Culture & Cosmos Card Games

How to Play Pai Gow Poker

Pai Gow Poker is a casino game that is based on the Chinese dominoes game, Pai Gow. However, the game is played with poker combinations and with as many as seven players.

For this game, a pack of 52 cards is used. One joker is also used as a wild card that can be used either as an Ace or for completing a straight, flush or a straight flush.

Before the cards are dealt each time, each player must put up a stake. Then, the dealer will then deal out seven cards to every player. Each time the cards are dealt the dealer will play against all of the other players. However, the dealer is the only one who cannot look at their cards. The rest of the players will look at their cards and divide them into two hands - one hand with two cards (herein any pair will beat any two unmatched cards) and the other hand with five cards (this hand's relative values are the same as in poker). You must make sure that your five card hand arranged in such a way that it is higher than your two card hand. At no time are you permitted to discuss your hand.

Once you have your two hands prepared, you will want to face them face down. When everyone is ready the dealer will reveal his or her seven cards. You cannot touch your cards from now on. Now it is time for the dealer to form the seven cards that they have exposed into two hands, in the same way that the players did earlier.

Now that all of the players' cards have been exposed the result between each of them and the dealer will be determined. This is done by comparing the player's five-card hand with the dealer's five-card hand and then doing the same with their two card hands. If the player wins both of the hands, the dealer will pay out the amount that the player put at stake. The reverse is also true in that if the dealer wins both hands, then the dealer wins the player's stake. However if the dealer wins one of the hands and the player wins the other hand, then this is a "push" and no money will be exchanged. Whenever there is a tie, the dealer will win that hand. This means that if either of the hands is tied, the dealer will win that particular hand.

Pai Gow isn't a simple game. Stick to video poker, or Jackpotjoy's funny and profitable bingo games if you want to have a drink and do some people watching with half of your attention on the game.Whenever playing this game formally, there is an elaborate method used for dealing the cards. Herein seven hands of seven cards will be dealt. The remaining four cards will then be discarded without anyone ever looking at them. Once this is done the dealer will then throw three dice while counting around the players who are sitting at the table. This is done in a counter-clockwise fashion whereby the dealer will start with himself, counting up to the dice total. In this fashion it is determined who will get the first hand when the cards are dealt.