Interesting Pai Gow Poker hand

Maybe I shouldn't bother posting this, because for the life of me I can't remember precisely what the hand was, but it was interesting, so here goes.

This happened over a year ago, that's probably why I can't remember, plus I just heard about it, wasn't dealing myself. So the dealer gets like three different good hands in one. Depending on what they play in the high hand will affect their low hand, obviously, and there was no clear rule about how the dealer was supposed to play it, so he called over the supervisor.

For some reason I'm thinking it was an A-5 straight, and Aces full of 3's Full House. But that isn't working out in my head, so it might've been an Ace High flush. The point is, the dealer could've played a decent high hand with Aces up, or a really good high hand, but with 3's up (Or maybe Ace-3 up) The supervisor told him to play the lower low hand.

I was thinking it was the wrong play, because the dealer CAN"T lose if the Aces are played up top, and still a good chance they would win the high hand also. I think it was all a moot point anyway since the dealer would've beat everybody regardless of how it was played.

Has anyone ran into this. Would it not be ideal for the dealer to play Aces up? I'm sure it depends on what the high hand would be, but from what I can remember the dealer usually plays whatever gives them the higher low hand.

Familiar with these types of hands. Generally, if you have aces up and trips down, you have a monster, but this hand is also equivelant to having 10's up and a flush down, which is a vitual lock on the high side, while low trips is 80% on the high side. In these cases, it matters little if you play it 100%/80%, versus 80%/100%.

I too had an interesting hand a couple months or so ago, and had forgotten it until I read your post, so if you dont mind me tacking onto this one....

picked up my cards to look at and set the hand and was happy to see all black... easy flush I figured, right? Wrong, turns out I had four of one of the black suits and three of the other; as I pondered what the odds of that would be (which probably arent as high as I think) I noticed I just had a plain old pai gow hand.. not just a pai gow though, but a 10 high pai gow. So, what are the odds of getting a 10 high pai gow in one color or the other?

Thanks in advance,

SoulChaser

oh, man! That 7 card all-black 10-high paigow is a brutal hand. it's gotta be pretty rare as well.

Here's my rare hand/bad-beat dujour:

Last month, I got As*9d7d6d5d4Dd. That's a wild 6 card straight flush and an offsuit ace. I set it as a flush with aces up, and I'm pretty confident that's the best play. I lost to AA/JJJ33. I could have pushed if I played the straight flush with A9 up. One of the best hands I've ever had, and there was no way I could've won.

I once had 7c8c9c<joker>JcQcKs. I just about fell out of my chair when i saw all of that together. The king was the right color, just the wrong suit. <<

Quote: cestanl

I once had 7c8c9c<joker>JcQcKs. I just about fell out of my chair when i saw all of that together. The king was the right color, just the wrong suit. <<

Did you happen to have a progressive bet down? I'd have needed a nitroglycerin tab after that hand!

Quote: ewjones080

For some reason I'm thinking it was an A-5 straight, and Aces full of 3's Full House. But that isn't working out in my head, so it might've been an Ace High flush. The point is, the dealer could've played a decent high hand with Aces up, or a really good high hand, but with 3's up (Or maybe Ace-3 up)

Could it have been Joker-Ace-Ace-3-3-4-5 ?

Viable choice 1: A-W-3-4-5 with A-3 low hand
Viable choice 2: W-A-A-4-5 with 3-3 low hand
Viable choice 3: W-A-A-3-3 with 4-5 low hand

Although there is no way to play Ace-Ace or Ace-Joker in the low hand, so perhaps that wasn't it.

Quote: JB

Could it have been Joker-Ace-Ace-3-3-4-5 ?

Viable choice 1: A-W-3-4-5 with A-3 low hand
Viable choice 2: W-A-A-4-5 with 3-3 low hand
Viable choice 3: W-A-A-3-3 with 4-5 low hand

Although there is no way to play Ace-Ace or Ace-Joker in the low hand, so perhaps that wasn't it.

Reinstated:

Maybe A*33345?
that'd give A*/33345 or A*345/33

Edit: and, for fun, let's call that a straight flush with 33. That'd make it a harder decision, otherwise AA/333xx is much better.

It could also be according to OP AW23345 this one would split A2W45/33.
But if AA or AW in small hand... AAW2345. This one is tricky in that one looks for the Flush/Str-Flush, also, playing the best 5-card hand with the Aces on top.

Quote: rdw4potus

Did you happen to have a progressive bet down? I'd have needed a nitroglycerin tab after that hand!

I wasn't playing at a progressive table at the time. It would have only paid 1,000 to 1 for the 7 card wild straight flush on the bonus bet. It was an Emperor's Challenge table. The natural straight flush would have been much better, an 8,000-1 payday

Quote: rdw4potus

Reinstated:

Maybe A*33345?
that'd give A*/33345 or A*345/33

Edit: and, for fun, let's call that a straight flush with 33. That'd make it a harder decision, otherwise AA/333xx is much better.

Yep, I think this must've been what it was. JB I thought you actually had it right, and that I had forgotten something, or wasn't remembering something right. But Aces with trips on bottom or straight with 3's on top. There wasn't a straight flush possibility. Since it wasn't clearly defined in our rules how it should be played, it made it weirder. I still think Aces up is better, since what you give up by putting 3's up instead isn't made up for by having a straight as opposed to trips in the bottom. (Wow, there's a lot of "up"s in that last sentence..haha)

Quote: rdw4potus

Reinstated:

Maybe A*33345?
that'd give A*/33345 or A*345/33

Edit: and, for fun, let's call that a straight flush with 33. That'd make it a harder decision, otherwise AA/333xx is much better.

Very Close. Couldn't sleep until calc-ed....
The setting A*/33345 is a 78% win EV
The setting 33/A*345 is a 72% EV win. Both monsters.

The cut-off point for ditching low trips with Aces on top, to play an A-high straight or flush bottom with a pair top is is the pair is 7's or better.

Quote: Paigowdan

Very Close. Couldn't sleep until calc-ed....
The setting A*/33345 is a 78% win EV with 22% pushes
The setting 33/A*345 is a 72% EV win. Both monsters. with, what, about 23% pushes and 5% loss

The cut-off point for ditching low trips with Aces on top, to play an A-high straight or flush bottom with a pair top is is the pair is 7's or better.

This was the dealers hand, so Aces can't be beat on top. But there's a chance split full house could be beat, and that's what I thought was strange that that's what was played. Needless to say, nobody could beat either.

Quote: Paigowdan

Very Close. Couldn't sleep until calc-ed....
The setting A*/33345 is a 78% win EV
The setting 33/A*345 is a 72% EV win. Both monsters.

The cut-off point for ditching low trips with Aces on top, to play an A-high straight or flush bottom with a pair top is is the pair is 7's or better.

Wow, that is close!! How much of a difference is there if A2345 is the second highest straight instead of the lowest straight?