Pai Gow poker has its origins in Chinese dominos. It has since evolved from an ancient game played in China (called Pai Gow) to the game regularly played by poker enthusiasts today. For whatever reason, the ancient game was merged with various aspects of poker and was given the name, Pai Gow Poker.

In 1987, the game was introduced in masse to the gambling public via a casino in Las Vegas, though it was first played in California after a gentleman by the name of Fred Wolf introduced it that state. A few years later, it was available in the United State’s second largest gambling Mecca, Atlantic City. Now it is played seemingly everywhere. Besides Pai Gow, Keno is another popular game that originated largely in China. As one can see, China has made an incredible impact on the gambling industry.

Today, the game is fairly popular and has a dedicated and loyal group of players and followers. Many of the rules are similar to those you would find in poker, though there re some obvious differences. The game is played with 53 cards. Each player competes with the banker and not each other. The goal is to make the best hand possible. Pai Gow is a pretty slow paced game and is perhaps perfect for individuals with a lot of patience and a small bankroll.

To begin play, each participant will make a wager and then everyone will be dealt seven cards. Every player will then need to split their seven cards into two hands. One will contain five cards and the other 2 cards. The five card hand will be ranked according to poker rules. Pairs will beat single cards in the two card hand and then they will rank individually as normal. The two card hand can not be higher than the five card hand.

After the cards have been separated into two hands, the dealer will arrange his or her cards according to the “house way.” Next, each player’s 5 hand card will be compared with the dealers’. Whoever has a higher hand than the dealer wins. The two cards hands are also compared. If there is a tie, the banker wins out. When a player wins both hands, they are paid out even money, minus a commission of 5%. In cases where the player wins one hand but loses the other, this is called a push. When the player loses both hands, the entire wager is lost. There are other possible outcomes of course, but this is an abbreviated explanation of the game.

Pai Gow poker has evolved a great deal since its ancient beginnings in China where it was once a complicated dominoes game. Today, it utilizes aspects of this game and also those of poker. It has become quite popular and is a favorite of many players around the world.