My new pai gow tiles!

I'm going to make a go at this. Thanks, Wiz, for talking this up; this is going to be fun. My only problem with playing on the computer is memorizing the top hands, and the tie breakers. So I bought a set of tiles. I figure handling them and placing them in rank, playing mock hands, treating them like flash cards etc will help me learn them.

The strategy itself, that really isn't so hard. In some cases you want to maximize the low, in some cases you want to maximize the high, in a whole lot of cases it's obvious, and there are a few subtle plays. It's memorizing the tiles and knowing the game movements at the table that make the difference, when there's money out there.

I bought them through Amazon, I had a bunch of free points so the whole thing was $0.00.

Getting your own tiles and getting comfortable viewing and handling them is a huge step toward being confident playing in the casino. But beware...

I bought my tiles through Amazon as well. Mine are considerably thicker than the tiles used in the casinos. So I got comfortable handling my tiles, then went to the casino and proceeded to toss their tiles all over the place because they didn't feel the same.

Haha, these are very substantial. I'll probably have the exact same problem.

I forgot to post the photo:

Quote: Mosca

I bought them through Amazon, I had a bunch of free points so the whole thing was $0.00.

Horseshoe Southern Indiana does sell used Tiles sets that would have been used in casinos. I have a set and really enjoy playing with them.

I agree, having your own set of tiles is helpful to learning the game. Plus, there is something about them I find enjoyable to look at and touch.

Last Friday I had lunch with Michael Musante. Turns out we live about three miles from each other. I plan to have him as a guest on my radio show soon. As you know, there is a technique in his book to learning the tile order.

Quote: Wizard

I agree, having your own set of tiles is helpful to learning the game. Plus, there is something about them I find enjoyable to look at and touch.

Last Friday I had lunch with Michael Musante. Turns out we live about three miles from each other. I plan to have him as a guest on my radio show soon. As you know, there is a technique in his book to learning the tile order.

Not quite yet, I don't! I started reading, and Mrs turned on The King's Speech on Showtime, and I had to stop and watch. It's not like we're going to AC tomorrow, I have time. It was good to see that film again, it holds up well.

Tell Mr Musante that I enjoy his book, I enjoy his authorial voice. The words flow naturally. Although it is an instructional book, it nevertheless tells a story as well.

We went up to Mohegan for dinner tonight, and they have tiles. At the one table that was active, there was a younger guy who was very friendly. I asked if he minded if I watched, and he accommodated me; I watched a dozen hands, where he put the tiles out and then asked me how I'd set them, then explained the reasoning on the edgy ones.

THAT was cool, I got a feel for the pace of the game. He said, "You're OK to play when, as soon as the dealer shows, you know whether you won or not." Well, I might take a while to get there, but I'm not far away from giving it a shot.

Quote: Mosca

He said, "You're OK to play when, as soon as the dealer shows, you know whether you won or not." Well, I might take a while to get there, but I'm not far away from giving it a shot.

You can certainly play in a casino long before this. I've been playing for about 5 years, and I usually cannot keep up with the dealer when they expose and set their hand. But I'm getting really close.

If the resemblance between Pai Gow tiles and dominoes coincidental? Every time a see a set of the former I think it's just a fancy name for a set of dominoes.

I think you are okay to play when once they have set their hand, you know if you have won, lost, or pushed.

Are there any other games you can play with the tiles besides Pai Gow? I think it would be fun to learn and play some of those...

Since it is often referred to here as "The Evil Empire", I want to give a shout out to the Rio which gave me a free set of tiles after my extended play at a $25 tiles table. I find it too slow for me to practice with, so I do my practicing on the WoO site.

Yeah, I don't like Caesars being referred to as "The Evil Empire" I'm not quite sure what they do that is any more evil than any other average big company. "Oh no, blackjack is now 6:5, Caesars is evil" "Oh no, a taco at Taco Bell is now $1.19 instead of $.99, Taco Bell is evil"

If you don't like 6:5, don't play, if you don't want to spend $1.19 for your taco, don't spend it.

Quote: SOOPOO

Since it is often referred to here as "The Evil Empire", I want to give a shout out to the Rio which gave me a free set of tiles after my extended play at a $25 tiles table. I find it too slow for me to practice with, so I do my practicing on the WoO site.

I need to be comfortable handling the tiles, and knowing the hands without the little helper telling the counts. But for the strategies, I too like using the WoO game.

Quote: FinsRule

Yeah, I don't like Caesars being referred to as "The Evil Empire" I'm not quite sure what they do that is any more evil than any other average big company. "Oh no, blackjack is now 6:5, Caesars is evil" "Oh no, a taco at Taco Bell is now $1.19 instead of $.99, Taco Bell is evil"

Even though I also refer to it as the Evil Empire, I will fully admit that I'm a Dark Lord in the Evil Empire (aka Diamond player). In fact, it's the only card I consistently stay tiered at.

What they've done is streamlined casino operations to the point where they don't have to be the best in any given market, since they have a presence in nearly every market. Outside Florida, Harrah's has a presence in every major casino market. They have taken away comping and instead use a point system that, compared to others, is quite chintzy. While the hotel offers are pretty good, my offers took a SEVERE cut this year, to the point where I'm finding very little that I can get comped, despite being a Diamond Player, and despite giving them the most action I've ever given them this past year.

When you don't have to be the best, you don't try harder. It's easier to take a loss in one market because you cutback so much because you have 25 other markets where you can succeed. Don't get me wrong, there are properties that still try... Horseshoe Southern Indiana, Harrah's Kansas City and (surprisingly) Harrah's Council Bluffs. But they might as well have taken a dump to any player going to ANY of their Vegas properties. To me, it's an insult that in a market of 100+ casinos, they can't offer ANY good games. HSI doesn't have any competition for 60 miles, yet they still offer relatively good games.

Quote: sunrise089

If the resemblance between Pai Gow tiles and dominoes coincidental? Every time a see a set of the former I think it's just a fancy name for a set of dominoes.

I think the proper name for them is Chinese Dominoes.

I've found that if you strike up a friendly relationship with many pit bosses, they can give you free sets of used tiles (no one ever asks!) where they've drilled bumps into the backs to mark them as discarded. They are perfectly good tiles and they will feel the same as the casino tiles you're used to. One of the nicest pit bosses, and very passionate for offering tiles and training dealers to deal it, is Karl Schmalfuss up at Harrahs Tahoe.

Sell me your tiles set...I collect them!!!

I have bought several sets of tiles from many casinos: Treasure Island, The Flamingo, Bicycle Casino, and now just recently a set from Horseshoe Casino in Hammond, and I have to say it does help your game a lot...I shuffle them and pull them out at random and remember their ranking as a single tile and as a pair. Good luck!!! I also recommend the book by George Allen as well on Pai Gow Tiles.