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Pai Gow Poker is a variation of the traditional Chinese Pai Gow dominoes game. This form of poker is also known as double hand poker, because the goal is to arrange 7 cards dealt randomly into two poker hands: one hand of two cards known as "Low hand" or "Minor hand", and the other of five cards know as "High Hand" or "Big Hand". The Low hand can't exceed the value of the High Hand so the High Hand is always stronger than the Low hand. If you arrange your cards erroneously you foul you hand and incur in a penalty. This penalty could have you forfeit your hand, giving you an automatic loss. This Poker Game is played with a deck of 52 cards and a joker with the function of a wild card.

This casino game is set for up to six players and a dealer, and all players will try to defeat the "banker". This position can be the dealer at the table or any player, and sometimes players can share the banking with the house. When the cards are dealt all the hands are dealt even if a spot at the table lacks a player, and those cards are later put in the discard pile. Some casinos allow the players at the table the option of buying the hands in a vacant spots; this is know as a "Dragon Hand" and a player can bet in both hands in the same game.

The Joker is a wild card, but can only be used to complete certain hands, like a flush or a straight. In any other case it represents an ace and you have to use it in the Low hand.

Setting the cards the "house way"

In casino tables where the house is the banker, the dealer is required to set the cards in a specific way. Players that choose to co-bank with the house are require to use this way to set their cards too, but if a player alone is the bank he can arrange his cards in any way he wants. In online casino games of Pai Gow, the players can use the house way to set their hands if they so choose.

How to determine a Win

If both hands of a player beat the banker´s hands he wins, but if a player only wins one hand the result is a push and nobody wins (push). If one of the hands has the exact value of the banker´s hand, it is a tie that is called a "copy". Obviously, losing both hands result in a loss. The ties in online casino games always go to the banker, giving the position of the banker an advantage.