An offshoot of the old Chinese domino game of pai gow, iPhone pai gow poker is card-game variation, using poker combinations, invented by Southern Californian Bell card club owner, Sam Torosian, in 1985. Since then, it has spread to casinos around the world and is especially popular online and via mobile.
iPhone pai gow poker allows iPhone users to join in on the fun of this slow-paced social game in which each player gets to play two hands rather than just one. iPhone pai gow poker is perfect for mobile play because of the iPhone’s slim, light-weight design, crystal-clear, high-resolution touch screen, and powerful iOS software.
Learn to Play with Two Separate Hands
Whilst the prospect of working with two separate hands may seem intimidating at first, iPhone pai gow poker is actually very simple.
iPhone pai gow poker is played with a standard 52-card deck plus one semi-wild joker, which may be used to complete a straight, flush, straight flush, or royal flush. Players generally compete against the dealer and not with one another. Before the cards are dealt, each player wagers a stake. Then seven cards each are dealt to all the players, including the dealer. All players, excepting the dealer, may then view their iPhone pai gow poker cards and must split them into two separate hands – one of five cards and another of two cards.
In iPhone pai gow poker, the five-card hand is known as the high hand and must be the most valuable of the two hands. The high hand’s cards are valued according to standard poker rankings, with one unusual exception: the A2345 straight, known as “the wheel” is considered the second-most valuable iPhone pai gow poker high hand.
The two-card hand in iPhone pai gow poker is known as the low hand and here the simple rule applies that any pair beats two unmatched cards and, if there is no pair, the individual cards determine the ranking.
Once players have divided up their hands, they must place them on the table, face down. Players may not move their cards again from here on out. At this point, the dealer will reveal his cards and divide them up in the same manner. Finally, all the players’ cards are revealed.
Here’s how iPhone pai gow poker hands are compared to determine the winner:
Each of the two hands is compared separately. If the player wins both hands, the casino must pay out the amount wagered by the player. If the dealer wins one hand and the player wins the other, there is no money exchanged – this is known as a “push”. Lastly, if the dealer wins both hands, the casino gets to keep the player’s stake.
It’s important to note the iPhone pai gow poker dealer’s advantage; that is, if a hand is tied, the dealer automatically wins that particular hand.
Play It a Little Safer
The appeal of iPhone pai gow poker for many players is its lower risk profile, as a result of the fairly frequent occurrence of push scenarios as described above. However, there are casinos that feature no-push iPhone pai gow poker for a potentially larger jackpot but this is to be avoided by inexperienced players as, in the absence of a push rule, the dealer automatically wins in all cases where one hand is a win and the other a lose.