Pai Gow Poker is a modern game with old ancestry. Built on the ancient Chinese domino game and the modern American adaptation of poker, Pai Gow poker marries the eastern with the western in a wonderful game for starting players.
Pai Gow is a poker game that puts the gambler vs. the croupier, unlike most other poker games that players play against other players. By gambling against the dealer, starting players do not have to worry about other, more experienced people taking their money.
Another Pai Gow edge is the relatively slow game pace, rookies should be able to take their time and plan without needing to make quick decisions.
It’s also easier to wager on for an extended time with only a small bit of cash seeing as, to not win, both of your hands needs to be under each of the dealer’s hands.
Pai Gow is played with 53 cards; the familiar 52-card basic deck and a single joker. The player is assigned 7 cards face up and the dealer gets 7 cards face down.
One five card hand and a two card hand must be made from the seven cards, the 5 card hand has to be higher than the two card hand. To succeed, a player needs both of his hand values to be better than the dealer’s.