Phoenician Casino

Pai Gow Poker

Click to enlarge

Description & Objectives

Pai Gow Poker is a card game played with a 53-card deck consisting of a standard deck of 52 cards plus one Joker. In this version of Pai Gow Poker, the banker (or house) always plays as the dealer and covers all bets, and the player only competes against the dealer. The player receives seven cards, which must then be “set” or split into two poker hands: a five-card hand and a two-card hand. Once split, the player’s two hands are compared with the dealer’s two hands to determine the winner.

The bank pays the winner—minus a 5% commission—and the game ends. The commission is 5% of the bet and is rounded up to the next quarter. For example, a minimum bet of $6 would be a commission of 50 cents. (5% of $6 = 30 cents, but since the commission is rounded up to the next 25 cents; the commission is actually 50 cents. 5% of $11 = 55 cents, which makes the actual commission 75 cents.)

Game Play

The Deal

For each game, the dealer shuffles the deck and deals out seven cards into each hand—the dealer’s cards remain unknown. The player must then “set” or split their seven cards into two poker hands: a five-card hand and a two-card hand.

Splitting cards and rules on the Joker

Pai Gow Poker places only one restriction upon splitting the initial seven cards: the five-card hand must have a higher poker rank than the two-card hand. The only other twist during the game is how to play the Joker. The Joker can be used to complete a five-card flush, straight, or straight flush. Otherwise, the Joker counts as an ace.

Ranking the Hands

The hands are ranked according to standard poker rules with one exception: the Ace-2-3-4-5 straight is the second highest straight. Straights rank, from highest to lowest: Ace-K-Q-J-10, Ace-2-3-4-5, K-Q-J-10-9 … 6-5-4-3-2. Also, keep in mind that the best two-card hand is a pair of aces; the two-card hand cannot have a flush (since a flush requires five cards).

Rank	Description	Example
Five of a Kind	4 aces plus the Joker	AS, AH, AD, AC, Joker
Royal Flush	10, J, Q, K, A of same suit	10H, JH, QH, KH, AH
Straight Flush	In sequence, 5 cards of same suit	3S, 4S, 5S, 6S, 7S
Four of a Kind	4 cards of same rank	6D, 6S, 6C, 6H
Full House	3 of a kind, plus a pair	2H, 2D, 2S, 3H, 3S
Flush	5 cards of same suit	2D, 4D, 6D, 8D, 9D,
Straight	5 cards in sequence	3H, 4C, 5H, 6S, 7D
Three of a Kind	3 cards of same rank	7H, 7S, 7D
Two Pair	2 pairs of different rank	4H, 4S, 6D, 6S
One Pair	1 pair (2 cards) of same rank	KD, KH
High Card	5 cards of different ranks and suits	AH, KS, 10D, 5C, 2

Determining the Winner

The player’s two hands are compared with the dealer’s two hands to determine the winner. If both the player’s five-card hand and two-card hand has a higher poker rank than both the dealer’s hands (5 cards and 2 cards), the player wins. If both of the dealer’s hands beat both of the player’s hands, the dealer wins. If either the player or the dealer wins only one of the two hands, the game is a push and neither the dealer nor the player wins. When either the five-card hands or the two-card hands rank exactly the same, the equal hands are called “copies” of each other. The dealer wins all copy hands. For example, if the player beats the dealer in the five-card hand but copies the dealer with the two-card hand, the game is a push.

The Payout

When the player’s two hands beat the dealer’s two hands, the player wins an amount equal to the original bet minus a 5% commission. The commission is 5% of the bet and is rounded up to the next quarter as described above.

Button Descriptions

Deal

Clicking on the deal button after placing a bet starts a new game.

Raise

Clicking on the raise button will deal three “burn cards” and an additional final card to both the player and the dealer.

Fold

If the player and the dealer tie, the player can fold and the game ends. The player loses the amount wagered.

Back to Table Games | Download Software

Main Menu