Pai Gow Poker Established Rules
Let’s become versed in some alternate variations of poker other than hold’em, five card stud, 5 card draw and omaha hi-low. Yes, pai gow poker. Now you must be thinking that double-hand sounds a little Chinese; yes you’re right, this game is a blending of the Chinese game pai gow and poker
Definitely this is not one of the most popular forms of poker but still widely played. It can be enjoyed by up to 7 players. It’s played with 1 deck of cards, plus a joker. Interestingly, the Joker can be used only as an ace, or to finish off a straight, a flush, a straight flush, or royal flush. The important element here to clearly recall is apart from the usual ranking of hands we have an additional winning hand that is "Five Aces" (four Aces and the Joker). Surprisingly, 5 aces defeats all other hand including royal flush. Each gambler is given 7 cards. The cards are aligned to create 2 hands; a 2 card hand and a 5 card hand. The five card hand must rank higher or be equivalent to the two card hand.
After arranging the 2 hands, the cards are positioned on the poker table with the faces down. Once on the table, you cannot touch them. The croupier will flip over his cards and assemble his hands. Each players hand is compared to the dealer’s hands. If the player wins 1 hand and loses the other, this is known as "push" and no money is lost or won. If dealer wins the two hands then the individual looses their bet and vice versa. Now if the hand is a draw, the dealer wins everything. Once the hand is competed, the next player clock-wise gets to be the dealer and the following hand is given out.