Pai Gow Toplist
There are a lot of poker variations out there, but there is only one Pai Gow Poker. Though this poker game is not among the more popular poker games, there are still a lot of online casinos that feature this fine variation if this is your game of choice. Each of these top rated Pai Gow casinos are fully reviewed and ranked based on games, software, customer service, bonuses, security and more.
| 1. | Overall Rating: 96% | ||
|---|---|---|---|
Casino Tropez |
Max Bonus: $3050 Bonus Match: 100% |
Does not accept U.S. Players Visit Casino Read Review |
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| 2. | Overall Rating: 94% | ||
Europa Casino |
Max Bonus: $2450 Bonus Match: 200% |
Does not accept U.S. Players Visit Casino Read Review |
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| 3. | Overall Rating: 95% | ||
888.com Casino |
Max Bonus: $200 Bonus Match: 100% |
Does not accept U.S. Players Visit Casino Read Review |
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| 4. | Overall Rating: 93% | ||
Casino Bellini |
Max Bonus: $150 Bonus Match: 200% |
Does not accept U.S. Players Visit Casino Read Review |
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| 5. | Overall Rating: 92% | ||
Prime Casino |
Max Bonus: $300 Bonus Match: 100% |
Does not accept U.S. Players Visit Casino Read Review |
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| 6. | Overall Rating: 89% | ||
Millionaire Casino |
Max Bonus: $350 Bonus Match: 100% |
Accepts most U.S. players Visit Casino Read Review |
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| 7. | Overall Rating: 86% | ||
Golden Casino |
Max Bonus: $777 Bonus Match: 100% |
Accepts all U.S. Players Visit Casino Read Review |
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| 8. | Overall Rating: 77% | ||
One Club Casino |
Max Bonus: $150 Bonus Match: 150% |
Accepts all U.S. Players Visit Casino Read Review |
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| 9. | Overall Rating: 88% | ||
Spin Palace Casino |
Max Bonus: $50 Bonus Match: 100% |
Does not accept U.S. Players Visit Casino Read Review |
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| 10. | Overall Rating: 84% | ||
32Vegas Casino |
Max Bonus: $3200 Bonus Match: 320% |
Does not accept U.S. Players Visit Casino Read Review |
Online Pai Gow Poker
Pai Gow poker is a game based on the Chinese game of Pai Gow, which is normally played with tiles. Pai Gow poker bears many similarities to regular poker, so if you know how to play regular poker, you are already well on your way to playing Pai Gow poker.
Rules of Poker as Applied to Pai Gow Poker
In Pai Gow poker, as in regular poker, you are trying to make your best poker hands, which are in ascending order, high card, a pair, two pair, three of a kind, a straight, a flush, a full house, four of a kind, a straight flush, a Royal Flush and five of a kind. Five of a kind is possible in Pai Gow poker since it employs a joker, which can be used as an ace or to complete a straight or a flush. In Pai Gow poker, you are dealt seven cards, but unlike seven-card stud, you will actually be using all seven to make your hand. You will make a two card front hand and a five card back hand. Straights and flushes cannot be made on the front hand, so your best front hand would be a pair of aces. However, it is a rule in Pai Gow that your back hand must be stronger than your front hand. If you set your front hand stronger, your hand is fouled and you will lose. In Pai Gow poker, any straight with an ace in it is considered an ace high straight, so A, 2, 3, 4, 5 would beat 9, T, J, Q, K, for example.
Live Pai Gow Poker
In live Pai Gow Poker you are playing against the House, not other players. A cup with dice in it is slammed on the felt before play starts. While this action may confuse and intimidate the uninitiated, the dice rolling has nothing to do with the actual play; it only determines where the first card is dealt. Once all players have set their hands, they compare their hands to the dealer's hand. If both of your hands beat both of the dealer's hands, you win, if both of your hands lose, you lose, otherwise it is a push. If a dealer hand and player hand are exactly the same, the tie goes to the dealer. When a player wins, he must give a five percent commission to the house, which is where the casino gets its edge.
Online Pai Gow Poker
In a live game, you or another player may take on the role of the banker, essentially playing against everyone else at the table and booking their bets. Online, there are no other players, so you will be playing directly against the online casino. If you are not sure how best to set your hand, you can click the "house way" button and the site will set your hand for you. The house will always attempt to set your hand in the optimal fashion.
Pai Gow is actually an old game originating from china but not many people knew about this game before it started appearing in California and Las Vegas in the late 80s. The Pai Gow that we know today is played with a standard deck of cards with one wild card (joker), and the players are trying to make two poker hands out of 7 cards, one five-card hand and one two-card hand.
The house advantage is 2.5% and that is not outrageous. But you can get even better odds when you decide to be the dealer. If you want to get the most out of your money you should look for a table with few players where you can be the dealer more often. Check out our strategy page to learn the best way to play Pai Gow.
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