Table Of Contents
Pai Gow Poker is a game that uses a 53-card deck. In addition to the standard cards, there is a joker. While a joker would be wild and replace any card in most poker games, it has narrow uses in Pai Gow Poker. A joker may only replace a card missing from a straight flush, flush, or straight. Otherwise, it. Free Pai Gow Poker casino game by the Wizard of Odds and selection of real money options. The Wizard of Odds. The Wizard of Odds. The Wizard of Odds. Home › play for fun › Play Pai Gow Poker for Real Money or Free. Last Updated: January 5, 2020. Play Pai Gow Poker for Real Money or Free.
- Pai Gow Poker is a variant of Poker based on Chinese Pai Gow domino game
- It’s one of the easiest Poker games to learn and play
- Learn how to play Pai Gow Poker online and play for free here
Pai Gow Poker might sound Chinese in origin, and it is. But it’s a version of Poker that was developed in the United States.
Pai Gow, the ancient Chinese game of skill and craft, is played with dominoes and is still immensely popular to this day.
Pai Gow Poker, on the other hand, takes place at a Poker table, with a deck of cards.
Developed as a twist in Poker for those who want a bit of variation to their playing style, Pai Gow Poker is a great
card game to play - and you can play it online for free.
Let’s take a look at the reasons why you will love Pai Gow Poker free online Casino game. And a few basic strategy tips that will help you to hit the table and instantly do well.
Pai Gow Poker: the Basics
The game of Pai Gow Poker actually isn’t that old - it was developed by Sam Torosian for the Bell Card Club in 1985.
One of the reasons it became so popular is the social factor.
Pai Gow Poker requires both of a player’s two hands to beat those held by the banker in order for the player to win.
The game can last quite long, with many pushes, and you’re likely to spend a lot of time with your fellow players.
This is good for anyone who plays Poker to enjoy themselves, and to have a nice time with like-minded people.
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Play NowSurely, this is why we all play Casino games.
Yes, you might like to play for the money, but ultimately you need anything you play to be enjoyable, otherwise you’re wasting your time playing it.
The house edge of Pai Gow Poker, on average, is rated as between 2.5 and 2.7 percent.
So, whether you are an experienced Poker player or someone looking for a game for a bit of recreational fun, your chances of winning are very reasonable.
Another reason why people like Pai Gow Poker is because, in most versions of the game, all six players are playing against the banker.
This leads to a situation where you and your fellow players are all united by a common goal, and against a common enemy.
When the banker wins, everybody else loses. As a group, you’ll win and lose together on the balance of occasions.
Thanks to this, it’s a lot more social than a conventional game of Poker.
Pai Gow Poker Online Rules
You can end up playing Pai Gow Poker with up to six players and a dealer. Online, it’s just you and the dealer.
In a real-life version of Pai Gow Poker, any player and the dealer can be the banker, but in the online version, it is the dealer who takes this role.
It’s often called a two-hand Poker because that’s exactly what you have when you play.
The banker uses a 53-card deck for a Pai Gow Poker. It consists of the classic 52-card deck, plus a Joker.
The Joker acts as a wild card like in other card games.
Unlike other Poker variants, in Pai Gow Poker, you’re dealt seven cards.
The aim is to use these cards to form two high hands out of it, both beating the dealer's hands.
The usual Poker hand ranking applies - you can win with a high-card hand, Royal Flush-hand, Straight-hand, etc. - you know the drill.
One of these hands should be a five-card hand and the other one a two-card hand.
The five-card hand has to be higher than the two-card hand. Yet, both still have to be the winning hands when they confront the dealer’s hands.
If you get it right, you win.
There are three outcomes of the game:
- you win when both of your hands beat the banker’s
- it’s a push when only one of your hands is higher hand than banker’s
- you lose when neither of your hands is higher than banker’s
The payout for the win is 1 to 1. If the game results in a push, you get your wager back but don’t win anything extra.
Pai Gow Strategy: How to Win at Pai Gow Poker Online
Pai Gow Poker is a great game. Especially, if you follow a strategy that works.
While you can ultimately develop one yourself, there are a few principles you can follow to make your playing experience as profitable as possible.
Here are some Pai Gow Poker strategy tips.
Make a Sensible Bet
At the start of a Pai Gow Poker online game, you’ll have to make a bet.
This is the only bet you need to make, so make sure it’s a good one yet friendly to your bankroll.
On all Casino and Poker games, I always advise you to only bet a small proportion of what you can afford, and this is sensible advice here too.
Remember -
When you’re starting out with Pai Gow Poker, even if the house edge is smaller comparing to some other games, you’ll still find yourself at a competitive disadvantage because of your inexperience.
