- Appendices
- House Way Strategies
- Miscellaneous
- Pai Gow Poker Payouts and Odds. Now, let's see how much each possible hand is worth. The table below shows you the payout, odds and probability for each pai gow poker hand. You'll see that some surprisingly healthy returns are within reach.
- Shuffle Master, Inc.® Fortune Pai Gow Poker® WA R20050126 Fortune Pai Gow Poker is a standard Pai Gow Poker game but with an optional Fortune bonus wager. Qualifies them for Envy Bonus payouts. Players win the Envy Bonus when a player at the table receives a four of a kind or higher, excluding the dealer and his/her own hand.
- Reddit Pai Gow poker is a simple table game that offers the player a chance to hit a big hand that can pay as high as 8,000:1 on their bet. Players are dealt seven cards which they then break up into a five-card hand and a two-card hand using Pai Gow poker strategy (more on that below).
Fortune Pai Gow Progressive Jackpot. Most Pai Gow Poker tables offer multiple jackpots. The most common is the Fortune Pai Gow Poker Progressive. This jackpot is sometimes linked among multiple casinos in a market. The bet for the progressive is just $1. All hands qualify with or without the joker. Payouts – Seven-card straight flush: Jackpot.
On This Page
Introduction
'Fortune' is a side bet in Pai Gow Poker that pays based on the value of the player's seven cards. It doesn't not matter how the player sets his hand. In addition, if another player has a four of a kind or better the player making the Fortune bet will get an 'Envy Bonus.' At every table I have seen there is a $5 minimum and the Envy Bonus is a fixed amount.
Following are pay tables that I am aware of, based on the player's own hand. Wins are on a 'to one' basis.
Fortune Pay TablesExpand
| Hand | Pay Table | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | |
| Natural 7 Card S/F | 5,000 to 1 | 8,000 to 1 | 5,000 to 1 | 2,500 to 1 | 5,000 to 1 | 5,000 to 1 | 8000 to 1 | 1000 to 1 |
| Royal Flush + R/M | 1,000 to 1 | 2,000 to 1 | 2,000 to 1 | 1,000 to 1 | 2,000 to 1 | 1,000 to 1 | 2000 to 1 | 750 to 1 |
| Wild 7 Card S/F | 750 to 1 | 1,000 to 1 | 1,000 to 1 | 750 to 1 | 1,000 to 1 | 500 to 1 | 1000 to 1 | 500 to 1 |
| 5 Aces | 250 to 1 | 400 to 1 | 400 to 1 | 250 to 1 | 400 to 1 | 300 to 1 | 400 to 1 | 250 to 1 |
| Royal Flush | 100 to 1 | 150 to 1 | 150 to 1 | 125 to 1 | 150 to 1 | 110 to 1 | 100 to 1 | 150 to 1 |
| Straight Flush | 50 to 1 | 50 to 1 | 50 to 1 | 50 to 1 | 50 to 1 | 45 to 1 | 30 to 1 | 50 to 1 |
| 4 of a Kind | 20 to 1 | 25 to 1 | 25 to 1 | 25 to 1 | 25 to 1 | 25 to 1 | 20 to 1 | 25 to 1 |
| Full House | 5 to 1 | 5 to 1 | 5 to 1 | 5 to 1 | 5 to 1 | 5 to 1 | 5 to 1 | 5 to 1 |
| Flush | 4 to 1 | 4 to 1 | 4 to 1 | 4 to 1 | 4 to 1 | 4 to 1 | 4 to 1 | 4 to 1 |
| 3 of a Kind | 3 to 1 | 3 to 1 | 3 to 1 | 3 to 1 | 3 to 1 | 3 to 1 | 3 to 1 | 3 to 1 |
| Straight | 2 to 1 | 2 to 1 | 2 to 1 | 2 to 1 | 2 to 1 | 2 to 1 | 2 to 1 | 2 to 1 |
| Three Pair | Push | Loss | Loss | Loss | Loss | Loss | Loss | 1 to 1 |
The next table shows the Envy Bonus for each paytable.
