeds throughout Los Angeles County, the newly minted casino operator needed a hook to bring customers through the doors.
After asking around and picking the brains of players, most of whom hailed from local Asian-American communities, Torosian stumbled on a novel concept. A Filipino regular explained the rules of “pusoy,” a card game popular throughout China and nearby regions.
To play pusoy, four players attempt to arrange their random 13-card deal into three distinct poker hands. Two of these hands used the traditional five-card poker hierarchy, while the third used a modified three-card version.
Realizing that the four-way player vs. player format wasn’t exactly a great fit for casino table gaming, Torosian tinkered with the concept. By using just seven cards per player, and two poker hands—a five-card “high” hand and a two-card “low” hand—Torosian hoped to turn pusoy into something more palatable for casino gamblers.
He borrowed elements from another Chinese gambling game known as “pai gow.” While playing pai gow, participants use dominoes and try to set front and back “hands” that outrank their opponent’s front and back holdings. And just like that, the exciting game of Pai Gow Poker was born…
How to Play Pai Gow Poker
To play the game, you’ll place an ante bet to kick off the action. Pai Gow Poker is played against the dealer, rather than other players, so everyone at the table receives a random deal of seven cards from a 53-card deck.
Pai Gow Poker utilizes a lone “joker” card which is considered to be semi-wild, as it can substitute as an ace, or as part of a straight, flush, straight flush, or royal flush.
With your seven cards in hand—as an example, imagine you’re holding the A-A-K-K-9-7-2 with no flush on board—the task is relatively simple. You want to find a five-card “high” hand that has a good chance of outranking the dealer’s own five-card selection. From there, the other two cards will form your two-card “low” hand. The only caveat is, your five-card high hand must outrank your two-card low hand.
Using our example hand, you have a few possibilities to consider. With the A-A-K-K in play, you could form the strongest possible two pair by putting A-A-K-K-2 up front as your high hand. But by doing so, you’ll only have 9-7 as your low hand, and this isn’t likely to beat many dealer low hands.
A better play, one that gives you a prime chance to beat both dealer hands, would use the following hand-setting strategy:
Using this balanced approach, you’re now playing a strong high hand with top pair of aces, while your low hand is essentially the second-best possible with one pair of kings.
When the dealer shows something like Q-Q-J-5-4 for a high hand and 6-6 for a low hand, you’ve just beaten them on both ends of the equation.
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Conversely, should the dealer showdown a two-pair hand like Q-Q-J-J-5 for the high and 6-6 for the low, you would “chop” or “push” with the dealer, meaning your bet is returned in a tie.
Now that you know how to play Pai Gow Poker, let’s take a look at why the game is actually better than most table game options out there.
Pai Gow Poker Offers One of the Lowest House Edge Rates
As a table game player, your job is to hunt for the lowest possible house edge rates working against you.
House edge is simply a metric used to determine the casino’s inherent advantage on every game or hand. And the higher it is, the worse odds you’ll face over the long run.
With that in mind, the “Holy Grail” for house edge aficionados is blackjack, which affords a rate of just 0.50% to players who know basic strategy. In other words, For every $100 wagered, blackjack players using basic strategy only stand to lose $0.50 in the long run.
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On the other end of the spectrum is American style “double-zero” roulette with its 5.26% house edge. But as you can see down below, Pai Gow Poker sits snugly next to blackjack and other games boasting favorable house edge rates.
House Edge of Popular Table Games
Pai Gow Poker offers a very low house edge compared to most table games. It has an edge at 1.46%, which is better than blackjack with no strategy, single zero roulette at 2.7%, and American Roulette, which comes in at 5.26%.
You Can Stretch a Short Bankroll Over Long Sessions Thanks to the Push
Because every Pai Gow Poker hand really involves a two vs. two scenario against the dealer, you’ll wind up seeing your fair share of pushes in the end.
In fact, as the probabilities below make clear, you’ll actually wind up in a push more often than any other result:
Result | Probability |
---|---|
Win | 29.11% |
Push | 40.49% |
Loss | 30.38% |
This “push factor” makes the game perfect for folks who enjoy a leisurely, less volatile table game experience. You can sit down with $50, place a few bets to score some drinks, and usually walk away with the same $50 you started with.
