Chinese Poker Sites

Chinese poker is a popular game usually played by poker aficionados who want to try something new. Technically, it isn’t a form of poker since there are no betting or chips involved. But it uses poker hands to determine the winner, so that’s how its name came to be.

If you’re looking for an all-in-one guide that could help learn everything about Chinese Poker, you’re in the right place.

Here’s a quick rundown of what you’re going to learn from this article:

Chinese poker rooms attributes. The Chinese poker industry is very different from the regular one. All poker rooms are mobile apps that began their journey back in 2017, and since then, it has evolved to offer games worldwide with many benefits and drawbacks for players.

Chinese poker is a card game based on poker hand rankings. It is intended a beginner-friendly game, as only a basic knowledge of poker hand rankings is needed to get started. Additionally, the format allows for frequent unexpected outcomes, so there is a large element of luck involved, therefore a beginner has a good chance of winning in the short term, even against experienced opponents. The only place to play Chinese Poker online was » TonyBet, a small, but decent poker room which offered OFC: Open Face Chinese Poker. Unfortunately TonyBet closed it’s poker room in July 2020. How does the Chinese Poker App work? Disable Adblock should the game not run correctly. Click on “Deal cards!” and you’ll receive 13 random cards.

On top of that, I’m also going to show you the best poker sites where you can hone your newly-found knowledge and, hopefully, make some cash from it.

Let’s get down to it, shall we?

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While not as popular as other variants, Chinese poker is offered by numerous casino and poker sites. And if you want to test your skills, that’s where you should start.

Also, playing poker from the comfort of your home helps you play with a clearer and freer mind. Chinese poker is a fun game, and if you go online, you can have that fun anytime you want.

The poker sites I’ve listed on this page and above have been tested inside-out for trustworthiness and safety. These are all elite operators with a proven track record of serving poker aficionados with the best care possible.

Chinese Poker History

According to some historical sources, Chinese poker was created over thousands of years ago — about the same time Pai Gow had been introduced.

Other findings indicate that Chinese laborers introduced Pai Gow to the US during the 19th century, where it merged with several forms of poker. Allegedly, this merging created Chinese poker. It seems that the origins of this fun-filled game may be lost to history, but who cares?

Chinese poker became an instant hit in 1995 when it was introduced to the World Series of Poker. Today, this poker variant has still not really taken over the world, but it’s popular among high rollers who want to try something new.

How to Play Chinese Poker — Step-by-Step Guide

Each round of Chinese poker lasts approximately 20 minutes, depending on how many players are participating. Much like other poker variants, Chinese poker features several stages. Naturally, it all begins with card dealing.

Dealing

The dealer deals 13 cards to all players, starting with the player sitting on his immediate left.

Showdown

Once all the cards are arranged, players place their hands face down systematically on the table. First comes the bottom, then the middle, and then the top is lined up furthest away from the player.

Are you in or out?

Players (starting from the left of the dealer) announce whether they want to play or not, if they agree on the surrender rule.

Royalties

Players then report their royalties, if they have any.

Revealing of the hands

Players flip their cards face-up, exposing all the three rows.

Scoring

Points are distributed according to the pre-defined scoring system (see below).

The video below might help you learn the basics of Chinese poker.

Chinese Poker Rules

Chinese poker is played on a standard deck of 52 cards and can accommodate a maximum of four players. Why only four? Because each of the four players is dealt 13 cards, and there would be no cards left for the fifth one.

Although the game can be played with two or three players as well, four hands of 13 cards are always dealt — all cards must be used.

The object of the game is to make three poker hands out of those 13 cards of the highest possible quality.

• Bottom Hand — Contains five cards, must always be the best (rankings-wise);
• Middle Hand — Contains five cards, must be lower ranked than the bottom hand but higher ranked than the top hand;
• Top hand — Contains three cards that need to be of the lowest value of all the cards.

Here is an example hand — let’s suppose you get these 13 cards:

♥7, ♣10, ♦K, ♥6, ♠9, ♦3, ♥5,♦9, ♠3, ♣J, ♠J, ♥A, ♥Q

You can sort these cards in many ways, and one of the best would be:

• Bottom: ♥5, ♥6, ♥7, ♥Q, ♥A

• Middle: ♣J, ♠J, ♦3, ♠3, ♣10
• Top: ♦9, ♠9, ♦K

As you can see, the top hand consists of only three cards, so the only possible combinations are reduced to a high card, a pair, and three of a kind.

Scoring in Chinese Poker

Once all the cards are set, players compare each of their three hands (bottom, middle, top) with those of the opponents.