Fortune Envy BonusesExpand
| Hand | Pay Table | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | |
| Natural 7 Card S/F | $1000 | $5000 | $3000 | $1000 | $2500 | $2500 | $5000 | $500 |
| Royal Flush + R/M | $250 | $1000 | $1000 | $750 | $500 | $500 | $1000 | $250 |
| Wild 7 Card S/F | $100 | $500 | $500 | $250 | $250 | $250 | $500 | $150 |
| 5 Aces | $50 | $250 | $250 | $100 | $150 | $150 | $250 | $100 |
| Royal Flush | $25 | $50 | $50 | $50 | $55 | $55 | $50 | $50 |
| Straight Flush | $10 | $20 | $20 | $20 | $25 | $25 | $20 | $20 |
| 4 of a Kind | $5 | $5 | $5 | $5 | $6 | $6 | $5 | $5 |
The next table shows the number of combinations, probability, and contribution to the return for each hand, under pay table 2, which I believe to be the most popular. The lower left cell shows a house edge of 7.77% before considering the Envy Bonus.
Pay Table 2 -- Return Table
| Hand | Pays | Combinations | Probability | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Natural seven-card straight flush | 8,000 | 32 | 0.00000021 | 0.00166079 |
| Royal Flush + R/M | 2,000 | 72 | 0.00000047 | 0.00093420 |
| Wild seven-card straight flush | 1,000 | 196 | 0.00000127 | 0.00127155 |
| Five Aces | 400 | 1,128 | 0.00000732 | 0.00292715 |
| Royal Flush | 150 | 26,020 | 0.00016880 | 0.02532063 |
| Straight flush | 50 | 184,644 | 0.00119787 | 0.05989370 |
| Four of a Kind | 25 | 307,472 | 0.00199472 | 0.04986795 |
| Full house | 5 | 4,188,528 | 0.02717299 | 0.13586494 |
| Flush | 4 | 6,172,088 | 0.04004129 | 0.16016517 |
| Three of a kind | 3 | 7,672,500 | 0.04977518 | 0.14932555 |
| Straight | 2 | 11,034,204 | 0.07158417 | 0.14316833 |
| Three pair | -1 | 2,862,000 | 0.01856717 | -0.01856717 |
| All other | -1 | 121,694,196 | 0.78948855 | -0.78948855 |
| Total | 0 | 154,143,080 | 1.00000000 | -0.07765575 |
The next table shows the return table for the Envy Bonus under pay table 2, based on a $5 bet. The lower right cell shows that each additional player at the table is worth 0.93%, based on a $5 bet. If the player bets more than $5 the value of the Envy Bonus equals 0.04634162/b, where b is the amount bet.
Envy Return Table -- Paytable 2
| Hand | Pays | Combinations | Probability | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Natural seven-card straight flush | $5,000 | 32 | 0.00000021 | 0.00020760 |
| Royal Flush + R/M | $1,000 | 72 | 0.00000047 | 0.00009342 |
| Wild seven-card straight flush | $500 | 196 | 0.00000127 | 0.00012715 |
| Five Aces | $250 | 1,128 | 0.00000732 | 0.00036589 |
| Royal Flush | $50 | 26,020 | 0.00016880 | 0.00168804 |
| Straight flush | $20 | 184,644 | 0.00119787 | 0.00479150 |
| Four of a Kind | $5 | 307,472 | 0.00199472 | 0.00199472 |
| Total | 519,564 | 0.00337066 | 0.00926832 |
The next table shows the contribution for each hand under all seven pay tables, before considering the Envy Bonus.
Fortune Pai Gow Poker Return — Expected ReturnsExpand
| Hand | Pay Table | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | |
| 7 Card Straight Flush | 0.001038 | 0.001661 | 0.001038 | 0.000519 | 0.001038 | 0.001038 | 0.001661 | 0.000208 |
| Royal Flush + Royal Match | 0.000467 | 0.000934 | 0.000934 | 0.000467 | 0.000934 | 0.000467 | 0.000934 | 0.00035 |
| 7 Card Straight Flush with Joker | 0.000954 | 0.001272 | 0.001272 | 0.000954 | 0.001272 | 0.000636 | 0.001272 | 0.000636 |
| 5 Aces | 0.001829 | 0.002927 | 0.002927 | 0.001829 | 0.002927 | 0.002195 | 0.002927 | 0.001829 |
| Royal Flush | 0.01688 | 0.025321 | 0.025321 | 0.021101 | 0.025321 | 0.018568 | 0.01688 | 0.025321 |
| Straight Flush | 0.059894 | 0.059894 | 0.059894 | 0.059894 | 0.059894 | 0.053904 | 0.035936 | 0.059894 |
| 4 of a Kind | 0.039894 | 0.049868 | 0.049868 | 0.049868 | 0.049868 | 0.049868 | 0.039894 | 0.049868 |
| Full House | 0.135865 | 0.135865 | 0.135865 | 0.135865 | 0.135865 | 0.135865 | 0.135865 | 0.135865 |
| Flush | 0.160165 | 0.160165 | 0.160165 | 0.160165 | 0.160165 | 0.160165 | 0.160165 | 0.160165 |
| 3 of a Kind | 0.149326 | 0.149326 | 0.149326 | 0.149326 | 0.149326 | 0.149326 | 0.149326 | 0.149326 |
| Straight | 0.143168 | 0.143168 | 0.143168 | 0.143168 | 0.143168 | 0.143168 | 0.143168 | 0.143168 |
| Three Pair | 0 | -0.018567 | -0.018567 | -0.018567 | -0.018567 | -0.018567 | -0.018567 | 0.018567 |
| All Other | -0.789489 | -0.789489 | -0.789489 | -0.789489 | -0.789489 | -0.789489 | -0.789489 | -0.789489 |
| Total | -0.080008 | -0.077656 | -0.078279 | -0.0849 | -0.078279 | -0.092855 | -0.120027 | -0.044292 |
The next table shows the return table for the Envy Bonus, based on a $5 bet. The bottom row shows how much the house edge is reduced for each other player at the table.
