Pai Poker Casino Game
Introduction
The house edge is defined as the ratio of the average loss to the initial bet. In some games the beginning wager is not necessarily the ending wager. For example in blackjack, let it ride, and Caribbean stud poker, the player may increase their bet when the odds favor doing so. In these cases the additional money wagered is not figured into the denominator for the purpose of determining the house edge, thus increasing the measure of risk. For games like Ultimate Texas Hold 'Em and Crazy 4 Poker, where there are two required initial wagers, the house edge is based on one of them only. House edge figures are based on optimal or near-optimal player strategy.
The table below shows the house edge of most popular casino games and bets.
Pai Gow Poker is a fun card game played in online casinos. Most developers have a casino online version of the game you can play for real money. The game is played between one player and the dealer. After an initial bet, both players are dealt seven cards (a joker is also included in the deck). Pai Gow Poker for real money uses a 53-card deck. It includes 52 cards, plus a joker that can act as a wild card in certain situations. Unlike video poker games where Jokers are fully wild, in Pai.
Casino Game House Edge
Play Pai Gow Poker at casino online by simply selecting the number of chips to use, as soon as you get the cards: choose two leading to a weaker hand. The next highest card wins once your previous completed card was a high card or with no pairs. If the gambler and the dealer have similar value hands, the dealer’s wins. Pai Gow is based on an old Chinese dominos game that was later converted into poker for those who prefer cards. Today, you can find it in online and land-based casinos, and it is played with a traditional. Pai Gow Poker is loosely based on the Chinese game of Pai Gow which is played with 32 dominos. For this casino game, the dominos are replaced by a set of playing cards. There are 53 cards in all (the usual 52 cards plus one joker). In this game, you’re playing against the dealer.
| Game | Bet/Rules | House Edge | Standard Deviation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baccarat | Banker | 1.06% | 0.93 |
| Player | 1.24% | 0.95 | |
| Tie | 14.36% | 2.64 | |
| Big Six | $1 | 11.11% | 0.99 |
| $2 | 16.67% | 1.34 | |
| $5 | 22.22% | 2.02 | |
| $10 | 18.52% | 2.88 | |
| $20 | 22.22% | 3.97 | |
| Joker/Logo | 24.07% | 5.35 | |
| Bonus Six | No insurance | 10.42% | 5.79 |
| With insurance | 23.83% | 6.51 | |
| Blackjacka | Liberal Vegas rules | 0.28% | 1.15 |
| Caribbean Stud Poker | 5.22% | 2.24 | |
| Casino War | Go to war on ties | 2.88% | 1.05 |
| Surrender on ties | 3.70% | 0.94 | |
| Bet on tie | 18.65% | 8.32 | |
| Catch a Wave | 0.50% | d | |
| Craps | Pass/Come | 1.41% | 1.00 |
| Don't pass/don't come | 1.36% | 0.99 | |
| Odds — 4 or 10 | 0.00% | 1.41 | |
| Odds — 5 or 9 | 0.00% | 1.22 | |
| Odds — 6 or 8 | 0.00% | 1.10 | |
| Field (2:1 on 12) | 5.56% | 1.08 | |
| Field (3:1 on 12) | 2.78% | 1.14 | |
| Any craps | 11.11% | 2.51 | |
| Big 6,8 | 9.09% | 1.00 | |
| Hard 4,10 | 11.11% | 2.51 | |
| Hard 6,8 | 9.09% | 2.87 | |
| Place 6,8 | 1.52% | 1.08 | |
| Place 5,9 | 4.00% | 1.18 | |
| Place 4,10 | 6.67% | 1.32 | |
| Place (to lose) 4,10 | 3.03% | 0.69 | |
| 2, 12, & all hard hops | 13.89% | 5.09 | |
| 3, 11, & all easy hops | 11.11% | 3.66 | |
| Any seven | 16.67% | 1.86 | |
| Crazy 4 Poker | Ante | 3.42%* | 3.13* |
| Double Down Stud | 2.67% | 2.97 | |
| Heads Up Hold 'Em | Blind pay table #1 (500-50-10-8-5) | 2.36% | 4.56 |
| Keno | 25%-29% | 1.30-46.04 | |
| Let it Ride | 3.51% | 5.17 | |
| Pai Gowc | 1.50% | 0.75 | |
| Pai Gow Pokerc | 1.46% | 0.75 | |
| Pick ’em Poker | 0% - 10% | 3.87 | |
| Red Dog | Six decks | 2.80% | 1.60 |
| Roulette | Single Zero | 2.70% | e |
| Double Zero | 5.26% | e | |
| Sic-Bo | 2.78%-33.33% | e | |
| Slot Machines | 2%-15%f | 8.74g | |
| Spanish 21 | Dealer hits soft 17 | 0.76% | d |
| Dealer stands on soft 17 | 0.40% | d | |
| Super Fun 21 | 0.94% | d | |
| Three Card Poker | Pairplus | 7.28% | 2.85 |
