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Table Games Pai Gow Tiles for under $25?

Discussion in 'Table Games' started by wanker751, Dec 15, 2015.

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  1. wanker751

    wanker751 Dutch Rudder Enthusiast

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    I am practicing tiles. I have never played in a casino though so I have a few questions. My buddy said if he comes with he wants to play tiles with me. I am willing to play the game for $25 but I would like to find it under if I can. Can I find it under $25? Can I find it downtown?

    Is there any etiquette things I need to worry about? I am not Asian not that it matters and really not sure why I had to put that out there but there it is!

    When I set my hand (I will obviously watch a few hands before but want to know) do I have to designate high and low like in PGP or just separate the tiles into two separate groups?

    Are there any places I NEED to play the game? Like here they had Asian gaming rooms at my locals (I may do a run here at a local before I go out anyway) For example like the Talon Room at Cosmo?

    I just don't want to look like a clown when I play that is all.
     
  2. Bo333

    Bo333 VIP Whale

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    If you've never played with the tiles a little hint would be they are easier to pick up in one hand than trying to fiddle with them with both hands.

    It's fun being non Asian and playing, if the dealers don't know you, you might get the comment that this is TILES...it's kind of funny.

    You just need to make 2 hands, the dealer will place the lower and higher.

    I've only played on the strip MGM & Aria and I've never seen them lower than $25.

    I pull back my money when the dealers are shuffling because the bets in the center seats will be in the dealers way. If someone is banking I'll usually pull back my bet also.

    If it's just you and the dealer, you want to bank as often as you can which is every other hand. Banker wins the zero hand ties.

    Feel free to ask the dealer on making a hand, they will help you.
     
  3. harvson3

    harvson3 Tourist

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    I've heard of $10 tiles at Palace Station and $15 or so at times at Harrah's. This info may be dated, though. There aren't tiles options downtown.
     
  4. wanker751

    wanker751 Dutch Rudder Enthusiast

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    Yeah I usually do the same in Pai Gow Poker when it comes to banking. I usually never bank with others at the table.

    Thanks good to know about the hands though.

    Yeah at $25 is high but the pace of the game and the number of pushes I think I can handle the bigger bet.

    - - - Updated - - -

    Yeah I saw that on Wiz but did not know if it was dated or not.
     
  5. gmille58

    gmille58 Low-Roller

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    I like to play tiles in Vegas. It is fun to see the reactions when I sit down as a non Asian, but I have played enough that the MGM dealers recognize me, and I usually only go 1 or 2 times per year. If there is no one else playing you can just turn them over, but if there are others playing the dealers dont want you to show, as it may help others. I will often double check my setting with the dealer and they will help you.

    I have seen the minimum as high as $100 on weekends at MGM, and sometimes at one of the Bellagio tables, but usually it is $25, and I dont ever recall seeing it lower.
     
  6. wanker751

    wanker751 Dutch Rudder Enthusiast

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    Oh so how does it work.. one player at a time to set the hand like left to right?
     
  7. gmille58

    gmille58 Low-Roller

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    Like PGP, everyone sets at the same time, then the dealer when everyone is done. But if there are others playing, and you ask the dealer for help, they might want you to show them in a way that others cant see. They also sometimes get pissy if you talk about what you have. One time another player was debating how to set his hand and I said something about I have three of the 2 tiles so you should be safe to set that way. Got the stink eye for that one, but that was it, and I was quiet for the rest of that session.
     
  8. wanker751

    wanker751 Dutch Rudder Enthusiast

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    So I cannot just get my tiles and flip them over to set them. That is good to know! Like I said I will watch a few hands to see how that stuff goes.
     
  9. wanker751

    wanker751 Dutch Rudder Enthusiast

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    Are people shitty with you if you are slow?
     
  10. Scottndindy

    Scottndindy High-Roller

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    Harrahs offers a $15 game the majority of the time. The only other sub 25 game is offered at Palace Station.($10 game).

    For a newby I highly recomend harrahs. Dealers and floor are nice and will help you out. I also would try to play your first time other than Friday or Saturday night primetime with a full table. I play mornings and early afternoons and many times can have a table to myself.

    I would recommend avoiding Bellagio for a first time or non-asian player.

    When other players are at the table I will generally set my tiles up on their side. This allows me to see all 4 at once and not disclose them to the other players. I also find this easier as I will move them to pair up my low hand and my high hand.

    One piece of advice is you should learn the ranks and names of the tiles. This will help dramatically when others are telling you how to set your tiles.

    Progression: When setting your hands follow the following progression:
    1st: Look for pairs. (do not forget about the mixed pairs)
    2nd: Look for teen or day - Pair with 9, 8, or 7
    3rd: If no pair, and no teen or day, place your high tile (in number of dots) with your low tile( in number of dots). This is not a perfect system but many times will result with a correct balanced hand.
     
