The Aces Casino Blog: Aces Casino "College of Casino Game Knowledge:" The Wild And "Wacky" World of Pai-Gow Poker

A while back on this infamous Blog, the crew from Aces Casino (the Orange County casino party

leaders) took on the task of analyzing the game of Baccarat, a casino

game that some experts feel is a game that has favorable gaming odds,

but not much in the way of "playability." (Ed. Note: You'll find that riveting blog article link here.)

And, when we DID, that choice of "casino game of the week" came under

some serious scrutiny, especially from a large fan base of a fairly

popular game called "Pai-Gow Poker."

Now, right off the

bat, here's a disclaimer: Pai-Gow Poker is one of my favorite games to

play, when visiting "Sin City," for one simple reason -It "plays itself." I used to think Baccarat was a game that "plays itself,"

until I saw Pai-Gow Poker. If you walk up to any self-respecting casino

dealer, floor man, shift boss or casino manager and ask him," which of

all of these casino games is the easiest to play when you're three

sheets to the wind," they'll invariably tell you the answer is Pai-Gow

Poker.

That's good enough for THIS Aces Casino party crew member. Remember, if you're considered the top Orange County casino party

company in Southern California, you need a game that people can have a

BLAST playing, while playing with valueless chips. It's INSTANTLY going

to be a staple of your lineup, right up there with Blackjack and the

eternally-noisy Wheel Of Fortune. (Ed. Note: The one with the upright wheel, not the one with Vanna White and Pat Sajak.)

I

remember my first foray into the wild and wonderful world of Pai-Gow

Poker - At least, I remember SOME of it. What I DO remember was winning

quite a lot of dollars at the Barbary Coast casino on a perfect

three-team baseball parlay and wanting to celebrate my winnings by

playing some casino game that wouldn't tear me a new one, while enjoying

my favorite alcoholic beverage (Light beer).

Yeah, I

know, HERE it comes. "Stop right there, Aces. LIGHT BEER???" Hey, OK,

I LOVE light beer. Sue me. I've got someone that I consider a good

friend (Dennis Hamblin of San Diego Charger fandom) who rides me like an

old mule because I love what HE calls "horse piss." Hey, it tastes

good to me, but that's his whole point - I have no taste. I also love

Godzilla movies, "Hardcore Pawn" and "Human Tetris."

Yeah, maybe he's right.

OK,

where was I? Oh, yeah, My first exposure to Pai-Gow..... I'm at the

Barbary (Now Known as "Bill's"), and I sit down at the Pai-Gow table. I

tell the dealer that I've never even SEEN this game, and he responds

with, "Don't worry, it doesn't matter. I'll help you." Yeah, I BET

that you'll help me, I thought to myself, you work for the CASINO.

That's when he explained just how Pai-Gow Poker works......

1. Each player gets seven cards, including the dealer, from a 53-card deck.

2. The "Joker" is the extra card in the deck, good for "Aces, Straights and Flushes."

3.

Pure poker rules apply when it comes to rank of hands, like "what beats

what." You know, high card, then one pair, then two pair, then 3 of a

kind, Straight, yada-yada-yada the bisque....

4. When

you receive your seven-card hand, you have to separate it into TWO parts

- A five-card poker hand, and a two-card poker hand.

5.

Your five-card hand MUST beat your two-card hand, when you apply poker

rules to it. Let's say you open your 7-card hand, and you have

K-K-Q-9-6-3-3. You place the pair of threes "up front" for your

two-card hand, and the rest of the cards, including the 2 Kings, in your

five-card hand.

6. When all the players have separated their hands, the dealer opens up HIS hand, and separates HIS hand.

7.

For you to beat the dealer (normally, the only player you play

against), your five card hand must beat HIS, and your TWO-CARD hand must

ALSO beat his. If one of them does, and one of them doesn't, it's a

tie, a push. No winner. If both of HIS hands beat both of YOURS, you

lose your wager.

It's as simple as that. AND...HERE'S

the best part of ALL -- In THIS game, you can show your cards to not

only the dealer, but to all the other players at the table, and ask for

help. The dealer has to play every hand like what is called "the HOUSE

way," meaning there are certain rules for when he can split pairs, and

other little scenarios.