Casino Pai Gow Poker 15 August 2004 Pai Gow Rules Pai Gow Poker is a popular online casino game. It's combination 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 or a straight flush. Most of the top online casinos offer Pai Gow poker. Each player at the table is dealt seven cards which are then arranged to make two hands: A two-card hand and a five-card hand. Rankings are based on the same card values as standard poker values. The highest two-card hand would be two Aces, and the highest five-card hand would be a Royal Flush. It's imperative that the five-card hand be higher than the two-card hand. For example, if the two card hand is a pair of sevens, the five card hand must contain at least a pair of eights or higher. If the player sets the hands so that the two card hand is higher than the five card hand, it is an automatic losing hand. The point of the game is to ensure that the player's two hands rank higher than 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. The Banker wins all ties by default. If the player wins one hand, but loses the other, this is considered a "push" or a tie in other words. In "push" hands, no money exchanges hands. Winning hands are usually paid even money, minus a 5% commission (check your casino for details). Losing hands lose all money wagered. This is how the game is played: The dealer shuffles the cards and deals seven hands of seven cards each, face down in front of the dealer's tray. The dealer checks that exactly four cards are left over, and then places those cards in the discard holder. The house dealer or any player may be the Banker. 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 Bank in turn, and then all players are again offered the Bank until the dealer banks again.) The Banker is usually identified by a white plastic square. A dice cup containing three dice is shaken by the banker to determine who receives the first hand. (Before the dice are uncovered, all bets must be in the betting circle.) In Pai Gow, 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 player (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 and and a five-card high hand as described above. The house dealer does not look at the cards until all players and the 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. 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. Pai Gow Poker Strategy: If you play Pai Gow poker at an online casino there is one very easy and very important rule to remember when splitting hands in Pai Gow Poker. The five-card hand must be of greater value than the two-card hand or the player automatically loses. The highest value two-card hand is a pair of aces and the lowest value two-card hand is a 2-3. The wild card, unlike most other poker games, has certain restrictions on how it can be used to form a hand. The wild card can only be used as an ace, or as the fifth card in a straight or a flush.     Online Casinos and online casino news common searches.   Casino Game Casino Online Game, Internet Casino Game Poker Poker, Poker Game, Online Poker Game, Internet Poker, Video Poker Online, Pai Gow Craps Online Craps, Casino Craps, Play Craps, Craps Game, Craps     Roulette Roulette Wheel, Casino Roulette, Roulette Game, Play Roulette, Roulette, Blackjack Internet Blackjack, Blackjack Card Game 21, Card Game, Card Game Online, Play Card Game, Online Card Game     Gambling Gambling Casino Online, Casino Online Gambling, Gambling Site, Gambling, Internet Gambling Casino, Virtual Gambling, Las Vegas Gambling Gaming Gaming Site, Gaming Casino Casino, Casino Software, Web Casino     Betting Betting Online, Betting line, Internet Betting Wager Online Wager Online, Wagering Online Slots Slot Play Slot Slot Machine Game, Progressive Jackpots