  11. Scottndindy

    Scottndindy High-Roller

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    Depends on the player. Some are huge dicks and others are patient. For me it comes down to how you are as a player. If you are truly trying to learn the game I am never shitty. If you are a random person walking by that wants to play it because it looks cool but you have never seen the game before then I will be a little shitty. This is not a game to learn at the casino. You need to learn the pairs and rankings before ever sitting down. You can't watch the game for a couple minutes and know how to play.
     
  12. Scottndindy

    Scottndindy High-Roller

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    I highly support this. Whenever players start banking against each other the playing environment isn't fun. Its like being at a craps table betting against a dark side bettor. I try to bank fairly regularly. I generally will ask the other players at the table if they mind if I bank. Very rarely will I get told no. I usually follow that up by telling them they can bank as often as they like. This keeps the peace a bit better. The only exception to this is I would not recomend banking if the table is on a hot streak. You will piss off some other players. On the other hand if the dealer is hot banking is a great way to "break it up"
     
  13. wanker751

    wanker751 Dutch Rudder Enthusiast

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    Got all the pairs down (except for the occasion mixed pair mistake). Also the Wong and Gong. The Gee Joon I got. As dumb as it sound I take more time adding up the non pair combos. The rankings of non pairs I make mistakes on. Though those mistakes will not affect anyone else but me and the EV of the game.

    I just wanted to watch to see how the procedural stuff works. How to pick up the tiles, how to set them, those sorts of things. The computer does not do that.

    As for pull my bet back when someone else banks. I am cool with that, for $25 a hand with my BR the less hands I play the longer I can play! I did this in PGP when people banked as well, but I never usually never bank because others would not do the same. :grrr:
     
  14. Bo333

    Bo333 VIP Whale

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    Your brains is hundreds (thousands) of times faster with images (patterns) than numbers. The reason a seasoned player can set these in a fraction of a second is that they are pattern matching. When you're new to the game you are adding up the numbers on the tiles which takes your brain a long time.

    If you're a brand new player I would suggest you wait until the table is empty. The MGM table is empty a lot if it's not a weekend. The whole reason we started playing was that the Pai Gow POKER tables were always packed and the tiles were empty. You can imagine how lost we were that first time. Now we're much better but no where near the players that have played this their entire life.

    Still have not really had a problem with slow play, my buddy is very slow and usually no one seems to mind, in fact everyone usually want to help him.

    Once you know the pairs and the Wong & Gong hands you are good to go. I'll still on occasion ask the dealer how to set a hand, my buddy does every other hand, and it's all good.
     
  15. wanker751

    wanker751 Dutch Rudder Enthusiast

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    Right! Taking the patterns, converting them to numbers then adding the number up....I think I will do this sober! Then taking the Gee Joon tile and adding 3, and then 6 to see what fits. Math is hard!
     
  16. Bo333

    Bo333 VIP Whale

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    And its sadly embarrassing how many times I add wrong!
     
  17. wanker751

    wanker751 Dutch Rudder Enthusiast

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    My as well.. even when I play BJ with a dealer that does not announce what you have sometimes I am counting the dots! And yes it is embarrassing. If I could only have Tring's beautiful mind!
     
  18. Jejas

    Jejas VIP Whale

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    As others already said, go to Harrah's at off-peak time.
     
  19. gmille58

    gmille58 Low-Roller

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    The first time I ever played tiles, I was on a trip while in college. It was one of those trips where I won at everything. I sat down at a full table at the Mirage. No idea what I was doing, so I was asking the dealer every hand. I was getting huge hands every time. Pretty soon I went from $25 per hand to $100 per hand. I noticed that there was another bet next to mine, and the guy sitting next to me was betting $100 on his hand, and $300 or more on mine. At first I was thinking that they were going to take the commission from my winnings. Once I figured out what was going on, I just started asking him for help. He would tell me which two to put together, I would do so and then ask him if it was good or bad, and most of the time it was good. I took my $200 buy in and colored up to a yellow chip in about an hour or so.
     
  20. Bo333

    Bo333 VIP Whale

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    Something similar happened to me. I was winning a bunch of hands and a guy that came over said can I bet with your hand. I'm like sure, and he proceeded to bet the table max on my hand. His tip was as big as my bet. I naturally asked him how he wanted to set the hand. We kept winning and he kept doing it, but he was explaining the strategy as we went. I learned a lot that day.
    Funny thing is he asked to raise the table max and they wouldn't let him. Both he and I thought that was odd as they gave a bizarre explanation. This person was a well known resident of the Mansion.
     
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