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Rules and strategies for Bonanza Pai Gow Poker

Bonanza Pai Gow Poker is a multi-bet variation of standard Chinese Pai Gow. The game utilizes a standard set of thirty-two Pai Gow tiles and a dice cup containing three dice. It is played on a standard size blackjack table that can accommodate up to six players.

RULES OF PLAY

Bonanza Pai Gow plays the same as traditional Pai Gow except that it offers two additional bets: the Bonus bet and the Tie bet. As depicted in the attached drawing, there are three betting circles in front of each player. The circle with a seat number inside is where the regular Pai Gow bet is placed. The circle labeled "B" is where the Bonus bet is placed. The circle labeled "T" is where the Tie bet is placed. The regular bet is not mandatory, therefore, instead of merely offering a side bet as seen in Fortune Pai Gow Poker and Caribbean Stud Poker, Bonanza Pai Gow is a game similar to Baccarat and Three Card Poker with multiple optional bets.

Before the dealing of the tiles, each player has the option of making any one or any combination of the three bets. The bet amount need not be equal. The game is then dealt according to standard house Pai Gow rules. Three dice are rolled in a dice cup to determine which player gets the first stack of tiles. Counting starts from the Banker, who usually is the house dealer but may also be one of the players, and goes around the table counterclockwise. Starting from the position determined by the dice total, the dealer deals himself and each player four tiles counterclockwise.

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Regular Bet

The regular bet is simply the standard Pai Gow bet as seen in today's casinos.

The players must form two hands, called the high hand and the low hand, by using their four tiles. The high hand must be higher than or at least equal to the low hand according to the standard Pai Gow ranking. After all players have made their decisions, the Banker turns over his four tiles and forms a high hand and a low hand appropriately. Each player competes against the Banker. The player wins if his high hand is higher than that of the Banker and his low hand is also higher than that of the Banker. The player loses if neither of his hands beats the Banker's. If the player wins one hand and loses the other, his bet pushes. If the Player and Banker hands both have the same total, the highest-ranking tile in the hand breaks the tie. The Banker wins all ties if the highest-ranking tiles also tie. When both low hands equal 0, the Banker wins the low hand.

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Tie Bet

A player can bet that his hand and the dealer hand will tie. In the event of a tie, whereas a player with a wager on the regular bet pushes, a Tie bettor will win even money, or be paid at 25:1 or 20:1 if his low hand is at least a Gong. If the player also plays the regular bet, then both bets are adjudicated by the same hand set by the player. In other words, the player is only allowed to set his hand once, but not separately. No commission is charged on a winning Tie bet.

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Bonus Bet

Unlike the regular bet, the Bonus bet player doesn't compete against the dealer. With a Bonus bet, the player will win if his 4 tiles make up one of the eight Bonus hands illustrated below.

Bonus Pay Tables
Winning Hand	Table 1	Table 2	Table 3	Table 4	Table 5
Supreme Pair and Heaven Pair	100 to 1	200 to 1	200 to 1	100 to 1	4 to 1
Supreme Pair and Earth Pair	50 to 1	60 to 1	60 to 1	50 to 1	4 to 1
Heaven Pair and Earth Pair	30 to 1	30 to 1	30 to 1	30 to 1	4 to 1
Lame Duck	20 to 1	20 to 1	20 to 1	20 to 1	4 to 1
Two Pair	12 to 1	12 to 1	12 to 1	12 to 1	4 to 1
Supreme, Heaven or Earth Pair	5 to 1	5 to 1	6 to 1	6 to 1	4 to 1
One Pair	2 to 1	2 to 1	2 to 1	2 to 1	4 to 1
Wong	1 to 1	1 to 1	1 to 1	1 to 1	Lose

No commission is charged on a winning Bonus bet.

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Winning Bonus Hand Illustrations

Supreme Pair and Heaven Pair: +

Supreme Pair and Earth Pair: +

Heaven Pair and Earth Pair: +

Lame Duck: + OR + OR OR

Two Pair:       Any two pairs. Click here to veiw all Pai Gow Pairs.

Supreme, Heaven or Earth Pair: OR OR

One Pair:       Any pair. Click here to veiw all Pai Gow Pairs.

Wong:

The player is eligible to win the bonus if any two of his four tiles can form a pair or Wong. Should his hand comprise both a pair and Wong, only the pair will be paid the bonus. Furthermore, if the player also plays the regular bet, the bonus will be paid no matter how the player sets his high and low hands.

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Advantages Over Standard Pai Gow

Increased action and invariable edge

Unlike standard Pai Gow wherein pushes occur about 40% of the time, the Tie bet and the Bonus bet in Bonanza Pai Gow result in a decision every hand. Also, in standard Pai Gow the house edge is vastly reduced if the players bank every other hand, whereas the house edge on the Bonus bet and the Tie bet never changes whether the players bank or not.

Enhanced player appeal

The Tie bet should appeal to regular Pai Gow players because their experience tells them ties occur very often. Player appeal is also enhanced by the high hit frequency and high payoff odds. The Bonus bet players will win once every 3.7 hands. The high payoffs for premium hands should draw players not content with even-money payoffs.

Winning with the 'worst' hand

The Bonus bet has a unique feature in that not only will the player win big awards for favorable results in rare instances, but also receive an award for the worst hand. A "Lame Duck," the worst Pai Gow hand that comprises a high 6, a low 6, any 7 and any 4, pays 20 to 1. Making the Bonus bet not only turns a disappointment into a pleasant surprise for the player but also insures against a sure loss for the regular bet.

Simple and easy to learn

The Tie bet is straightforward. The Bonus bet requires no skill. A player can play the Bonus bet even if he can't identify a winner by himself. So, novice players won't be intimidated and can be cultivated to become prospective regular Pai Gow players because once they've learned how to identify Jee Joon, Wong, Gong, etc., they will try to learn how to set the hands.

Incremental profits

Unlike other new table games, Bonanza Pai Gow does not replace your existing Pai Gow game. Your regular patrons can still play the regular bet. So, your current revenues won't be reduced but your profits will increase if they play the Tie and Bonus bets.

Bonanza Pai Gow was introduced at Crown Casino, Melbourne, Australia in January 2001 and by June 2001 all 6 of their standard Pai Gow games had been converted to Bonanza Pai Gow. Bonanza Pai Gow increased their hold percentage vastly, achieving an increase of between $50 and $70 per table per open hour in comparison to standard Pai Gow games.

Pai Gow has been regarded as an esoteric Asian game whose complexity intimidates other ethnic groups of players. Bonanza Pai Gow can help bridge the gap and increase its popularity.

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