Fortune Pai Gow Poker Envy Bonus — Expected ReturnsExpand
| Hand | Pay Table | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | |
| 7 Card Straight Flush | 0.000042 | 0.000208 | 0.000125 | 0.000042 | 0.000104 | 0.000104 | 0.000208 | 0.000021 |
| Royal Flush + Royal Match | 0.000023 | 0.000093 | 0.000093 | 0.00007 | 0.000047 | 0.000047 | 0.000093 | 0.000023 |
| 7 Card Straight Flush with Joker | 0.000025 | 0.000127 | 0.000127 | 0.000064 | 0.000064 | 0.000064 | 0.000127 | 0.000038 |
| 5 Aces | 0.000073 | 0.000366 | 0.000366 | 0.000146 | 0.00022 | 0.00022 | 0.000366 | 0.000146 |
| Royal Flush | 0.000844 | 0.001688 | 0.001688 | 0.001688 | 0.001857 | 0.001857 | 0.001688 | 0.001688 |
| Straight Flush | 0.002396 | 0.004791 | 0.004791 | 0.004791 | 0.005989 | 0.005989 | 0.004791 | 0.004791 |
| 4 of a Kind | 0.001995 | 0.001995 | 0.001995 | 0.001995 | 0.002394 | 0.002394 | 0.001995 | 0.001995 |
| Total | 0.005398 | 0.009268 | 0.009185 | 0.008796 | 0.010674 | 0.010674 | 0.009268 | 0.008703 |
The next table shows the house edge for each pay table by total players (including yourself).
Fortune Bet Overall House EdgeExpand
| Total Players | Pay Table | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | |
| 6 | 5.30% | 3.13% | 3.24% | 4.09% | 2.49% | 3.95% | 7.37% | 0.08% |
| 5 | 5.84% | 4.06% | 4.15% | 4.97% | 3.56% | 5.02% | 8.30% | 0.95% |
| 4 | 6.38% | 4.99% | 5.07% | 5.85% | 4.63% | 6.08% | 9.22% | 1.82% |
| 3 | 6.92% | 5.91% | 5.99% | 6.73% | 5.69% | 7.15% | 10.15% | 2.69% |
| 2 | 7.46% | 6.84% | 6.91% | 7.61% | 6.76% | 8.22% | 11.08% | 3.56% |
| 1 | 8.00% | 7.77% | 7.83% | 8.49% | 7.83% | 9.29% | 12.00% | 4.43% |
Fortune Pai Gow Poker Progressive -- Version 1
I have an unconfirmed report that the following pay table is offered in Washington State. The bet amount is $1, nd there is no Envy Bonus. The following return table shows the return from the fixed wins only is 48.45%. For every $10,000 in the meter, the return will go up by 0.76%. The break-even meter (when there is no house edge) is $679,171.90
Fortune Pai Gow Poker House Edge
| Event | Pays | Combinations | Probability | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 Card Straight Flush | 100% of meter | 32 | 0.00000021 | 0 |
| Royal Flush + Royal Match | 50% of meter | 72 | 0.00000047 | 0 |
| 7 Card Straight Flush with Joker | 25% of meter | 196 | 0.00000127 | 0 |
| 5 Aces | 2500 | 1128 | 0.00000732 | 0.01829469 |
| Royal Flush | 200 | 26020 | 0.0001688 | 0.03376084 |
| Straight Flush | 100 | 184644 | 0.00119787 | 0.11978741 |
| 4 of a Kind | 75 | 307472 | 0.00199472 | 0.14960386 |
| Full House | 6 | 4188528 | 0.02717299 | 0.16303793 |
| All Other | 0 | 149434988 | 0.96945635 | 0 |
| Total | 154143080 | 1 | 0.48448473 |
Fortune Pai Gow Poker Progressive - Version 2
This is a $1 progressive jackpot bet I have seen at the Wynn, Rampart, Golden Nugget, and Suncoast casinos. Wins are paid on a 'for one' basis, in other words the player doesn't get his bet back if he wins. The return column shows the return for only fixed wins. In other words, not including the top two awards, the player can expect to get back 46.27% of his money back.
