Tropicana Casino And Resort - Pai GowIf you play poker, or even video poker, you will love Pai Gow Poker. And the best part is that you already know the basics. In addition, Pai Gow Poker offers the player the unique opportunity to turn the tables on the house. That is, each player, in turn, has the option to blank bets against all other players including the dealer. Our Pai Gow Poker dealers and supervisors will be happy to assist you in learning this fast, easy game. THE GAME: Pai Gow poker combines elements of the ancient Chinese game of Pai Gow and the American game of Poker. It is played with a traditional deck of 52 playing cards, plus one Joker. The Joker can be used only as an Ace, or to complete a straight, a flush, a royal flush or a straight flush. RANKING THE HANDS: Each player at the table is dealt seven cards, which the player arranges to make two hands; a two-card hand and a five-card hand. Rankings are based on basic poker ratings. Thus, the highest two-card hand would be two aces, and the highest five-card hand would be five aces. The five-card hand must be equal to or higher than the two-card hand (if the two-card is a pair of sevens, for example, the five-card hand must contain at least a pair of eight's or higher). OBJECT OF THE GAME: The object of the game is for both the player's two hands to rank higher than both of the banker's two hands. The player's two-card (low) hand must rank higher than the banker's two-card (low) hand, and the player's five-card (high) hand must rank higher than the banker's five-card (high) hand. (Should one hand rank exactly the same as the banker's hand, this is a tie ("copy hand") and the banker wins all die hands.) If the player wins one hand, but loses the other, this is considered a "push". In "push" hands, no money exchanges hands. Winning hands are paid even money, less a five percent commission. Losing hands lose the money wagered. PLAY OF THE GAME: The dealer shuffles the cards and deals seven hands of seven cards each, face down on the appropriate area of the layout in a clockwise rotation. The dealer checks that exactly four cards are left over, then places those cards in the discard holder. The house dealer, or any player, may be the banker. Before a player may be permitted to bank a round of play the dealer shall determine that the player placed a wager against the dealer the last time the dealer was the bank and the player has sufficient gaming chips on the table to cover all of the wagers placed by other players at the table for that round of play. All players bet against the bank. (The bank is offered to each player and each player may accept or pass, in which case the bank is offered to the next player. The dealer will always take the bank in turn, then all players are again offered the bank until the dealer banks again.) The banker will be identified by an identifying marker. A dice cup containing three dice is shaken by the banker to determine who receives the first card. (All bets must be in the betting circle before the house dealer announces, "no more bets".) In Pai Gow Poker, the banker's position is always 1, 8 or 15. The dealer counts from the banker's position. The cards will then be placed by the dealer in front of each betting area regardless if the player is present (including the dealer) in a clockwise rotation from the starting point indicated by the dice. Each player then arranges his cards into a two-card low hand and a five-card high hand as described above (RANKING THE HANDS). The house dealer does not look at the cards until all the players and player/banker have set their hands in the designated spaces face down. The house dealer then turns his cards over and sets his hand in front of the tray face up. The player/banker's hand is compared to the house dealer's hand first. Winning hands are left lying face up next to the betting circle. For losing hands, the wager is picked up by the dealer and the cards are placed in the discard holder. Losing wagers are set in the center of the layout only if a player is banking. If the player wins one hand and loses the other, this is considered a "push". No money exchanges hands and the cards are placed in the discard holder. The Joker can be used only as an ace, or to complete a straight, a flush, a royal flush or a straight flush. The highest two-card hand is a pair of aces. The five-card hand must rank higher than the two-card hand. Five aces is the highest five-card hand. Player Banker
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