Pai Gow Poker Different Games

Hi. I am new to the site but am finding tons of interesting information and topics. I am fairly new to Pai Gow Poker and have played only a few times but have been reading on rules, strategy etc. to optimize my strategy. My question is this, is there any difference in the different Pai Gow Poker games in the casino such as Progressive, Fortune, Dragon, Emperor's Challenge and any others that may be out there.

Thanks in advance for any input.

PGP is my favorite game. I find it very relaxing and interesting to play, sometimes profitable.
The different names you stated refer to the different side bets available. We have a resident expert on this site - PaiGowDan. He gives excellent advice on this game and explains it very well. I bet he will respond to your question when he sees it.

First - The different names have to do with sidebets. EZ Pai Gow or no commission Pai Gow, is the only game that actually changes the rules. Pai Gow usually has a 5% commission, but those games eliminate the commission by making a Q high pai gow a push.

Now for the sidebets -

Progressive is the hardest one to find. But it gives a jackpot to a certain high hand.

Fortune is probably the most common. There's different paytables for bonus hands that can be found on wizardofodds site.

Dragon might refer to Pai Gow Plus or games where you can bet on an additional hand. On Pai Gow plus, there are 6 betting spots, and a 7th hand is dealt that all players can bet on. The hand is set the house way and played against the house.

Emperor's Challenge usually refers to a Pai Gow game that has a "Pai Gow Insurance" bet as well as the typical bonus bet. Any Pai Gow will result in a pay from 3-1 for an A high up to around 100-1 for a 9 high.

Pretty much the game is the same anywhere (Besides the way the house sets hands, which is different everywhere), but the types of bonuses vary heavily from casino to casino.

Thanks for the information! Another quick question...what does Pai Gow mean? The other players kept calling out hands as "Pai Gow" and i was to embarresed to ask what that meant at the table but based on my observation i would guess that it means a hand that simply consists of a high card as each hand. I tried to search the internet but could not find a definition for the word just a description of the game.

Quote: jsantee97

what does Pai Gow mean?

In the case of the game, it means "Nothing". I.E. No pair, no straight, etc.

In the case of translating Chinese, I have no idea, but would be very surprised if it too meant "Nothing".

Quote: DJTeddyBear

In the case of the game, it means "Nothing". I.E. No pair, no straight, etc.

In the case of translating Chinese, I have no idea, but would be very surprised if it too meant "Nothing".

Pai Gow means something like "To make nine"

This probably has something to do with Pai Gow tiles, but I've tried several times to learn Pai Gow tiles, and I just can't seem to.

That makes since, since, in tiles, niine is the highest numbered score that can be achieved. There are a few named scores that are higher, but if it's numbered, adding 7 and 5 makes 3 not 13.

There's no equivalent in PG Poker, so in PGP, it does mean nothing.

As far as learning PG Tiles, the Wiz' simulator is great, as are his pages on the subject. For what it's worth, I have a hard time remembering / recognizing the Gong, Wong and unmatched pairs.

Quote: FinsRule

Pai Gow means something like "To make nine"

This probably has something to do with Pai Gow tiles, but I've tried several times to learn Pai Gow tiles, and I just can't seem to.

That's exactly what it means. Specifically, "gow" is "nine". And nine is the best "normal" hand you can make, excluding wongs/gongs/pairs.

The card game was named that because it had the same characteristics as the tile game: form a high and a low hand and compare each, players could bank, etc. Later on, the ironic nature of "make nine" helped keep the name going--in the card game version, a 9-high is the worst possible hand.

Quote: jsantee97

Thanks for the information! Another quick question...what does Pai Gow mean? The other players kept calling out hands as "Pai Gow" and i was to embarresed to ask what that meant at the table but based on my observation i would guess that it means a hand that simply consists of a high card as each hand. I tried to search the internet but could not find a definition for the word just a description of the game.

I think what the players are calling for is the dealer to have the worst possible 7 card hand, "9-high" with no flush. It would be 2,3,4,5,7,8,9 with a max of four in any single suit.

Quote: Ayecarumba

I think what the players are calling for is the dealer to have the worst possible 7 card hand, "9-high" with no flush. It would be 2,3,4,5,7,8,9 with a max of four in any single suit.

I've never seen that hand. Seems it would be as rare -- or rarer -- than a royal.

Quote: teddys

I've never seen that hand. Seems it would be as rare -- or rarer -- than a royal.

I've gotten 2 royals, and 2 9 high Pai Gows. I had to look it up to find out that a 9 high pai gow is very very very slightly more common than a Royal.

Quote: teddys

I've never seen that hand. Seems it would be as rare -- or rarer -- than a royal.

There are 9,024 ways to make a true royal with any other two cards (including the possibility of a joker as one of the extra two cards.) According the calculation on gamelive.com, there are 32,760 ways to make the 9-high (including the slightly "better" 9-8-7-6-4-3-2). It is still rare enough, that a bonus is paid at some joints.