Gold from Pai Gaw Poker

All poker players have been influenced in one way or another by the staggering prizes that winners have been raking in from the pot money. There is a pot of gold at the end of the Pai Gow rainbow if you care to take a look and try hard enough to make this a reality for you.

East Meets West

With the influx of players from both ends of the world, it's no wonder games evolve into combinations that will pass the discriminating tastes of poker players from varied cultures. A combination of something old and something new, eastern and western cultures – it can be a very interesting mix. The name is Chinese in origin taken from the Chinese game of tiles much similar to dominos. The American version used playing cards composed of a regular deck of 52 cards and a Joker. Hand rankings for this version followed what we know for any poker game.

Basics of the Game

New players will find a table in a semi-circular shape which reminds one of a blackjack table. There would be playing positions, numbering up to six only, which players can take.

After the bets are placed on the table, the player and the dealer are dealt seven cards apiece. Players must split them into a five-card high hand and a two-card low hand.

The Joker can be utilized only to help complete a straight flush, flush or straight. If not used for these three hands, the Joker takes on an Ace value.

A win is declared if both the player's high and low hands beat the dealer's corresponding hands. If the player beats the dealer in exactly one hand, it leads to a push which means a return of bet. Outside of these two results will mean a loss for the player, including getting an equal value (copy) for one or both hands when compared with the dealer’s.

Find out for yourself why players are getting hooked on this game. Instead of just watching in the sidelines, you should start getting into the game, too, and see how far you could go with minimum bets of $1 to maximum of $200 per hand.

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