| Ante & play | 3.37% | 1.64 | |
| Ultimate Texas Hold 'Em | Ante | 2.19% | 4.94 |
| Video Poker | Jacks or Better (Full Pay) | 0.46% | 4.42 |
| Wild Hold ’em Fold ’em | 6.86% | d |
Notes
| a | Liberal Vegas Strip rules: Dealer stands on soft 17, player may double on any two cards, player may double after splitting, resplit aces, late surrender. |
| b | Las Vegas single deck rules are dealer hits on soft 17, player may double on any two cards, player may not double after splitting, one card to split aces, no surrender. |
| c | Assuming player plays the house way, playing one on one against dealer, and half of bets made are as banker. |
| d | Yet to be determined. |
| e | Standard deviation depends on bet made. |
| f | Slot machine range is based on available returns from a major manufacturer |
| g | Slot machine standard deviation based on just one machine. While this can vary, the standard deviation on slot machines are very high. |
Guide to House Edge
The reason that the house edge is relative to the original wager, not the average wager, is that it makes it easier for the player to estimate how much they will lose. For example if a player knows the house edge in blackjack is 0.6% he can assume that for every $10 wager original wager he makes he will lose 6 cents on the average. Most players are not going to know how much their average wager will be in games like blackjack relative to the original wager, thus any statistic based on the average wager would be difficult to apply to real life questions.
The conventional definition can be helpful for players determine how much it will cost them to play, given the information they already know. However the statistic is very biased as a measure of risk. In Caribbean stud poker, for example, the house edge is 5.22%, which is close to that of double zero roulette at 5.26%. However the ratio of average money lost to average money wagered in Caribbean stud is only 2.56%. The player only looking at the house edge may be indifferent between roulette and Caribbean stud poker, based only the house edge. If one wants to compare one game against another I believe it is better to look at the ratio of money lost to money wagered, which would show Caribbean stud poker to be a much better gamble than roulette.
Many other sources do not count ties in the house edge calculation, especially for the Don’t Pass bet in craps and the banker and player bets in baccarat. The rationale is that if a bet isn’t resolved then it should be ignored. I personally opt to include ties although I respect the other definition.
Element of Risk
For purposes of comparing one game to another I would like to propose a different measurement of risk, which I call the 'element of risk.' This measurement is defined as the average loss divided by total money bet. For bets in which the initial bet is always the final bet there would be no difference between this statistic and the house edge. Bets in which there is a difference are listed below.
Element of Risk
Pai Poker Casino Game Daily Themed Crossword
| Game | Bet | House Edge | Element of Risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blackjack | Atlantic City rules | 0.43% | 0.38% |
| Bonus 6 | No insurance | 10.42% | 5.41% |
| Bonus 6 | With insurance | 23.83% | 6.42% |
| Caribbean Stud Poker | 5.22% | 2.56% | |
| Casino War | Go to war on ties | 2.88% | 2.68% |
| Crazy 4 Poker | Standard rules | 3.42%* | 1.09% |
| Heads Up Hold 'Em | Pay Table #1 (500-50-10-8-5) | 2.36% | 0.64% |
| Double Down Stud | 2.67% | 2.13% | |
| Let it Ride | 3.51% | 2.85% | |
| Spanish 21 | Dealer hits soft 17 | 0.76% | 0.65% |
| Spanish 21 | Dealer stands on soft 17 | 0.40% | 0.30% |
| Three Card Poker | Ante & play | 3.37% | 2.01% |
| Ultimate Texas Hold 'Em | 2.19%* | 0.53% | |
| Wild Hold ’em Fold ’em | 6.86% | 3.23% |
Standard Deviation
The standard deviation is a measure of how volatile your bankroll will be playing a given game. This statistic is commonly used to calculate the probability that the end result of a session of a defined number of bets will be within certain bounds.