Fortune Pai Gow Poker House Edge
| Event | Pays | Combinations | Probability | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seven-card straight flush | Jackpot | 228 | 0.000001 | ? |
| Five aces | 10% of jackpot | 1,128 | 0.000007 | ? |
| Royal flush | $500 | 26,092 | 0.000169 | 0.084636 |
| Straight flush | $100 | 184,644 | 0.001198 | 0.119787 |
| Four of a kind | $75 | 307,472 | 0.001995 | 0.149604 |
| Full house | $4 | 4,188,528 | 0.027173 | 0.108692 |
| Loser | $0 | 149,434,988 | 0.969456 | 0.000000 |
| Total | 154,143,080 | 1.000000 | 0.462719 |
The value of the jackpot is 2.21% for each $10,000 in the meter. The break-even meter (where there house edge is exactly zero) is $243,011.06. I have yet to see a jackpot get anywhere near this high.
Internal Links
Pai Gow Tiles
- Pai gow poker — main page.
- Side bets — Lots of other side bets seen in pai gow poker.
Fortune Pai Gow Payouts
Pai Gow Payouts
My Pai Gow Poker Offerings
Pai Gow Poker Coverage
| House Way for... |
Pai Gow Poker Free
Written by:Michael ShacklefordPai Gow Bonus Payouts
Fortune Pai-Gow Poker is identical to Pai-Gow Poker but with an additional bonus wager. It's mandatory that the player have money on a normal Pai-Gow Poker bet if they wish to play the Fortune Bonus, they cannot play the bonus by itself. The player can bet any amount they want on the bonus; it doesn't have to be the same amount as their original wager. The minimum a player can bet is $1, while the maximum can be either $50 or $100, depending on the house.
In order to win this bonus, the player must have a qualifying 5 card poker hand out of all 7 cards that were dealt. It doesn't matter how the player sets their hand, if they qualify, they'll still receive their winnings.
A list of the Fortune Bonus payouts will be posted either on the layout or on a sign. If you see 'Royal Match' on the list, this is referring to a King and a Queen with the same suit located in the low hand.
No Fortune Bonus wagers are allowed on a Dragon Hand. If the player wants to tip the dealer on a fortune bonus bet, be aware that some casinos have a maximum payout for tipping.
If the player is banking then they're allowed to make a fortune bonus bet and the other players are allowed to envy the Player-Bankers hand. But, as always, every casino is different so make sure you know your house rules. The house will always handle the Fortune Bonus payouts, not the Player Banker.
If the player makes a Fortune Bonus wager of $5 or more, then that player qualifies for an Envy Bonus. All Envy Bonus payouts are listed somewhere on the table. The dealer will place a button in front of the Fortune Bonus wager to show the camera's that it qualifies for the Envy Bonus. If the player wins a bonus, make sure to spread the cards out far enough so that the cameras can see them clearly. The dealer will pay the player accordingly, and if the winnings are over $100, alert your floor. If the player doesn't win a bonus, then their bet is taken but the dealer will make sure to leave the Envy button up. This way if another player has a qualifying hand then your envy bonus will still be recognized and paid. Only at the end of the hand will the dealer make sure to remove all Envy Bonus buttons that don't apply anymore.
At some casinos, to make wagers do not qualify for the Envy Bonus. If there is a situation where more than one player has a qualifying hand, then all Envy Bonuses will be paid accordingly for each qualifying bet.
The player cannot envy the dealer's hand or their own, regardless of whose banking. No matter how much the player wishes, begs, or pleads, the house will not pay the player for the dealer's good hand. They are in the business of making money, not losing it.
