Pai Gow Poker Online Casino Game, Rules and Strategy

How to Play

Pai gow can be played with up to seven players. When the players receive their cards, they set them into two hands of five and two cards. The two-card hand is known as the low hand is placed in front of the five-card hand known as the high hand. Each five-card hand is ranked according to the pai gow poker hierarchy which varies only slightly from the standard poker hand ranking, the only real difference being that five aces, by adding a joker to four aces, beats a royal flush and is the highest hand in the game.

The ranking of the two-card hands is much simpler in that the hand is either a pair or it is not. The highest two-card hand is a pair of aces, and the rank of subsequent pairs falls in order from kings down to two's. The same ranking applies to high cards if a pair is not achieved.

It is the players' responsibility to ensure that their five-card hand has a higher ranking then their two-card hand. If the two-card hand turns out to be higher, the hand is said to be foul and the player automatically loses his bet. However when playing online the system usually prevents player from making any fouls.

When all the player's cards have been set, the dealer's cards are turned face up by the dealer which they then arrange the into a two-card hand and a five-card hand. The dealer?s hands are then individually compared to the players' hands in a clockwise order, starting with the player who received the cards first.

To win, both of the player's hands must beat both of the dealer's hands. If the player's two-card hand and the dealer?s two-card hand have equal poker value, they are said to be copies. The same applies if the five-card hands match in value as well. The dealer wins all copies. If one of the player's hands beats the dealer's, but the other does not, the result is a tie and no money changes hands.

Banking in Pai Gow

According to which casino you use, the players don?t necessarily always play against the dealer all the time; players can opt to become the banker. In this situation the house initially assumes the role of the bank with the dealer as the banker, then the position moves around from player to player. Player's are usually allowed to bank for one or two consecutive hands before passing the role on to the next player.

When a player becomes the banker they must play their hand according to the ?house way?, essentially how the dealer would play which is a fixed way of combining cards to provide the best opportunity to win. The role of banker can be declined by any player, and passed on to the next person in line. If rotating banker is used in the game the house makes its money by taking a 5% commission on each winning bet. The dealer collects the commission from each player that wins a hand, and from the total of the banker's winnings.

Basic Strategy

As the player has to make two hands from seven cards, this can be quite confusing for new players, especially as the 5-card hand has to rank higher than the two card hand. Here?s a table to hint at the way certain combinations of cards should be played:

If you are playing pai gow poker with a rotating banker then this is an advantage when you are banking because you win all copied hands, so unless you can?t cover all the bets being placed on the table, don?t pass up this golden opportunity to get an edge.

Appeal

Pai gow is a fun game, which can be enhanced in a casino due to the rituals of the game. The cards are shuffled after each hand, then once the cards are dealt and all bets are made, the dealer shakes and rolls three dice from a teacup to determine which player will get the first stack of cards. The dealer totals the amount shown in the dice, and then starting with himself, counts around the players at the table in a clockwise motion until he reaches the player who gets the first hand. The remaining hands are then dealt out to the players in a counter clockwise motion.

These rituals make this fun game take on a nice relaxing pace. Also due to most hands ending in ties, it?s very possible that a