The game is played with seven cards dealt to each player. Pai Gow Poker probably suits me better today than ever.

Photograph ©2017 Marc Meltzer | Pai Gow Poker | This is not a real hand. It’s nice to have options of good games in a close proximity. It’s still easy to find a 3:2 game where a bankroll can last awhile and a session may end with a win. I’m a bit more open to playing blackjack when I’m in downtown Las Vegas. I’ve almost entirely moved away from playing blackjack on the Vegas Strip.Ĭraps is still my love but Pai Gow Poker is probably the game I play most when I’m, specifically, on the Vegas Strip. The more it costs to hang out and gamble the less interesting the game is. The larger house edge reduces the length of time one can play with a set bankroll. I gamble at the tables to have a little action while hanging out with friends.

Almost every table in every casino pays 6:5 for a natural blackjack instead of 3:2 when playing a game below $25.ĭepending on the other rules this kind of blackjack game has a house edge close to, or over, 2%. Blackjack has lost its some of its appeal on the Vegas Strip. Pai Gow Poker is a fun game for drinking and hanging out with friends but didn’t become a part of every gambling trip until a few years ago. I was hooked on Pai Gow Poker now that I knew what I was doing! Goodbye Blackjack…Kinda We also had a very kind and patient cocktail waitress who delivered drinks quickly and sometimes had to wait while class was in session. The game was interesting enough to go in the back of my mind after this visit.Ī year or two later the same friend and I actually learned how to play Pai Gow Poker at a $5 table at the Gold Coast one night. Chalk this up as another new experience in Las Vegas. We had fun but it mostly because everyone had too much to drink. Everyone was playing for the “free” drinks.

The somewhat confusing rules or $25 minimum bet didn’t really matter. The dudes that introduced us to the game just said to keep drinking (like never stop) and show the dealer our cards if there were questions. I’m not sure of exactly how we found out about Pai Gow Poker but it was at Mandalay Bay. Then I learned about Pai Gow Poker and everything changed! Moving forward I’ll switch between “I” and “we” often because I never play Pai Gow Poker alone. We’d mix in some penny slots when drinking coffee in the morning but that’s typically how I gambled when first visiting Las Vegas. I played craps for the first time a few years later at the Hard Rock and fell in love with the game. Photograph ©2017 Marc Meltzer | Pai Gow Poker | Getting Started At The Mirage When I first started visiting Las Vegas, my friends and I would almost exclusively play blackjack.

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