| When people hear the name of Pai Gow Poker, they would almost be sure that this game originated in a foreign country, but in fact, it was invented in the United States in the 1980’s. Combining the ancient game of Dominos and Poker, Pai Gow Poker was born. While Pai Gow was introduced during the 1800’s, it wasn’t until the 1980’s that Pai Gow Poker started showing up in live casinos in the United States. Pai Gow, which was a domino based game introduced by Chinese Immigrants during the railroad building era, was combined along with basic poker, became known as Pai Gow Poker, which was invented by American, Fred Wolf. The game today is widely played throughout casinos world-wide.
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Top Pai Gow Poker Online Casinos for USA Players |
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Pai Gow Poker, also known as Double Hand Poker, uses a 53-card deck, including a joker, with an object of making 2 winning hands out of 7 cards dealt to the player. One hand will consist of 5 cards, while the other hand will consist of 2 cards. These hands are usually referred to as “High” or “On Top” hand for the 5-card hand, and “Small” or “Low” hand for the 2 card hand. When making the best two hands, players must keep in mind, that the 5-card hand must be better than the 2-card hand. For example, a player can not have a 5-card hand valued with only a high card, and have a 2-card hand valued with a pair. The player wins if both hands beat the dealer’s hand. The player loses if both the dealer’s hands beats both the player’s hands. Lastly, if a player has one winning hand and one losing hand, the player and dealer push or tie. In some cases, ties go to the dealer.
With Pai Gow Poker, there are many strategies involved when playing. A player wants to make sure he wins both hands each time, so making a huge 5-card hand and a weak 2-card hand may not always be the best idea. For example, if a player is dealt A-A-K-K-K-5-4, instead of playing the obvious full house for the 5-card hand, and 55 high card for the 2-card hand, a player will want to consider playing K-K-K-5-4 as a 3-of-a-kind for the 5-card hand, while playing A-A for the 2-card hand, making both hands strong. The more a player plays the game of Pai Gow Poker, the more strategies players will learn as they play. As long as you know the hand values of basic poker, anyone can play the game of Pai Gow Poker. Online Pai Gow Poker gives players the opportunity to practice anytime they would like, to become a great Pai Gow Poker player.
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