The standard deviation of the final result over n bets is the product of the standard deviation for one bet (see table) and the square root of the number of initial bets made in the session. This assumes that all bets made are of equal size. The probability that the session outcome will be within one standard deviation is 68.26%. The probability that the session outcome will be within two standard deviations is 95.46%. The probability that the session outcome will be within three standard deviations is 99.74%. The following table shows the probability that a session outcome will come within various numbers of standard deviations.
I realize that this explanation may not make much sense to someone who is not well versed in the basics of statistics. If this is the case I would recommend enriching yourself with a good introductory statistics book.
Standard Deviation
| Number | Probability |
|---|---|
| 0.25 | 0.1974 |
| 0.50 | 0.3830 |
| 0.75 | 0.5468 |
| 1.00 | 0.6826 |
| 1.25 | 0.7888 |
| 1.50 | 0.8664 |
| 1.75 | 0.9198 |
| 2.00 | 0.9546 |
| 2.25 | 0.9756 |
| 2.50 | 0.9876 |
| 2.75 | 0.9940 |
| 3.00 | 0.9974 |
| 3.25 | 0.9988 |
| 3.50 | 0.9996 |
| 3.75 | 0.9998 |
Hold
Although I do not mention hold percentages on my site the term is worth defining because it comes up a lot. The hold percentage is the ratio of chips the casino keeps to the total chips sold. This is generally measured over an entire shift. For example if blackjack table x takes in $1000 in the drop box and of the $1000 in chips sold the table keeps $300 of them (players walked away with the other $700) then the game's hold is 30%. If every player loses their entire purchase of chips then the hold will be 100%. It is possible for the hold to exceed 100% if players carry to the table chips purchased at another table. A mathematician alone can not determine the hold because it depends on how long the player will sit at the table and the same money circulates back and forth. There is a lot of confusion between the house edge and hold, especially among casino personnel.
Hands per Hour, House Edge for Comp Purposes
The following table shows the average hands per hour and the house edge for comp purposes various games. The house edge figures are higher than those above, because the above figures assume optimal strategy, and those below reflect player errors and average type of bet made. This table was given to me anonymously by an executive with a major Strip casino and is used for rating players.
Hands per Hour and Average House Edge
Pai Poker Casino Game
| Games | Hands/Hour | House Edge |
|---|---|---|
| Baccarat | 72 | 1.2% |
| Blackjack | 70 | 0.75% |
| Big Six | 10 | 15.53% |
| Craps | 48 | 1.58% |
| Car. Stud | 50 | 1.46% |
| Let It Ride | 52 | 2.4% |
| Mini-Baccarat | 72 | 1.2% |
| Midi-Baccarat | 72 | 1.2% |
| Pai Gow | 30 | 1.65% |
| Pai Pow Poker | 34 | 1.96% |
| Roulette | 38 | 5.26% |
| Single 0 Roulette | 35 | 2.59% |
| Casino War | 65 | 2.87% |
| Spanish 21 | 75 | 2.2% |
| Sic Bo | 45 | 8% |
| 3 Way Action | 70 | 2.2% |
Footnotes
* — House edge based on Ante bet only as opposed to all mandatory wagers (for example the Blind in Ultimate Texas Hold 'Em and the Super Bonus in Crazy 4 Poker.
Translation
A Spanish translation of this page is available at www.eldropbox.com.
Written by: Michael Shackleford
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How to Play Pai Gow Poker
The reason Pai Gow poker continues to be a casino staple, both online and off, is because it’s a fun, rewarding game that’s very easy to pick up. The object of the game is to make two poker hands: one 5-card hand and one 2-card hand. If your two hands beat the dealer’s hands, you win! If only one of your two hands beats the dealer’s, it’s a push (a tie) and the bet is neither won nor lost.
To play most version of Pai Gow poker, all you need is a standard 52-card deck with one Joker, which can be used only as an Ace or to complete any straight or flush. The game begins with individual wagers getting placed and the dealer rolling dice in a cup to determine who receives the first hand. Once the order is determined, the cards are dealt in a clockwise rotation as indicated by the dice.
Each player receives seven cards to make their two hands of five and two. The hand containing five cards is known as the high hand while the one with just two cards is known as the low hand. The five-card high hand uses the same ranking system you may already know from standard poker games. The two-card low hand can only be two high cards or a pair, with a pair of Aces being the best possible outcome players can hope for.
