Pai Gow Poker

A poker-based table game where players split seven cards into a five-card 'high' hand and a two-card 'low' hand, both of which must beat the dealer's corresponding hands to win.

Definition

Pai Gow Poker uses a 52-card deck plus one joker (usually a limited wild). Each player receives seven cards and arranges them into a five-card hand and a two-card hand, with the rule that the five-card hand must rank higher than the two-card hand. To win even money (less a 5% commission), a player's five-card hand must beat the dealer's five-card hand and their two-card hand must beat the dealer's two-card hand; winning one and losing the other is a push (tie), which happens often. The overall house edge is around 2.5%, driven partly by the 5% commission on wins and by the dealer winning 'copy' (identical) hands. The high frequency of pushes makes the game slow-moving and relatively low-volatility.

Worked example

You are dealt A-K-J-9-7-4-2 with a pair of nines somewhere in the mix; you set the pair of nines as your two-card... no, more precisely you place your strongest five cards as the high hand and your next-best two as the low hand. If both your hands outrank the dealer's two hands, you win the bet minus 5% commission; if you win one and lose the other, no money changes hands.

Why it matters

For learners, Pai Gow shows how frequent ties and a commission quietly shape a game's edge and pace. For professionals, correct 'hand-setting' rules and the copy-hand advantage are common sources of player questions and dispute.

Related

Note: The roughly 2.5% house edge assumes the player follows the standard 'house way' for setting hands and is not acting as banker; edge varies with commission rules and banking.