Pai Gow Poker

Pai Gow is a type of poker where you play against a dealer. It’s more a casino game than a typical poker game. If you are looking to play Pai Gow online, you need to head towards a casino site. In real casinos, you will find Pai Gow near the other table games, like blackjack or roulette. Pai Gow is never played between more than two players: it’s a one-on-one card game.

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Origins of Pai Gow Poker

Pai Gow poker casino card games are primarily poker game but its roots trace back to a Chinese domino game. Like other poker games, Pai Gow is played with a standard deck of cards. Nevertheless, this game usually leaves only one joker in the deck of cards. The joker can serve as an ace or can complete a combination of cards, like a straight.

How do you play Pai Gow poker?

To start the game, each player must place a bet. The dealer then distributes seven cards to each player. Players must divide their cards into two hands; a strong hand and a weak hand. The strong hand includes five cards and the low contains only two cards. The strong hand should logically add up to a greater numeric value than the other hand. If this is not the case, the player can be disqualified. Some online casinos will not tolerate players who don’t respect the standard rules. In a real casino, the dealer will ask you to correct your mistake for the first two or three times. After this though, he may ask you to learn the rules or leave the table.

The first hand has the same value as in poker. The only difference is that the combination Ace-2-3-4-5 is considered as the second strongest hand, after the 10-Jack-Queen-King-Ace combination. The second hand can be formed as a pair or a combination of cards that are weaker than the first hand. A pair of aces is automatically stronger than a hand of two cards of the number 2. If the dealer and player both have a pair, the highest pair wins. If both have a pair of exactly the same value, the dealer wins.

The Showdown

After consulting their cards, players show their cards to the dealer, and compare the results. The five card hand of the dealer is compared to the five card hand of the player and it's the same for the weaker hands - the last two cards -- the dealer and the player’s cards are also compared. If the dealer wins both hands, the player loses. If the player wins both hands, the dealer loses. If the dealer wins one hand and the player wins the other, it’s a tie and the money is returned to the player.

Earnings and house percentages

Most casinos take a percentage on their player’s earnings. This percentage is usually 5%: if the player bets 100 Euros and wins, the casino will give him 195 Euros instead of 200. The second way that casinos make money on Pai Gow is that the dealer wins if there is a tie for two pairs. It’s unusual that there is a tie on the strong five-card hands but not on the low hands, which are composed of only two cards. Sometimes the player and the dealer can both fall on an ace and a king, for example. Therefore, the casinos still retain a small percentage of the players’ winnings, although it is very low.

Why Pai Gow poker is such a great game

Many players love Pai Gow because it requires a lot of strategy. The player is more in control than with games of chance. The players Pai Gow attracts are people who like to have control of their game and aren’t too attracted by gambling on pure chance games. Pai Gow is a multi-hand game, so it's entertaining and keeps the player active from beginning to end.

Free Pai Gow Poker casino card games

Pai Gow is another of the countless variations of Poker. Playing it is quite simple, although there are nevertheless some subtleties to learn. If Pai Gow brings you face to face with a dealer, with the objective of obtaining a stronger hand than his or hers, its rules present certain divergences from classic Poker. The limits, bets, winnings and combinations are not always the same, and playing Pai Gow for the first time poses a real challenge. Even experienced poker players will encounter problems when they debut with Pai Gow.

In order to limit losses with Pai Gow, you should start by playing it for free. Free Pai Gow is the best way to learn this game and to advance with it. Several sites offer you quick and free access to this game. You can play it without limitation and develop some experience that will be of great use to you in a tournament, for Pai Gow is tending more and more to be standardized online. So why not test Pai Gow for free at first in order to then be ready to face gamblers under actual game conditions? Follow the links of our partner sites and you won’t regret the trip! They are the guarantee of an authentic amusement and at no charge, for we believe it is essential to be able to play one’s favorite game for free.

🃏 Can I play Pai Gow Poker live?

Yes, you can play Pai Gow both live and as a virtual machine game. If you want to take on the table dealers one on one, then please select from one of these Kiwi casinos to get your Pai Gow fix

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💵 What is the house edge in Pai Gow online poker?

The house edge denotes the advantage the casino has over the player before any move is played. The house edge in the case of Pai Gow Poker is 2.84%. This is the margin of winning the casino has over you in any one game.

🤑 Are there any Pai Gow Strategies?

If you want the best gaming strategies for Pai Gow, then please refer to our online strategy guide to learn more about playing the game, the outcomes of the game, strategies and tips.

⭐ How do you win in a game of Pai Gow Poker?

Just like any poker game, the object of success is to achieve a higher-ranking hand than the dealer. You have 5 cards to form a hand and 2 extra cards to form a smaller hand. Both sets must beat the dealers in order to win. If only one succeeds then the game is tie.

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