Why Most Gamblers Ignore Pai Gow Poker
Let’s start with the name… Pai Gow Poker obviously owes its name to Asian roots, which tends to box out American players who aren’t familiar with the rules.
Another reason recreational players skip over Pai Gow Poker is the aforementioned push factor. When you come to the casino hellbent on winning, or losing your stack of chips trying, playing a game that winds up with a null result 40% of the time might not be up your alley.
Finally, the admittedly complex optimal strategy used to play the game perfectly has a lot of variables to consider. With this in mind, casual players who just want to have fun typically head to the games of chance like roulette, craps, and baccarat, where strategic thinking isn’t required.
Conclusion
Pai Gow Poker may seem confusing and overly complex at first glance, but the same can be said for any gambling game you’re new to. Once you sit down and give the game a try, however, the basic binary nature of setting high/low hands will become second nature.
Don’t be put off by the exotic name or the intricate rules, just pull out a few chips and take a shot at learning something new. When you do, you won’t regret it, as Pai Gow Poker has evolved from a curiosity into a card game staple spread in every casino nationwide.
Please enable JavaScript to view the comments powered by Disqus.Pai Gow Poker
Pai Gow Poker is a table game that mixes elements of Pai Gow, an ancient Chinese game, with seven-card poker. The game is played using a 53-card deck that includes one Joker.
The Object of the Game
During a round of Pai Gow Poker, each player and the dealer is dealt seven cards that must be arranged into two poker hands: a five-card hand and two-card hand. The object of the game is to bet on whether the player’s hands beat those of the dealer.
Breaking Down Pai Gow Poker
Pai Gow Poker is a sociable game with a relaxed pace of play.
Here are some of the basics:
Here are some of the basics:
The table
A Pai Gow Poker table has positions for six players and a dealer’s area. Each position features room for arranging poker hands and placing chips.
The cards
The game uses a standard deck of cards with one Joker. The Joker is considered “semi-wild” and can be used to substitute an Ace or to complete hands. For example, a straight could be made using a Joker, i.e., 3-4-5-6-Joker.
The hands
Since Pai Gow Poker is scored using traditional poker hands, a basic understanding of how the hands rank is key.
Learn more here.
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How to play Pai Gow Poker in 5 easy steps
- Set a budget. Getting swept up in the heat of the moment is easy in Pai Gow Poker. A predetermined game plan is a great way to keep things cool.
- Buy chips. Simply place cash on the table and the dealer will exchange it for chips.
- Place bets. Bets should be placed inside the marked chip circle on the table.
- Arrange the cards. The dealer will distribute seven cards to each player. These must be arranged into two poker hands—one with five cards, and one with two.
- Compare hands to see who wins, the player or dealer.
1. Set a budget
Savvy gamblers know there’s no way to guarantee a win. That’s why they set aside a play budget like one might set aside for a dinner out or concert tickets.
2. Buy chips
Money and chips are never exchanged directly between a dealer and player. To make a purchase, simply place cash on the table and the dealer will replace it with chips. 5dimes lottery.
Poker Playing Tables
![Pai Gow Poker Table Pai Gow Poker Table](/uploads/1/3/6/9/136987679/519229689.jpg)
3. Place bets
The dealer will call for bets before any cards have been dealt. Decide how much to bet and place the required amount of chips inside the marked chip circle. The dealer will then shake a dice cup to see which player receives their cards first.
4. Arrange your cards
Once players have received their cards, it’s time to split them into a five-card hand and a two-card hand. The five-card hand is called the “rear” hand, and the two-card hand is called the “front” hand. The rear hand must have a higher poker score than the front hand.
Keep in mind:
- Five-card hands follow conventional poker rules
- The two-card hand will either be a pair or no pair
- If the two-card hand has no pair, the score is based on the value of each card with Aces high
Pai Gow Poker Table Felt
5. Compare your hands
Once the player and dealer cards have been arranged into front and rear hands, it’s time to compare them.
Keep in mind:
- The player wins their bet if their front and rear hands beat both of the dealer’s hands
- The player’s bet pushes if only one of their hands beats only one of the dealer’s hands
- The player loses their bet if both of their hands tie or lose to the dealer
Pai Gow Poker Table Top
Play more Pai Gow
Feeling inspired by the challenge of Pai Gow Poker?
Check out the game’s original form, Pai Gow Tiles.
Check out the game’s original form, Pai Gow Tiles.