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There are many variations of Poker. Some are more popular and seen more frequently than others. Pai Gow is one of those popular casino card games that many players of all ilk are drawn to and love engaging in.
Pai Gow is a different cat when it comes to Poker. Each player receives seven cards. The goal is to come up with two hands, one of five cards and the other of two cards. One caveat: The five-card hand, when it comes to Pai Gow Poker strategy, must be stronger than the two-card hand.
Keeping your Pai Gow hand rankings simple, the dealer will shake a cup with three dice in it to see which player gets the first hand. The dealer then does his magic, giving out seven-card hands counter-clockwise, whether a player is in a spot. That means 49 cards in the deck are in play, including jokers.
Per Rwcatskills: A Player may request that their hand be set according to the “House Way”, which is a predetermined method of setting the hands. The Dealer will always set the House Hand according to the “House Way.”
After all Players’ hands are set, the Dealer will expose the Banker’s hand. The Dealer will set the Bank hand according to the “House Way.” The Banker’s hand is then compared to each Player’s hand, and wagers are decided.
The player needs to win both hands to win their bet. If the dealer/banker wins both hands, the player loses. If the player and dealer split hands, this is a push, and no money.
The best hand in Pai Gow Poker would be five of a kind (four of a kind and a joker). After that, you get to the Royal Flush and Straight Flush. Going forward, four of a kind, full house and straight, and so on. The fact that jokers are in play adds to the challenges of Pai Gow Poker Strategy.
Some definitions that will come in handy for this game (thanks to swinomishcasinobridge):
Copy: The player’s hand has the same ranking as the dealer's
Fouled Hand: When the low hand beats the high hand
High Hand: Five-guard hand must be higher than the low hand
House Way: Predetermined configurations of hands
Set the Hand: When you separate your seven cards into a five-card hand and a two-card hand
In case one wonders what kind of wagers can be placed, they can be as low as $5 and as high as $500.
It is the dealer’s responsibility to make sure each player’s wager fits within the Pai Gow poker rules.
The House Way is an interesting option in this game. The player has the opportunity to say they want to predetermine the manner of setting hands.
What happens is that a player has their hand face down when it comes to the High Hand. The Dealer uses the “House Way” button. One key is that the player has the option to change their mind at any point before the dealer/bank shows their hand.
The dealer is the one who sets the player’s hand when going the “House Way.” The dealer shows the seven cards and arranges them into the two- and five-card hands for the player.
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