Chinese poker is a card game based on poker hand rankings. It is intended as a beginner-friendly game, with only a basic knowledge of poker hand rankings needed to get started. The format allows for frequent unexpected outcomes due to the large element of luck involved, meaning a beginner has a good chance of winning in the short term against even experienced opponents.
Gameplay Playing
Chinese poker is typically played as a four-person game, though in rare occasions it can also be played with two or three. At the start of each match, a standard 52-card deck (excluding jokers) is shuffled and dealt 13 cards to each player. The cards are then arranged in a 3-5-5 format; the front (第一墩) consist of three cards, while the middle (第二墩) and the back (第三墩) consist of five cards each.
The rank of the poker hand combinations, alongside the rank of the cards (aces as high and two as deuces), also matter into the card arrangements; the front hand of three can either be a single card, a pair or a three-of-a-kind, while the other two hands follow conventional poker combinations. For example, if the front hand is a pair of eights, the middle hand must be higher than or equal to a pair of eights; the middle hand is a seven-high straight, so the back hand must be higher than or equal to a seven-high straight. If any hand or cards are misplaced (倒水/相公), the player is subjected to a penalty.
Once a hand is then arranged, the cards of each hand are revealed to other players, and are ranked based on the poker hand combination and the highest card used.
Scoring The stakes played for in Chinese poker are known as points. Basic scoring rules dictate that a player collects one unit from each opponent whose front, middle or back hand is beaten by their own corresponding hand. Thus, unlike most poker games, getting best hands in some hands can also result in a win. The most common rules are 2-4 or 1-6 format, with one point per each winning hand, and additional points if they sweep.
Some hand combinations that placed on the front, middle or back can also be subjected to additional bonus points; these are called "royalty" hands. Three-of-a-kind for a front hand, Full House or better in the middle, or Four-of-a-kind or better in the back hand, are royalties.
Depending on ruleset, such as the Taiwanese version, losing all hands will result in a "scoop" (打槍), doubling base points for that player in question; if one player beats all three player's hands, that player scores a "home-run" (全壘打), and their base points will double. This only apply to players who do not play their naturals.
If the hand contains a special combination (such as three flushes or three straights, or 13 cards without a pair), the player has an option to declare the hand as a "natural" (例牌/特殊牌型); unlike regular scoring, opponents must pay an indicated amount of points to the player who played their natural hand.
Surrendering If a player chooses to surrender their hand, they will pay an amount greater than the amount paid when losing at least two hands, but less than the amount paid when getting scooped. When surrendered, a player is not required to pay any royalties to their opponents. In some variations surrendering is not an option.
Example Amy Bob Winner Front Amy Middle Bob Back Amy In the 2–4 method, Bob would pay Amy two units; Amy receives two points for winning front and back, loses one for losing middle and receives one as the overall unit for winning two out of three hands. In the 1–6 method, Bob would pay Amy one unit; again Amy receives two points for winning front and back and loses one for losing middle, but no bonus units would be awarded.
Royalties Royalties, or bonuses as they are sometimes called, are extra units that may be awarded to players with particularly strong hands. Royalties must be declared prior to the revealing of the hands. While the royalty structure varies from game to game, the most common agreed-upon royalty structure is as follows: + Chinese poker royaltiesFront handMiddle handBack handHandBase pointsHandBase pointsHandBase pointsThree-of-a-kind(衝三; Chōngsān)3Full House(中墩葫蘆; Zhōngdūnhúlu)1 Four-of-a-kind(中墩鐵支; Zhōngdūntiězhī)3Four-of-a-kind(尾墩鐵支; Wěidūntiězhī)2 Straight-flush(中墩同花順; Zhōngdūntónghuāshùn)4Straight-flush(尾墩同花順; Wěidūntónghuāshùn)3
Naturals Players can call a natural depending on the set of 13 cards that have been used; each natural hand must meet a certain criteria. If multiple players had called natural hands, the player with a higher rank wins, or drawn if tied. In some rules, the player with a higher natural claims the bonus, or they may pay a certain amount of points to the other player if applicable.