• Bottom hands are compared to bottom hands
• Middle hands are compared to middle hands
• Top hands are compared to top hands.

Regular Texas Hold’em showdown hand values are used for comparison. In the standard Chinese scoring system, you get one point for each winning hand. If your hand is equally strong with that of your opponent, nobody gets a point.

For example: If you beat your opponent in the top hand and the bottom hand, but lose in the middle hand, you win two points, and your opponent wins 1 point (2–1). If there is a tie, no one wins a point. If there are multiple tied hands, combinations 1–1, 1–0, and 2–0 are also possible.

Scoring Systems in Chinese Poker

There are various scoring systems in Chinese poker and the one thing they all have in common is that players exchange points with each other. This means that the sum of all points is always zero. How many points is each hand worth is up to debate.

Here are the most commonly used scoring systems in Chinese poker.

1–6 Rule

1–6 rule is the most popular scoring system where a player gets 3 additional points for “scooping” the round — winning all three hands. Therefore, a scoop will give you six points, whereas your opponent loses six points.

In this rule, if you win two hands and your opponent wins one, both of you get one point. This scoring system is the most exciting one because it rewards the aggressive style of play and usually spices up the game.

2–4 Rule

In 2–4 rule, a scoop is worth four points, while the opponent loses four points. If you win the round 2–1, you get two points, and your opponent loses two points. Those who utilize the 2–4 rule when playing Chinese poker tend to play a bit more passive.

Surrender Rule

Usually, you are not allowed to fold in Chinese poker. However, if you agree to play by the surrender rule, it is possible for a player to do it. If you surrender when playing with a 1–6 rule, it will cost you three points against each opponent.

Royalties

In a nutshell, royalties are bonuses awarded to players with strong hands. The points per royalty can differ, depending on which Chinese poker variation you play. A player must declare his loyalties before revealing his hand.

Some combinations of hands or hands that are awarded royalties are:

• Three of a kind in the top
• Full house or better in the middle
• Four of a kind
• Straight flush.

Also, the number of points you are awarded for each royalty depends on the row. For the top row, royalties are worth:

• 66 — one bonus unit
• 77 — two bonus units
• 88 — three bonus units
• 99 — four bonus units
• 1010 — five bonus units
• JJ — six bonus units
• QQ — seven bonus units
• KK — eight bonus units
• AA — nine bonus units.

For the middle row:

• Trips — two units
• Straight — four units
• Flush — eight units
• Full house — 12 units
• Poker — 20 units
• Straight flush — 25 units
• Royal flush — 30 units.

And lastly, the bottom row:

• Straight — two units
• Flush — four units
• Full house — six units
• Poker — 10 units
• Straight flush — 15 units
• Royal flush — 25 units.

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Naturals

Naturals are a special type of royalties, based upon all the 13 cards falling into a “special hand” category. It should be noted that naturals are awarded before anyone can surrender and that the player who is dealt a natural will not play their hand.

But even if someone has a natural up their sleeve, others can keep playing the round without him. Here’s how much naturals are worth:

• Six pairs — three units
• Three straights — three units
• Three flushes — three units
• No broadway cards (any two cards put together from T-A) — three units
• Dragon (13 different cards) — 13 units

Chinese Poker Strategy

Although there are no foolproof strategies that could help win constantly in Chinese poker, there are some things you can do to improve your winning odds. Pay attention.

Do the Math

Unlike other poker variations, in Chinese poker, it is possible to gain an advantage with a proper strategy. You can do this by calculating all possible hands your opponents might be holding, and then creating a hand that scores as high as possible on average against all these hands.

Mathematics is the foundation of every strategy involved in every version of poker. This article emphasizes the significance of having good math skills when playing poker.

Adjust to Your Opponent

You can’t always rely on the math to do the job because there are just too many variables; it doesn’t take into account the style of play of your opponent.

For example, if your opponent neglects the top hand thinking that it’s the least important one, you’ll be able to exploit this by concentrating on the top hand a bit more. That way, you can score some easy points.

Top players rely on math calculations, while also trying to predict the opponents’ tendencies.

The strategy you should deploy heavily depends on the scoring system you’re using. A strong hand in the 1–6 system won’t give you as many points in the 2–4 system, and vice versa.

Learn the Rules

You would be surprised by how many “pro” players make basic mistakes by not placing their hands in the correct order. And if you play by the 1–6 rule, every mistake can make a vast difference to the final score.

Avoid Getting Scooped

Although this sounds a bit obvious to say, it should really be the foundation of your strategy when playing Chinese poker. Even if you get lousy cards, make sure that one of your hands is as strong as possible. That way, it will be hard for the opponent to get those three extra points.

