Pai Gow Poker pros in California?

[docriver]

The story on the home page is really interesting : http://www.salon.com/tech/feature/20...rks/print.html

Does anyone have any insight as to how these guys are getting a statistical edge by simply being the banker? I'm not very familiar with Pai Gow in California, but I always thought it was mostly a 50/50 flip, and the decision making was pretty simple.

[Minnow]

It doesn't seem to me that it would be lucrative enough to actually incorporate and train employees to play in casino's.
My guess is that because the deal rotates, and players get to act as the bank, and collect 5% vig.

copied this ..
>>>To win, both of the player's hands must beat both of the banker' hands. If the player's two-card hand and the banker's two-card hand have equal poker value, they are said to be copies. The same applies if the five-card hands match in value as well. The banker wins all copies. If one of the player's hands beats the banker's, but the other does not, the result is a tie and no money changes hands.

When a player wins, the dealer uses the banker's money to pay the player even money for their bet. If the player's hand loses, the dealer awards the player's bet to the banker. The house makes its money by taking a 5% commission on each winning bet. The dealer collects the commission from each player that wins a hand, and from the total of the banker's winnings. <<<<<


I love playing pai gow poker on the computer, but ignorant about the "real" thing. Not even sure where the slamming tiles part comes in.

Sounds like an interesting job though.

[CrazyCanadian]

I know how they do it.


This is true im being dead serious.


First off when you are the banker when the other players at the table lose, you win their money and viseversa. Secondly the average joe that sits down at the table, even people that have being playing for a long time will not always play the right cards that they should be plaing. Statiscally this means that the odds would be in favour of the banker. If you have ever watched a Pai Gow table 95% of the players are Asians. Asians have very strong superstitians in which way to play the cards. Sometimes this means playing the the wrong way, which in the long run will get them

[ 01-15-2002: Message edited by: CrazyCanadian ]</p>

[pmj18]

Where is Poker Joe, when we need him? I would like his opinion on this.

[XXGameXX]

having the bank

TIES WIN

if you don't have the TIES LOSE

[Spearmaster]

The banker wins all pushes. A player should take the opportunity to bank every time it is available.

Normally, in a situation such as described in the story, the bigshot has way more chips than everyone else combined. So none of the other players bank when it's their turn because they could be bankrupted in a single hand. Therefore, the bigshot gets to bank almost every other hand. The casino is not allowed to bank according to California law but you will usually see a floorman stick up like $100 to bank one hand just to keep the game going. And the bigshot will place the absolute minimum bet just to retain his place in line for becoming bank.

Rules are different in Vegas - a player wishing to bank may only bank as much as the size of his previous bet. This is how the casino keeps a bit of an edge even when they are not the banker.

Good story.

[BuzzRavanaugh]

"Rules are different in Vegas - a player wishing to bank may only bank as much as the size of his previous bet. This is how the casino keeps a bit of an edge even when they are not the banker."

This is not true... they can only bank the size of the previous wager for the table.... the house will play the players hand for the size of his previous bet.

[pokerjoe]

Give me the idiot of the day award. I just wrote several long paragraphs on this subject, then realized there are enough people who can connect my handle to me that I'd only get in trouble. Not legal trouble, just social, "wtf are you doing putting our business on the net" kind of trouble. Sorry to pussy out about it. The sharper ones among you can figure out what must be going on anyway. It's not complicated. Of course the square reporter couldn't put two and two together.

I do think the white kid is wrong to be nervous. Yes, it's an illegality, but it's no one's business, not even the states, to give a shit. It's all a victimless corruption mandated by a stupid government rule.

And these "props" are not props, or professional gamblers. They sit bank. It's a horribly tedious job. Mostly, they check the dealer payouts.

[docriver]

does that mean they basically don't make any decision making, and play their hands the "house way"? doesn't seem any fun if that's the case, nor mentally challenging.

[Spearmaster]

I stand corrected.