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Chinese Poker is a fun and strategic card game that has been popular in Hong Kong and Southeast Asia for decades. In recent years, it has also gained some popularity in the United States, though it is played less often there. The game is unique because players use 13 cards to create three separate hands: two hands of five cards each and one hand of three cards.
Interestingly, this game later inspired the more well-known Open Face Chinese Poker, which adds an open-card twist after the first five cards are dealt.
How to Start: Setting the Stakes
Before the game begins, all players must agree on the stakes. This means deciding how much each unit of a bet is worth for example, $10, $100, or even $1,000. This agreement should be made by everyone to ensure fairness.
The Deal
- The dealer shuffles and cuts the deck.
- Each player is dealt 13 cards, one at a time, face-down.
- Once all players have their cards, the real strategy begins.
Arranging the Hands
The 13 cards must be divided into three hands:
- Back Hand (5 cards) – This is the strongest hand.
- Middle Hand (5 cards) – This must be weaker than the back hand.
- Front Hand (3 cards) – This is the weakest hand.
Important: The back hand must beat the middle hand, and the middle hand must beat the front hand.
Standard poker rankings are used for these hands (no wild cards allowed).
For the front hand, which has only 3 cards, the possible combinations are:
- Three of a Kind
- One Pair
- High Card
Note: Straights and flushes do not count in the front hand.
Once arranged, players place their hands face-down in front of them.
The Showdown & Scoring
When everyone is ready, players reveal their hands. Each hand is compared with the corresponding hands of other players:
- You win 1 unit for every hand you beat.
- You lose 1 unit for every hand you lose.
- If the hands are equal, no one wins or loses that round.
Players are often given directional names: North, South, East, and West (sitting opposite each other accordingly). Hands are compared across these positions:
- North vs East
- North vs South
- North vs West
- East vs South
- East vs West
- South vs West
This makes the scoring dynamic and exciting.
Special Hands (Optional Rules)
To make the game more rewarding, players can add special scoring rules. These give bonus points for certain strong hands. This must be agreed upon before the game starts.
Bonus Points for Winning Hands
- Front Hand with Three of a Kind – +3 units
- Middle Hand with Full House – +2 units
- Back or Middle Hand with Four of a Kind – +4 units
- Back or Middle Hand with Royal Flush or Straight Flush – +5 units
Special 13-Card Hands (automatic winners if declared before the showdown):
- Six Pairs (6 pairs + 1 odd card) – 3 units
- Three Straights (2 five-card straights + 1 three-card straight) – 3 units
- Three Flushes (two five-card flushes + one three-card flush) – 3 units
- Complete Straight (A,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,J,Q,K) – 13 units
These special hands add a layer of excitement to the game and can lead to massive wins.
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