It’s important to note that your 5-card hand MUST be higher than your low hand. For example, if you’re dealt an Ace, a Queen, a Jack, two 8s, a four and a six of different suits, your pair of 8s can’t make up the low hand. Because the high hand must outrank the low hand, the pair you’ve been dealt in this example must be the high hand and the Ace, Queen-high would be the low hand.
Failing to make your high hand outrank your low hand is called “fouling your hand” and can cost players their bets. Luckily, when you play Pai Gow poker online at our casino, our games have mechanics built-in to them to prevent players from making this costly mistake. This is a tip reserved for those of you who may venture to a Pai Gow poker table at land casino, but it’s still worth knowing even if you’re playing exclusively online as it’ll help you get accustomed to the flow of the game.
Another important thing to note about playing Pai Gow poker online is to leave everything you know about regular poker at the door--besides what makes a winning hand, of course. Whether you’ve come up playing 5-card stud or Texas Hold ‘Em, if you have any experience with poker then you know that the key to the game is not to play the cards but the players at the table. Real money Pai Gow poker doesn’t work this way. Pai Gow poker is all about beating the dealer. Forget about what cards the person next to you is holding. Just focus on beating both the dealer’s high and low hands.
Online Pai Gow Poker Strategy
Something all players need to remember about real money Pai Gow poker is that you can’t lose your money if just one of your hands beats the dealer. With this in mind, the most common strategy for playing Pai Gow poker is for players to split their hand, giving them the strongest possible two-card hands.
Of course, there are exceptions to every strategy. Include this one. If you’re able to make a strong five-card hand like a straight or better, then splitting your hand could be counterproductive.
When playing hands with no pairs, the best thing for new players to do is to leave the highest-ranked card in the big hand and put the second two highest-ranking cards in the front hand. This way your front hand is as strong as possible without outranking the back hand.
Some basic online Pai Gow poker strategies new players can lean on include:
If you have one pair in your hand: play the pair in your high hand and leave the other two highest cards in your low hand.
If you have two pairs, you should split them up if: you’ve been dealt a pair of Aces, two high pairs (i.e. a pair of any face cards or Aces), one high pair and one medium (pairs of sevens through tens).
If you are dealt two pairs, you should split them up unless you have an Ace. So, two medium pairs or one high pair and one low pair.
You should always play a 3-of-a-kind in your high hand unless you have an Ace. If you’re dealt three Aces, it’s certainly tempting to leave them all in your high hand, but a pair of Aces is typically enough to beat the dealer’s high hand, and an Ace-high in your low hand may be the edge you need to beat their other hand.
You should always play straights and flushes in your high hand unless you also have two pairs. Spreading the wealth across both of your hands can be the difference between winning and settling for a push.
It’s counter-intuitive, but split-up four-of-a-kinds. This is a great strategy particularly if you are dealt a four-of-a-kind of Jacks or higher. In virtually any form of poker, players are over the moon to be dealt a four-of-a-kind because their odds of winning are high from the beginning. However, in Pai Gow poker, you have to beat two hands, so while it may seem counter-intuitive to break up a four-of-a-kind, it increases your chances of avoiding a push.
Break up the Full House. Another counter-intuitive tip for anyone who has ever played a poker game that wasn’t influenced by Pai Gow, but it really comes in handy. If you’re dealt a Full House, place the pair in your 2-card hand and the three-of-a-kind in your 3-card hand. The only exception is if you’re dealt a second pair. In the event that you’re lucky enough to have a Full House with a pair to spare, it’s ideal to put the high pair in your 2-card hand while construction the Full House with the lower pair.
If you have a hand with five Aces...Some card players are probably looking at this with mouths agape, ready to laugh at the egregious error included in this Pai Gow poker strategy guide. However, it is possible for players to be dealt five aces because remember the Jokers are in play and can be counted as an Ace. With this in mind, it is possible for players to be dealt five Aces--even though it’s not common. However, if you ever find yourself with a hand that has five Aces, it’s certainly jarring to see.
Once you get over the initial shock of seeing five Aces in your hand, make sure to split them up so that you have three-of-a-kind and a pair of Aces. The odds of the dealer having a better high hand or low hand are minuscule. The only exception is when you have a pair of Kings with your five Aces. Make your low hand out of the pair of Kings and keep your five Aces together and you’re almost guaranteed to win.
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