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Three Methods:Beginning PlayBuilding Pai Gow Poker HandsResolving Play

Pai gow poker is an American adaptation of the Chinese domino game pai gow to be played with a deck of cards. The 7-card poker game marries pai gow's "high hand, low hand" playing structure with poker hands. Play pai gow poker with up to 7 players using the rules described below.


Method 1 of 3: Beginning Play

  1. 1
    Shuffle a joker into a standard 52-card deck. In pai gow poker, as in some other poker games, the joker is a limited wild card, or "bug." It may be treated as an ace, or used to fill out a straight, flush or straight flush.
    • Some casinos allow the joker to be completely wild.
  2. 2
    Have each player ante up. Unlike other poker games, there are no calls or raises, although there may be side bets.
  3. 3
    Make 7 stacks of 7 cards each. The remaining cards are discarded.
  4. 4
    Roll dice to determine who chooses which stack. Starting with himself or herself, the dealer counts clockwise around the table up to the number rolled on the dice. That player gets first choice of the stacks; then the remaining players get to choose, going counterclockwise.
    • If there are fewer than 7 players, some casinos assign the leftover stacks to "dragon" hands, particularly when there is only a single empty seat.
  5. 5
    Give the players the option of serving as banker. The banker is the person whose hands must be beaten to win the round. If none of the players wish to be the banker, that role falls to the house (dealer).
    • The advantage in serving as the banker is that the banker wins all "copies" or ties. The disadvantage is that the banker has to arrange his or her cards according to the rules the house uses for its dealer's hand. Many casinos also require a player who serves as banker to have enough money to cover the other players' bets.
    • Some casinos allow a player to share banking duties with the house, sharing half of the proceeds or losses, provided the player builds his or her hands the house way.
    • Some casinos also require a player to have played against the house once before being allowed to serve as banker.
    • If one of the players serves as banker, the dealer makes a bet for the house equal to the amount that player last bet when the house served as banker.

Method 2 of 3: Building Pai Gow Poker Hands

  1. 1
    Divide your stack into poker hands. Divide the cards into a group of 5 cards, which forms a regular 5-card poker hand, and a group of 2 cards, which either makes a pair or doesn't. The 5-card hand is the high hand, and the 2-card hand is the low hand. The goal is to have both hands beat those held by the banker.
  2. 2
    Make the best possible high hand you can. High hands of 5 cards are ranked from high to low as in most poker games, allowing for the joker serving as a bug. The hands are as follows:
    • Five aces (using the joker as the fifth ace).
    • Royal flush (ace, king, queen, jack, and 10 of the same suit).
    • Straight flush (5 cards in sequence of the same suit) � Deviates from regular poker in that A-2-3-4-5 beats a king-high straight flush.
    • Four of a kind (4 cards of the same rank).
    • Full house (3 cards of the same rank and a pair of a different rank).
    • Flush (5 cards of the same suit).
    • Straight (5 cards in sequence) � Ranks A-2-3-4-5 above a king-high straight but below an ace straight with face cards.
    • Three of a kind (3 cards of the same rank).
    • Two pair.
    • One pair.
  3. 3
    Make the best possible low hand you can. Low hands of 2 cards rank pairs over unpaired cards, and rank high cards over low cards. Pairs rank aces high, deuces low and unpaired cards rank ace-king high to 3-2 low.
    • A low hand cannot be higher than a low hand. If it is, the hand is declared "foul" and the player forfeits the bet. A player with only a single pair out of the 7 cards dealt, and no straights or flushes, must play it in the high hand. A player with 2 pairs may choose to play both pairs in the high hand or the higher pair in the high hand and the lower pair in the low hand. A player with 3 pairs may assign the pairs to the high and low hand however he or she wishes, as two pair beat a single pair.
    • As noted previously, the banker's hand is formed according to house rules, as is the dealer's hand. Any players playing dragon hands in addition to their own must play from the dragon hand according to the house way.

Method 3 of 3: Resolving Play

  1. 1
    Reveal all players' hands.
  2. 2
    Compare the players' high hands against the banker's high hand and their low hands against the banker's low hand. Both a player's high hand and low hand must beat the banker's corresponding hands for a player to win the bet. If a player wins one hand, but loses the other, neither side wins (a "push"). If the banker wins both hands, the banker wins the bet from the player.
    • If one of the banker's hands is identical to the player's hand, the player is considered to have a "copy" hand and the banker wins that hand. If both hands are tied, or if the banker wins either the high or low hand and the other is tied, the banker wins the player's bet. If the player wins one hand and ties the other, the game is a push where neither side wins money.

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  • Because the banker has an advantage in winning ties, when playing pai gow poker in a casual setting, it's a good idea to rotate the deal around the table so that each player has an equal shot at being the banker. Some casinos rotate banker duties around the table, while others alternate banking duties between players and the house each deal.


  • Some casinos alternate banking duties between the dealer and the players on each deal. In some cases, once a player declines to serve as banker or is absent from the table, the duty automatically falls to the house.
  • Most casinos charge a 5 percent commission on wins, either by all players or the banker. In some places, casinos do not charge a commission on the banker's wins; in others, the banker can be exempted from paying the commission by making a side bet.

Things You'll Need

  • Poker table
  • Poker chips
  • Deck of cards, with joker
  • Dice cup
  • Set of 3 6-sided dice

Article Info

Categories: Poker

Recent edits by: Harri

In other languages:

Español: Cómo jugar póquer pai gow



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