Online Casino Guides Banner

Online Casino Guides

Learn How to Play Face-Up Pai Gow Poker

Learn How to Play Face-Up Pai Gow Poker

As the name implies, face-up Pai Gow Poker is a variant of the classic Pai Gow Poker game. But do you know how to play face up Pai Gow poker? You should know, or remember, that instead of the usual style of having the dealer’s card facing down, the cards face up this time. The face up Pai Gow Poker online features a head-to-head play against the dealer. And for every round played, there are two optional side bets: Fortune Bonus or Ace-High.

Face-up Pai Gow Poker is played using a deck of 53 cards, i.e., a standard 52-card deck and an additional joker card. The joker is to be used as an ace, not a wild, or to finish up a straight or flush hand. 

Face-up Pai Gow Poker is a fun casino game; in this casino guide, you’ll be taught how to play face-up Pai Gow poker, some strategies, rules for playing, the hand rankings, etc. 

Tips on How to Play Face Up Pai Gow Poker

If you’ve played Pai Gow poker, you won’t have an issue learning how to play faceup Pai Gow poker. However, there’s a slight difference in the rules from traditional Pai Gow poker, so let’s get started on these rules.

  • A single deck of 53 cards is used. The deck contains a standard 52-card deck and a joker card.
  • There is no commission.
  • The joker serves as a semi-wild as it can be substituted as an ace. Players can also use the joker to complete a straight flush, or a royal flush hand.
  • To start the game, the player has to place a bet. An optional Push Ace High side bet is available for the player to make.
  • Both the dealer and the present player are dealt seven cards each.
  • Player banking is not available.
  • The cards of the dealer are to face up. According to the house way rules, the dealer sets his cards into a 5-card high hand and a 2-cards low hand. The value of the high hand must always be greater than the low hand.
  • When the dealer’s best five-card hand is an ace high, the outcome is an automatic push. Irrespective of the player cards. It is known as an “ace-high Pai Ggow.”
  • The player must also split the seven cards into a 5-card high hand and a 2-card soft hand.
  • The standard poker online rules are used to rank the five-card hand. However, the individual cards will determine the value based on the worth of the highest-ranking card first.
  • Once the player’s hand is set, then both hands of the dealer and the player are compared. The hand with the highest poker value wins, but the dealer wins the tie if both hands are equally valued.
  • The player receives an even payoff on his wager if he wins in both hand comparisons. If he loses one and wins the other, the wager will push. He will lose his wager if both teams lose or tie.
  • The Push Ace High Bet pays out the following.
  • Ace-high pai gow for both the dealer and player: 40 to 1
  • Ace-high pai gow with a joker for the dealer: 15 to 1
  • Ace-high pai gow without joker for the dealer: 5 to 1
  • Ace-high pai gow for neither of them: No payout.

Journey into Casino Realms: Navigating Crucial Related Topics

How to Play Face Up Pai Gow Poker

Below are the steps for how to play faceup pai gow poker:

  1. Make a wager: Before the Pai Gow poker hand starts, the player must place a bet with an optional fortune bonus and ace-high bet.
  1. Deal: Once the bets have been placed, the dealer shuffles the cards and deals seven hands in front of the dealer’s tray. Seven hands of seven cards are dealt on the table, with four cards left. The four excluded cards are placed in the discard rack.
  1. Deliver the cards: The dealer afterward shakes the dice cup and rolls three dice. The outcome of numbers on the dice are added to determine which player receives the first set of seven cards. Then, the dealer starts counting the betting positions clockwise from number one, the banker, until the sum of the dice is reached.
  1. House Way: Players must then set their hands according to the house way rules. Every player gets to set their hands after the dealer exposes his cards facing up. 

Players will use their seven cards to create two poker hands of five cards and two cards when it has been determined that the dealer’s hand does not include an ace-high pai gow. The hand with five cards is the “high hand,” while the hand with two cards is the “low hand.”

  1. Win or Loss: After the players have set their hands, it is now compared to the dealer’s hand to determine the wins, losses, or ties.

Hand Rankings In Face Up Pai Gow Poker

In order of lowest to highest, these are the hand rankings you must know to know how to play face-up pai gow poker:

  • 7-Card Straight Flush (No Joker): This hand contains seven cards of the same suit in sequential order and does not include a joker. The ace, king, queen, jack, 10, 9, and 8 are the highest-ranked seven cards without a joker. The 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, and ace are the lowest-ranked seven cards without a joker.
  • 7-Card Straight Flush (No Joker): This hand is a combination of a royal flush and royal match. This hand will contain cards of ace, king, queen, jack, and ten suited + king and queen suited.
  • 7-Card Straight Flush (With Joker): This hand contains seven cards of the same suit in sequential order but with a joker card. 
  • Five Aces: This hand contains four cards of aces and a joker.
  • Royal Flush: This hand contains cards of ace, king, queen, jack, and 10. All of the cards are the same suit.
  • Straight Flush: A straight flush consists of five cards of the same suit in sequential ranking. Cards of a king, queen, jack, 10, and 9 are the highest cards in a straight flush.
  • Four of a Kind: This hand contains four cards of the same rank. An example is a hand of four aces.
  • Full House: A three-of-a-kind and a pair make up a full house. An example is three aces and two kings.
  • Flush: A flush hand contains five cards of the same suit but not in a sequential ranking. An ace, king, queen, jack, and nine hands are examples of a flush.
  • Straight: A straight hand consists of five cards that are of sequential ranking but a different suits.
  • Three of a Kind: Three of a kind contains three cards of the same rank. 
  • Two Pairs: Two pairs is a hand that consists of two sets of two cards of the same rank. An example is two aces and two kings.
  • One Pair: A one-pair hand contains two cards of the same rank.
  • High Card: This hand contains five cards that do not meet the requirement of any hands listed before.

Final Thoughts

With a detailed understanding of how to play face-up Pai Gow poker, you should start practicing at Slots Paradise Casino. We offer demo trials. You can also learn how to play three card rummy by visiting our casino school. Remember, practice makes perfect.

Join us on social media, and ensure yourself continuous casino news to keep updated and improve your playing skills at Slots Paradise Casino.

FAQs

How does face-up Pai Gow poker work?

How to play face-up pai gow poker is very simple; all needed is to create two winning hands from the seven cards dealt to you as a player. Always make sure to read poker strategy guides such as the face-up Pai Gow poker guide or Caribbean Stud Poker Guide to understand the game well.

How do hand rankings work in Face Up Pai Gow Poker?

The hand rankings in Face Up Pai Gow Poker are similar to traditional Pai Gow Poker. The five-card hand must always outrank the two-card hand. The highest two-card hand is a pair of aces, and the lowest is a 3-2. In the five-card hand, standard poker rankings apply, with one exception: the A-2-3-4-5 straight (known as the “wheel”) is the second-highest straight.

What happens if there’s a tie with the dealer?

A unique aspect of Face Up Pai Gow Poker is that there are no pushes on the main bet. If one of the player’s hands ties with one of the dealer’s hands, the dealer wins that particular hand. If the player wins one hand and the dealer wins the other, the main bet is considered a push. Some versions of Face Up Pai Gow Poker also include side bets, which have their own separate payout structures.