Pai Gow

How to Play Pai Gow

Rules

The game of Pai Gow poker is played with 53 cards - a standard deck plus a wild joker. Players are dealt 7 cards and must then make 2 hands out of these 7 cards as follows:

  • "The highest hand" consisting of 5 cards. This must be the highest ranking ( in general poker terms) of the two hands. If for example you have a pair in your 7 cards, it must go to the highest hand. If you have 2 pair, one can go to the second highest hand, but it must be the low pair, and

  • The second hand is referred to as "the second highest," consisting of the remaining 2 cards.

The dealer also has a "highest hand" and "second highest hand". In order to win the bet (for a 1 to 1 payoff), both your hands must beat both the dealer's hands. Winning one and losing one is a push, and if you lose both the game is lost.

Some other important points to know...

  • The wild card can only be used as a single ace; or to complete a flush, straight, or a straight flush.

  • In Pai Gow poker, the highest-ranking hand is 5 aces (i.e. 4 aces plus the wild card). This poker hand beats a royal flush.

  • The 2-card hand of highest rank is a pair of aces. If the second highest hand is not composed of a pair, the value of the cards determines the hands rank.

  • When the player and the dealer compare hands that have the same rank, that hand is referred to as a "copy hand." Unlike in blackjack, where a copy hand results in a push; the dealer wins the copy hand in Pai Gow.

Pai Gow Hand Ranking:

In Order of Value
5 Aces (using Wild Card)
Royal Flush
Straight Flush
Four of a Kind
Full House
Flush
Straight
Three of a Kind
Two Pair
Ace
King
Queen
Jack
Ten, etc.


Apart from the 5 Aces rule, the one difference between the system of ranking hands in Pai Gow poker and in other poker games is that A-K-Q-J-10 ranks as the highest straight, A-2-3-4-5 ranks as the second highest straight, followed by K-Q-J-10-9.

Players win even money ( i.e. 1 to 1) on their bets, but must pay a 5% commission on their winnings to the bank. Your actual winnings are thus 95% of your bet.

Strategy

Here are Pai Gow Poker optimum hand selections based on cards dealt. For simplicity's sake, we have called any pair of 2's through 6's a "low pair", 7's through J's a "medium pair", and Q's through A's a "high pair.

Your Hand 5-Card Hand Selection   2-Card Hand
No pair: the highest card the next two highest cards
One pair: the pair next two highest cards
Two pair:
Pair of A's and any other Pair: high pair other pair
Two High Pair: best pair other pair
High Pair and Medium Pair high pair medium pair
High Pair and Low Pair with A or K both pair A or K
High Pair & Low pair w/out A or K highest pair low pair
Two Medium Pair with A or K both pair A or K
Two Medium Pair without A or K best pair other pair
Medium Pair & Low Pair with A or K both pair A or K
Medium Pair & Low Pair w/out A or K medium pair low pair
Two Low Pair with A or K both pair A or K
Two Low Pair without A or K best pair other pair
Three Pair: second and third highest pair highest pair
Three of a Kind:
Three A's pair of A's A and next highest card
All others three of a kind two highest remaining cards
Three of a Kind twice: lower three of a kind highest pair
Full House: 
With two pairs full house with low pair highest pair
Pair is 2's with A or K full house A or K
All others three of a kind the pair
Straight, flush & Royal Flush:
With no pair lowest full hand two highest cards
With one or two Pair lowest full hand 2 highest cards, pair or o/wise
With Three of a Kind full hand pair
With Full House three of a kind pair
With Three of a Kind twice lower three highest two
Four of a Kind:
With Three of a Kind four of a kind pair from the three of a kind
With a Pair> four of a kind pair
Four A's pair of A's pair of A's
J's through K's with an A four of a kind the A
J's through K's without an A one pair from the four the other pair
7's through 10's with A or K four of a kind A or K
7's through 10's without A or K one pair from the four the other pair
2's through 6's four of a kind highest remaining two

Good luck!




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