Balance risk with reward and go for a bet that you can back up in future games too.
Play for Free at First
At some online Casinos, you can practice Pai Gow Poker by playing for free.
This is an ideal thing to do if you haven’t played the game before.
It gives you a chance to get to know how it works and what kinds of hands win. Thus, playing Pai Gow Poker online, free is a really good idea.
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Play NowMake the Strongest Possible Hand Across Both Hands
Pai Gow Poker is different in that it gives you two hands to play with. That adds to the variables for you as a player.
Your two-card hand must never outrank your five-card hand.
If it does, that’s a foul and a silly way to lose your money.
However, you can’t win money if only one of your hands is better than the dealer’s.
It’s necessary to balance your hands so that both are reasonably strong. Yet, keeping your five-card hand slightly stronger, as I’ve mentioned before.
Also, make sure to read this article on CasinoSmash to develop an optimal Pai Gow Poker strategy.
Do this and it won’t be long before you start winning.
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On This Page
Introduction
Pai Gow Poker is a variation of the Chinese domino game pai gow. The game is known for a slow rate of play and lots of pushes, resulting in low risk game. While a game of skill, most hands are obvious how to play, and it is not difficult to learn proper strategy for the rest of them. Every player plays against the same dealer hand, which causes the table to often win and lose together, resulting in a fun and social game.
History
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. When his game was a success at his own casino there was nothing to prevent competing casinos from offering the game as well, and they didn't have to pay Sam a dime.
Source: Casino Boss Can't Cash In on Game He Developed — Los Angeles Times, Nov. 3, 2002.
The Rules
- A single 53-card deck is used, consisting of the usual 52 cards, plus one joker.
- The joker is semi-wild. It may be used as an ace, or to complete a straight, flush, or straight flush, or royal flush. After the player makes a bet, the dealer will deal the player and himself seven cards each.
- Standard poker ranking rules are followed with one strange exception — the A2345 straight (known as 'the wheel') is considered the second highest straight. Some casinos have dropped this ridiculous rule, but most still cling to it.
- The player will separate his seven cards into a five-card high hand, and two-card low hand. The high hand must be of higher poker value than the low hand.
- The five-card hand is ranked according to conventional poker rules. The only poker hand in the two-card hand is a pair or no pair, after which the individual cards determine the value.
- After the player has set his hand, the dealer will turn over his cards and divide his hand in the same manner, according to specified rules known as the 'house way.'
- The two high hands will be compared, and the two low hands, the hand with the higher poker value winnings. If the event of a tie, for example both two-card hands are ace/king, then the tie has go to the 'banker.'
- If the player wins both comparisons, then the player will win even money on his bet, less a 5% commission. If the player wins one and loses one, then the bet shall push. If the player loses or ties both, then the player shall lose his wager.
- Unlike most casino games, the player may bet against the dealer, and other players in pai gow poker. This is known as 'banking.'
- The turn to act as banker is supposed to rotate around the table, but at some casinos it zig-zags between the dealer and each player in turn.
- The player may always decline to bank (which usually happens), in which case the option will revert to the next player, or dealer.
Strategy
I'm very proud to present my pai gow strategy page. It contains simple, intermediate, and advanced strategies for both playing as the banker, against the banker, and combined. This page took months for my assistant JB to create so I hope you'll have a look.
For your convenience, I also have my one-page simple pai gow poker strategy (PDF).
House Edge
The house advantage in Pai Gow Poker depends on partially on your skill setting hands but more on how much of the action you bank. I plan to publish some pai gow poker strategy in January, 2014. Until then, the following tables show the probability of each possible outcome and the expected value four ways — whether using the house way or optimal strategy and whether banking or the dealer is banking.
