Tiles OR regular Pai Gow?

Okay, so each is good for bankroll preservation and slow rate of play.
Each of dem got plenty of "Pushes".

Should I learn Pai Gow Poker and sit with the crowd of rather Western fools or would it be better for me to learn this Tiles stuff and sit with the high bankrolled Orientals who get comped better wine but jibber jabber along ending every sentence with a gesture in my direction and the words 'el Gringo'.

If bankroll is a consideration, PGP usually has far lower minimums.

Quote: FleaStiff

Okay, so each is good for bankroll preservation and slow rate of play.
Each of dem got plenty of "Pushes".

Should I learn Pai Gow Poker and sit with the crowd of rather Western fools or would it be better for me to learn this Tiles stuff and sit with the high bankrolled Orientals who get comped better wine but jibber jabber along ending every sentence with a gesture in my direction and the words 'el Gringo'.

"El gringo?" I would expect " gweilo."

I would just like to say, first, that pai gow tiles IS regular pai gow. Pai gow poker came afterwards. If you look at official documents, like the NJDGE revenue reports, pai gow tiles will always be listed as just "pai gow." "Pai gow" in Cantonese means, roughly, "make nine," which is the goal of tiles, not so much the goal of poker.

With that out of the way, I would recommend tiles for bankroll preservation. The pace of the game is much slower because of the shuffle. Tiles is always hand-shuffled, and the dealers always give a generous wash. Then it takes time to deliver the tiles, and then you get players who look at their hands very slowly.

You get players who look at their hands slowly in PGP, too. But the difference is with that auto-shuffler, they fire the next hand immediately.

Also, if you play enough PGP, the urge to bet the fortune side bet becomes higher and higher. And that fortune sidebet decimates bankrolls.

I'm sorry to say that if you aren't playing often, it is really hard to master the simplicity of the tiles, especially at the typical $25 minimum. It's one thing to play weekly, it's entirely another to sit down at the table once every three months. Tiles is a great game, but not for someone who isn't culturally tuned in to tiles.

However, for people familiar with poker, PGP is fairly easy to learn, to the point where you can quickly and intuitively split optimally about 98% of the time, and you only need to memprize a few exceptions. So if you're going to learn one, I'd recommend the cards. The tiles are wonderful fun, but the cards are easier to feel comfortable about with real money on the line.

If you're playing for fun and sociability: pai gow poker.

If you enjoy a real mental challenge: pai gow tiles.

Although the two games are similar, I play them for very different reasons.

You can buy tiles for less than 20 here (IOW less than 1 bet), from a gaming company called spinetti's in Vegas. I did, and they're in excellent shape, they shipped fast, they have their own case for storage. Even though the Wiz has a good tutoring program online, I'm finding it worth having the tiles to deal the game to myself once in a while to learn it. (I've played it, but never LEARNED it.)

JB just posted a really intricate strategy guide for the game in another thread, but I haven't learned all the hand names yet, so it's a little hard to use at the moment, but I'll get there.

Let's look at it from a more practical point of view.

Which table will you find more of on most casino floors? Which table has to specifically be open for you to play there?
Which game is easier for the dealers to deal and deal well? Which one can be a disaster if you find a guy who "thinks" he knows the house ways?
Which game can be played at a lower minimum and which one will be at the very least $25 IF you can find one open.

Pretty simple answer really.......PGP!

Tiles, player has a slight edge that the WHITE/BLACK dealer does not know the rules well and set the hand wrong. Usually players dont say a word. If you are a small time player, the big shot will compensate you for your loss. a small AP. Also dealer makes mistakes ALL THE TIME.