The following is a list of all the natural hands, their names in English and Chinese, their base point values, examples with dash indicating a set of cards, any hand overlaps, and any other valid criteria that come along with the hand, listed in order of base points. Those natural hands marked with ^ are uncommon hands but are included in other game variants of Chinese Poker. Name Chinese Base points Three Flushes/Flowery Hand 三同花; Sāntónghuā or 三花聚頂 3 -- Contain three different group of flushes, with one group of three cards of a same suit, and group sets of five cards of another suit. Eight or 10 cards of the same suit counts as two flushes. Three Straights/Snakes Hand 三順子; Sānshùnzi, or 三蛇出洞 4 -- Contains three different group of straights, with one group of three cards of a sequence, and two group of five cards of another sequence. Eight or 10 cards of sequential ranks counts as two straights. Note that K-A-2, J-Q-K-A-2, Q-K-A-2-3 and K-A-2-3-4 are not valid sequences. Six-and-a-half pairs 六對半; Liùduìbàn 6 ------ Contains six different pairs of cards. The pairs does not require to be unique, as a three-of-a-kind counts as one pair with a kicker, and four-of-a-kind counts as two pairs. Four Triplets^ 四套三条; Sìtàosāntiáo 8 ---- Contains four groups of three-of-a-kind. The fourth group can also be a four-of-a-kind, which counts as a fourth set of three-of-a-kind with a kicker. Full-colored/Half-Flush^ 湊一色; Còuyīsè or 混一色 10 (Reds) (Blacks) All 13 cards that are colored entirely black (spades and clubs) or red (diamonds and hearts). Overlaps Three Flushes. All Low2/Highs1^ 全小全大; Quánxiǎoquándà 12 (All Lows2) (All Highs1) All 13 cards with a rank value either higher than seven or lower than nine. Overlaps Three Straights and Full-colored. Three Quads^ 三分天下; Sānfēntiānxià or 三鐵支 20 --- Contain three groups of Four-of-a-kind. Overlap Six-and-a-half pairs. Three Straight Flushes^ 三同花順; Sāntónghuāshùn 24 -- Contain three groups of Straight Flushes, with one group of three cards of a sequence of a same suit, and two sets of five-card straight flush. Eight or 10 cards of sequential ranks of the same suit counts as two straight flushes. Overlaps Three Flushes and Three Straights. 12 Royal Alphabets^ 十二皇族; Shí'èrhuángzú or 字一色 32 --- All 13 cards are either aces or face cards. Overlaps Four Triplets, Three Quads and All Highs1. Dragon 一條龍; Yītiáolóng 36 13 unique cards without any pairs or duplicates, and consists of one card of each rank, creating a full run from twos to aces. Overlap Three Straights. Pure Dragon 至尊清龙; Zhìzūnqīnglóng or 清一色 108 A variant of the Dragon hand, but must be of a same suit. Overlap Three Straight Flushes.
Current status Chinese Poker was played at the 1995 and the 1996 World Series of Poker. In 1995, the $1,500 event was won by John Tsagaris, and the $5,000 event by Steve Zolotow. In 1996 the $1,500 event was won by Gregory Grivas, and the $5,000 event by Jim Feldhouse. There have been no Chinese Poker events at the World Series of Poker since 1996. Variations Open-face Chinese poker
In this variation the players are dealt five cards in the beginning. These cards are arranged faceup on the table to the back, middle, and front hands. The cards cannot be rearranged later. Then the players receive a single card at a time for the remaining 8 cards. This means it is possible to make an illegal hand. This variation originates from Finland. Other variations Low in the middle—In this variation, the middle hand is played as a deuce-to-seven low hand. Criss Cross—This variation is played heads up: each player is dealt two 13 card hands and plays each of their hands against each of their opponents' hands. Players' hands are to be treated as two independent hands; they cannot exchange cards between the two hands. In this variation, The Wheel (A, 2, 3, 4, 5) is the second highest straight. Therefore, it is ranked above a 9, 10, J, Q, K straight, but below a 10, J, Q, K, A straight. Another variation scores the game 1 point per hand, with the winner of the game being the first to 11 points. If a player wins all 3 hands and there are 4 players, the winning player gets a 4th point. References