Playing Pai Gow online is just as exciting and rewarding as playing it live.
But did you know that playing paigow poker online gives you a bit of an advantage?
We'll show you how, plus a few other winning tips.
Pai Gow Poker is played with a 53-card deck (the typical 52-card deck plus a joker). In both online and land casinos, the dealer plays against the player. Seven cards each are dealt to the player and the dealer. Both try to form the best two-card and five-card poker hands they can from the seven cards.
A pair of aces is the best poker hand you can make with a two-card hand. The best poker hand you can make with a five-card hand is a royal flush. The player loses the bet if the dealer wins the two- and five-card hands. If the dealer wins one hand and the player the other, it's a push. If the dealer loses both hands, the player wins the bet minus a 5% commission.
Pai Gow's strategy is based on splitting your hand. Chance alone determines your initial seven-card hand. How you split them determines whether you win or lose.
Without any strategy, your best approach is to play the house way.
The house way consists of strict rules that the game always follows when splitting the dealer's hand. If you split your hand the house way, those rules will separate your hand.
Why not do it yourself?
Given the 5% commission on player wins, the house advantage is 2.8%. However, that's true only for skilled players who follow the same splitting tactics as the dealer; in other words, they use the house method.
Most players are unskilled, so the house advantage is considerably more significant. For the most reckless players, it could climb as high as 90%.
If you split using the house way, there is no tactical difference between you and the dealer in the game. You're now playing a game of pure chance. But you've reduced the house advantage to its advertised minimum of 2.8%.
It would help if you always played an online Pai Gow game that allows you to split your hand the house way. Some versions, such as Real Time Gaming's Pai Gow poker, use a house way too sophisticated that they don't offer it to players.
Unlike regular poker, your main objective is not to play the most substantial high five-card hand. Instead, the goal is to play the most potent high AND low hand.
Winning tactics in Pai Gow often involve sacrificing the strength of your high hand to increase the strength of your low hand. After all, a whole house in your high hand is a push if you lose your low hand.
Using a basic strategy based on the seven-card hand you're dealt, you can easily shave the house advantage by a couple of tenths of a percent.
You will usually find yourself splitting your hand the same as the house. Those few times you don't, however, will make you a winner over the long term.
Here's the basic Pai Gow house strategy most players use:
When you're dealt only a high-card hand, split the highest card into the high hand and the following two highest cards into the two-card hand. This is the universal house way to play the hand. You gain no advantage over the dealer.
Put the pair in your high hand and the two highest cards remaining in the low hand. This, too, is the house way and confers no advantage.
As an essential tactic, keep both pairs in the high hand if they're low pairs (2's to 6's) or medium pairs (7's to 10's), and put the highest card remaining in the low hand.
If you have two high pairs (J's to A's) or a high pair and a medium pair, split the pairs into both your high and low hands. Put the highest pair in your five-card hand.
You will find some minor variations in the house way, but almost always, you'll split your hand using the same rules as the dealer.
If you're dealt three pairs, always put the highest pair in the two-card hand and keep the remaining two pairs in the high hand. This is the house way everywhere and confers no advantage.
Play three of a kind in your five-card hand UNLESS you have three aces. In that case, split one of the aces to the low hand and play the remaining pair of aces in your high hand. Again, this is the house way nearly everywhere.
Straights and flushes are the only hands that allow you to outplay the dealer by not following the house way.
Usually, you should play all straights and flushes in your five-card hand and play the remaining cards as your low hand. While your high hand will be nearly unbeatable, your low hand could be too weak to prevail.
However, if you can make two high pairs out of the hand, then split the high pairs between the two hands. You will be sacrificing the straight or flush for a one-pair high hand and a one-pair low hand.
In the highly unlikely event that you have a six-card straight or flush and can make a pair without losing the flush or straight, play the pair in the low hand. Otherwise, split the highest card of the six-card straight or flush into your low hand.
Always split a whole house, so you have three-of-a-kind in the high hand and a pair in the low hand.
If you have a full house with two pairs or two three-of-a-kinds, put the highest pair you can in the low hand.
Again, this is universally the house way played by all RNG games.
If you don't have a pair and the four-of-a-kind is low, play the four-of-a-kind in the high hand and the following two highest cards in the low hand.
If you're holding a medium or high four-of-a-kind, split the four-of-a-kind so each hand has one pair. However, if you're holding four aces, play one of the aces to the low hand and play the three-of-a-kind in the high hand.
If you're holding FIVE aces (because you have the joker), then split them into a three-of-a-kind for the high hand and a pair of aces as a bullet-proof low hand.
Again, you'll see that every RNG Pai Gowuses has a similar strategy for splitting four-of-a-kind.
Use a specific hand-by-hand Pai Gow poker strategy rather than the house way or a basic strategy. You can reduce the house edge by several tenths of a percent. You can beat the house online at Pai Gow with some luck.
A hand-by-hand strategy governs how you split every hand to maximize your advantage over the dealer.
You can find hand-by-hand strategies for Pai Gow everywhere: in books, magazines, and plenty on the Web.
The good news is that online Pai Gowpoker allows you to use a hand-by-hand strategy cheat sheet. That's your main advantage of playing online versus casino Pai Gow. If you restrict your play to RNG rather than live dealer games, you'll gain enough time to consult your cheat sheet before splitting your hand every time.
Lastly, Pai Gow side bets promise some big payouts, but in general, they're sucker bets with a high house edge of 8% or more. If you must play, you'll find the lowest house edge (about 8%) in the Dealer's Bonus and Fortune bets, which pay out based on the highest five-card hand possible in either the dealer's or player's seven-card hand.
Pai Gow Poker combines elements of American poker and traditional Chinese Pai Gow. Played with a 53-card deck, including the joker, it involves the player and the dealer trying to create the best possible two-card and five-card poker hands from their seven cards.
To increase your possibility of winning, consider adopting the house way of splitting your hands, aiming for optimal high and low hands, and employing a detailed hand-by-hand strategy. This minimizes the house advantage and maximizes your potential to win.
Playing the house way in Pai Gow Poker means you split your hands according to predefined rules, matching those used by the dealer. This approach minimizes the house edge to its lowest possible point, typically around 2.8%, making the game one of chance rather than skill.
For various hands like straights, flushes, or four-of-a-kind, there are strategic ways to split your hands to balance the strength between your high and low hands. For example, always split an entire house to have three-of-a-kind in the high hand and a pair in the low hand. Adjusting your strategy based on the specific hand you're dealt can significantly influence your success.
While Pai Gow Poker side bets may offer large payouts, they generally come with a high house edge, often exceeding 8%. If you engage in side betting, choose options with the lowest house edge, like the Dealer's Bonus and Fortune bets, which reward based on the highest five-card hand possible.
Yes, one of the advantages of playing Pai Gow Poker online is the ability to use a strategy cheat sheet. Unlike live casinos, online platforms allow you the time and privacy to consult your cheat sheet, helping you make the best decisions for splitting your hands according to a detailed hand-by-hand strategy.
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