Pai-Gow Poker consists of two hands being played at once. In order to win your hands need to rank higher than the dealer’s do. You will receive a total of 7 cards, 5 cards for one hand and 2 cards for the other. These hands will resemble traditional hands of video poker. The hand you have with five cards is often known as the high hand and the two-card hand is the low hand. To figure out the ranking of these hands the casino uses basic poker ranking. Think of it this way, for your low hand the best hand you could get would be two Aces. Meanwhile, the best hand for your high hand would be five Aces. This would be accomplished by receiving four Aces and a Joker.

Your game is going to start the way any game at a casino would start: with a wager! You can make your bet for anything you want though most UK casinos will have a limit around $2,500.00 for this game. Once you have made your wager you will click the deal button and you can get the game moving. To play Pai-Gow a standard 52-card deck plus the addition of one Joker is used. You will learn that the Joker is not actually a wild card but instead it is either an Ace or a card needed to complete a hand for a straight, flush, straight flush, or royal flush.

Once you receive your cards, it is up to you to form two hands. Your low hand needs to contain just two cards and the rest of your cards will be in the high hand. If you are playing on the computer, it may be different depending on where you are playing. However, in my experience I have found that you generally left click on the two cards you would prefer to have in your low hand. You can also unselect a card if you change your mind by clicking on it a second time.

It is important to know a little about Pai-Gow before you get going. Otherwise, you will have some problems in playing this bingo game. The five-card hand needs to be of a higher point value than the two-card hand. If it isn’t then your hand will not be valid. In an online casino, you will be told when your hands are not correct so that you have a chance to fix things. Once everything is correct and you are satisfied, you can click the done button and it will end your part of the hand. After you are done, handling your hand the dealer will do the same thing. Finally, it is time to compare the two hands to see who wins and what they win.

In order to win this unique game of poker you need to rank higher in both hands than the dealer. If one of your hands is higher but the other is not than it is considered a tie and you will receive your wager back. Finally, if the dealer has both hands higher or if you manage to achieve a tie with identical hands than the dealer would win.

To understand the high rankings in Pai-Gow Poker you can view the chart below. Please note that these are going from high to low.

Four aces + Joker - This is just what it sounds like

Royal Flush - The same suit of the following cards in one hand A, K, Q, J, 10

Straight Flush - The same suit of any five cards that go in sequential order

Four of a Kind - Any four of the same number or face cards

Full House - Tree of a kind plus a pair of another set of cards

Flush - Any combination of cards as long as they are the same suit

Straight - A numerical sequence of cards that are not the same suit

Three of a Kind - Three cards that match in face or numerical value

Two Pairs - A pair of any kind and another pair of any kind

One Pair - Two cards that match in face or numerical value

High Card - A hand with nothing that goes solely off the highest card you are holding

Finally, if you and the dealer have hands that match in hand rank, the cards will be looked at and the higher set of cards will win. For example, if you both have a pair and your pair is Jacks but the dealer has Aces then the dealer will win. If it is a tie in all ways with the hands being identical then the dealer will win. In Pai-Gow Poker, the winner receives even money for their bet minus the small 5% commission that goes to the casino.