On the other side of the coin, if you get good cards, try to maximize your chances of being the player that scoops someone else. It does feel good.

4-pair Hands

In Chinese poker, you’ll often get four pairs in your hand. You should always put your best pair in the middle, the 2nd best in the top, and the two “worst” pairs in the bottom. This gives you the best possible chance of scooping all three rows.

Splitting Pairs

If you have a flush and two pairs, you can choose to put both pairs in the middle and put one (lower) of the pairs in the top and one (higher) in the middle. In most cases, it’s best to split the pairs since a pair in the top hand is quite strong, while two pairs in the middle — not so much.

Final Thoughts

The luck element plays a much greater role in Chinese poker than in other poker variants. Often, all it takes to win is a basic knowledge of poker hands, and a kiss from the lady luck, making it much more appealing to beginners.

Be that as it may, you still need to develop some strategy to be successful. You can’t just jump in and rely entirely on luck, because this is not a winning strategy. Form a working strategy, and try to form the three rows of the highest quality as possible.

Don’t forget to arrange your rows according to the rules. Read the rules section a couple of times before you start playing for real cash. Avoid getting swept, even if that means that you need to surrender.

Finally, use a pen and paper to keep tabs of the units you have won or lost and to whom, that is, if you don’t play online.

If you need further clarification, feel free to leave a comment in the section below.

FAQs

Table Of Contents

Introduction

Open-face Chinese poker (OFC) evolved from closed-face (“regular”) Chinese poker, but it is not necessary to know the rules or strategies of regular Chinese poker in order to enjoy OFC.

Like other poker games, OFC players take turns drawing cards from a single deck, trying to make the best possible hand, while their competitors do the same. Unlike other poker games, however, there are no bets placed during the rounds of play. Instead, the players agree to play “per point” and the game is scored in points, similar to card games like hearts or gin rummy.

After all card-placement rounds are complete, each player will have arranged 13 cards into three hands, called the “top,” the “middle,” and the “bottom.”

Each player’s top hand is compared to his or her opponents’ top hand, the middle to the middle, and the bottom to the bottom. A player will win or lose points, based on how his or her hand measures up.

The three hands are scored and compared as regular poker hands. The bottom and middle are regular five-card hands. The top only contains three cards, but is scored the same way, thus the best possible hand on top would be three-of-a-kind, while most top hands are high-card hands.

Since each player need 13 cards from the deck, OFC is played with a maximum of four players. Most commonly, the game is played heads-up between just two opponents.

Objective

The first objective of OFC is to make a “qualifying” hand. There is a strict rule that the bottom hand must be at least as good as the middle hand, and that the middle hand must be at least as good as the top hand. Since a player is arranging his cards one at a time, this isn’t always possible. If he or she has already played a pair of kings in middle, and has a straight draw on the bottom using cards all lower than a king, he or she must complete the straight.

Otherwise, if you can’t make a qualifying hand, the entire hand is “foul.”

In OFC, as in bowling, if you hand has fouled (failed to qualify), then you get a zero for the frame. There is no fine and no penalty box, but your top, middle, and bottom are all marked as zero. As long as your opponent makes a qualifying hand, he or she will beat your top, middle, and bottom.

First Round & Subsequent Rounds

Like hold’em games, OFC is played with a dealer button. The player to the left of the button acts first on every street, the action moves clockwise, and the button moves after every hand.

At the start, players get five cards to play in turn, playing each card top, middle, or bottom. The cards are arranged face-up on the table, hence “open-face” Chinese poker. Once a player arranges the cards and indicates that his or her turn is complete, the next player flips over all five cards and starts their own arrangement.

After the first turn, players get cards one at a time, and play them face up, in turn.

Once you play a card top, middle, or bottom, you can’t move it to a different row later. There are no take backs.

If you have read this far, and are familiar with the basics of poker hands (a flush beats a straight, quads beat a full house, etc.), then you are ready to play OFC. As long as you trust your opponent, or an impartial judge, to score the hands, go ahead and get a game started.

Scoring

The basics of scoring are simple, but there are a number of detailed cases to account for. Don’t get overwhelmed. Like casino slots or Candy Crush, you can start playing the game without knowing all of the scoring details right away and learn as you go.

OFC is played per point, so scoring of the final hands (after all 13 cards are placed) is done on a point basis.
Each row, (top, middle, and bottom), is worth one point to the winner. So if you have a pair of jacks in the middle and your opponent has king high, then you win one point in the middle.

In this hand, 'moscow25' wins the bottom and top rows, but loses the middle row. Therefore, he wins one point overall.