House way Strategy — Dealer Banker
| Event | Pays | Combinations | Probability | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | 0.95 | 2,402,491,783,820,756 | 0.291195 | 0.276635 |
| Push | 0 | 3,341,087,256,920,524 | 0.404958 | 0.000000 |
| Loss | -1 | 2,506,879,990,473,120 | 0.303847 | -0.303847 |
| Total | 8,250,459,031,214,390 | 1.000000 | -0.027212 | |
House Way Strategy — Player Banker
| Event | Pays | Combinations | Probability | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | 0.95 | 2,506,879,990,473,120 | 0.303847 | 0.288655 |
| Push | 0 | 3,341,087,256,920,524 | 0.404958 | 0.000000 |
| Loss | -1 | 2,402,491,783,820,756 | 0.291195 | -0.291195 |
| Total | 8,250,459,031,214,390 | 1.000000 | -0.002540 | |
Optimal Strategy — Dealer Banker
| Event | Pays | Combinations | Probability | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | 0.95 | 2,413,147,766,131,848 | 0.292486 | 0.277862 |
| Push | 0 | 3,337,551,044,510,696 | 0.404529 | 0.000000 |
| Loss | -1 | 2,499,760,220,571,856 | 0.302984 | -0.302984 |
| Total | 8,250,459,031,214,400 | 1.000000 | -0.025122 | |
Optimal Strategy — Player Banker
| Event | Pays | Combinations | Probability | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | 0.95 | 2,521,011,760,499,300 | 0.305560 | 0.290282 |
| Push | 0 | 3,330,840,908,447,708 | 0.403716 | 0.000000 |
| Loss | -1 | 2,398,606,362,267,392 | 0.290724 | -0.290724 |
| Total | 8,250,459,031,214,390 | 1.000000 | -0.000442 | |
The following table summarizes the expected value under all four scenarios. The 'difference' row and column show that banking, compare to not banking, increases expected value by 2.47%. The difference between following the house way and the theoretical optimal strategy, which I'm quite sure nobody knows, is 0.21%.
Summary
| Banker | House Way | Optimal | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Player | -0.002540 | -0.000442 | 0.002098 |
| Dealer | -0.027212 | -0.025122 | 0.002090 |
| Difference | 0.024672 | 0.024680 |
Commission Free Pai Gow Poker
Often in Washington State the casino will not charge the 5% commission on banker wins. They make a profit on the banker's advantage and side bets only. With no commission, the banker has a 1.30% advantage, and all others playing against the banker a 1.30% disadvantage.
Banking Against Yourself
Sometimes, when a player invokes his right to bank, the other players will want a shot at whatever the side bet is, but dislike betting against another player on the primary wager. Another reason this might be done is to 'change the luck' at the table. In this case, non-banking players may make a deal with the banking player that if one beats the other, the winner will refund the loser, less the 5% commission. It is essentially banking against yourself through a gentleman's agreement with the banker. The dealer will have nothing to do with it. In some casinos, they will overtly not allow it, although it may be hard to prevent, especially if the deal is made in a foreign language the dealer doesn't know. I mention this as a warning that you may be asked to do this, if you choose to bank. How you respond is up to you, but I will say it may cause some ill-will at the table if you say 'no.'
There is a discussion of this in my forum at Wizard of Vegas.
The House Way
The house way is how the dealer arranges their own hand. It can vary from place to place the differences are marginal and happen infrequently. The house way is available for the following casinos:
- Great Britain (1124K PDF; see page 80)
- Silver Dollar (Washington)
- IGW (Software for Arrow's Edge Internet casinos)
Pai Gow Poker Probabilities
The following table shows the probability of forming any specified poker hand. These probabilities consider all seven cards and without regard to how the player may play the hand.
Probabilities in Pai Gow Poker
| Hand | Combinations | Probability |
|---|---|---|
| Five Aces | 1,128 | 0.00000732 |
| Straight/Royal Flush | 210,964 | 0.00136862 |
| Four of a Kind | 307,472 | 0.00199472 |
| Full House | 4,188,528 | 0.02717299 |
| Flush | 6,172,088 | 0.04004129 |
| Straight | 11,236,028 | 0.07289350 |
| Three of a Kind | 7,470,676 | 0.04846585 |
| Two Pair | 35,553,816 | 0.23065464 |
| One Pair | 64,221,960 | 0.41663862 |
| All Other | 24,780,420 | 0.16076246 |
| Total | 154,143,080 | 1 |
Note: The number of combinations for a Royal Flush is 26,132; 21,620 wild and 4,512 natural.
Internal Links
- pai gow strategy page.
- pai gow poker simple strategy (PDF).
- Ask the Wizard questions about Pai Gow Poker.
- EZ Pai Gow Poker.
- Commission Free Pai Gow Poker.
- Dealer Probabilities: Shows the probability the dealer will form any given hand or less. Useful for making accurate strategy decisions.
- When to split Two Pair: My advice on when to split two pair.
- Side Bets: Analysis of various side bets such as Fortune, Jackpot, and Emperor's Challenge.
- No Push Pai Gow Poker: My analysis of this Pai Gow Poker variant.
- Pai Gow Mania: My analysis.
- Play Pai Gow Poker. Play my Pai Gow Poker game.
- Face Up Pai Gow Poker — Variant where the dealer's cards are dealt face up.
Pai Gow Poker Games For Windows Computer
External Links
Pai Gow Poker Online Casino Games
German translation of this page.