Here in NetBet casino, you can play thousands of exciting games. We’re not just talking about online slots, which are well and truly entertaining. Every great online casino will have a variety of games on offer, including luck and skill-based table and card games which we’ll feature right here!
What is Pai Gow?
Pai Gow is an ancient Chinese game played with a set of 32 dominoes. You may just know it as dominoes in your country, but it is in fact Chinese. The game is played in major casinos all around the world including Macau, Las Vegas, Australia, and more. You can even find instances of it online, although more commonly, you’ll find it referred to as Pai Gow Poker.
The modern game of Pai Gow played in online casinos such as NetBet combines elements from the Chinese game with the game of poker. It’s a slow-paced card game played with a traditional deck of 52 cards and a joker. It’s a game that appeals to players of leisure games since the pace is much slower than even blackjack or craps.
Still, it’s as exciting as it gets as it combines the best elements of two great games.
Pai Gow Rules
If you’ve played dominoes before and you’re also passionate about poker, Pai Gow will look pretty familiar. Before you start playing, though, it’s good to know the poker rules and hands. The goal of the game is for both your hands (two-card and five-card) to rank higher than the dealer’s, so this obviously requires previous knowledge of poker hands.
The joker that we mentioned isn’t a wild – it acts as an ace and can be used to complete a Straight or a Flush. For each Pai Gow hand, one of the players is designated the dealer. All others are competing against him. When the bets are live and the dealing starts, all players will receive 7 cards. They will then use their skills to complete two separate poker hands – a low hand and a high hand.
The dealer then compares his hands to all the others on the table, determining wins, ties, and losses. A tie occurs when a single hand ranks exactly as the dealer’s. The dealer wins all ties.
Pai Gow Payouts
All winning hands in Pai Gow are paid 1:1, with a 5% commission. Losing hands lose the money wagered, while a push sees no money exchanging hands.
Unlike other variants of poker, there are no side bets to play. You simply place a wager before the game begins and compare the hands. The game might be a bit slower than other casino games, but it’s simple to play and quite exciting for fans of leisure games.
When you choose NetBet Casino, you can enjoy a whole range of top quality games. Whatever you choose, always remember to bet responsibly. Here at NetBet, player wellbeing is our number one priority – check out our Responsible Gambling tips and tools page for more information.