If playing OFC three- or four-handed, each player scores against each player independently. Thus, unlike in hold’em, where the best hand that doesn’t fold gets everything and everyone else gets nothing, there is no folding. For example, if Bob beats Ted but loses to Joe, Bob still wins points from Ted.

But wait, there’s more!

In addition to the +1/-1 points per row, there are a myriad of scoring bonuses that can be worth a lot more than one point.

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Scoring Bonuses

The most common OFC scoring bonus is the “scoop bonus.” If you beat an opponent's top, middle, and bottom, you win an additional three points. This is sometimes referred to as the “1-6” scoring system. If you beat your opponent two out of three rows, you win one point overall. If you scoop him, it’s worth six points overall.

To encourage players to take chances for big hands, OFC rewards good hands in every row with different point bonuses. These bonuses are given, as long as a player makes a qualifying hand, regardless of whether the hand wins or loses.

Here, 'moscow25' makes a straight on the bottom, but loses to a his opponent’s bigger straight on the bottom. His opponent gets one point for winning the row, plus a two-point bonus for the straight. However, 'moscow25' still gets two points for his straight. Therefore, the straight bonuses cancel each other out, and 'moscow25' loses just one point on the bottom row.

Bonuses for bottom-row hands range from +2 for a straight to +25 for a royal flush. Middle bonuses start with +2 for three-of-a-kind, going up to +50 for a royal flush. Bonuses for the top hand start with +1 for a pair of sixes and then increase from there. The full list is below.

OFC Bonus Scoring System

Bottom Hand	Bonus	Middle Hand	Bonus	Top Hand	Bonus
--	--	Three of a Kind	+2	6x6x	+1
Straight	+2	Straight	+4	7x7x	+2
Flush	+4	Flush	+8	8x8x	+3
Full House	+6	Full House	+12	9x9x	+4
Quads	+10	Quads	+20	10x10x	+5
Straight Flush	+15	Straight Flush	+30	JxJx	+6
Royal Flush	+25	Royal Flush	+50	QxQx	+7
--	--	--	--	KxKx	+8
--	--	--	--	AxAx	+9
--	--	--	--	2x2x2x	+10
--	--	--	--	3x3x3x	+11
--	--	--	--	4x4x4x	+12
--	--	--	--	5x5x5x	+13
--	--	--	--	6x6x6x	+14
--	--	--	--	7x7x7x	+15
--	--	--	--	8x8x8x	+16
--	--	--	--	9x9x9x	+17
--	--	--	--	10x10x10x	+18
--	--	--	--	JxJxJx	+19
--	--	--	--	QxQxQx	+20
--	--	--	--	KxKxKx	+21
--	--	--	--	AxAxAx	+22

In addition to the bonuses for big hands, there’s a special rule, which started out as another way to add drama to the game, but has since become a standard, big part of OFC strategy.

Playing with 'Fantasyland” is optional, and must be agreed to before an OFC game begins. Most OFC games played online and in public casinos are played with the Fantasyland option. Make sure you know whether you’re playing with or without Fantasyland before you join.

Fantasyland

This rule is simple: If you make a qualifying hand with QxQx or better on top, then your next hand will be “in Fantasyland.”

Fantasyland is treated as a bonus round of OFC. It’s common for the button not to move, and a player is not allowed to quit or get dealt out of the hand during his opponent’s Fantasyland round.

The player in Fantasyland has a big advantage because he or she is dealt all 13 cards at once, instead of the starting five and then one at a time. The player then sets the cards face down in turn, and then waits for his opponents to play their hands according to standard OFC rules.

Once all players are finished setting, the Fantasyland hand is revealed and scored like a regular OFC hand. Thus, a player in Fantasyland, after rounds and rounds of setting his hand imperfectly because he doesn’t know what’s coming, is able to set his hand perfectly.

Staying in Fantasyland

It is too easy to make QxQx or better on top while in Fantasyland, which you can see all 13 cards at once, so the rules for remaining in Fantasyland are a bit stricter.

A player in Fantasyland gets to “stay in Fantasyland” if he makes quads or better on the bottom, a full house or better in the middle, or three-of-a-kind on top. The full list of hands qualifying to stay in Fantasyland are below:

Bottom hand	Stay in FL?	Middle hand	Stay in FL?	Top Hand	Stay in FL?
--	--	Full House	YES	Three-of-a-kind 2x2x2x	YES
Quads	YES	Quads	YES	3x3x3x	YES
Straight Flush	YES	Straight Flush	YES	4x4x4x	YES
Royal Flush	YES	Royal Flush	YES	5x5x5x	YES
--	--	--	--	6x6x6x	YES
--	--	--	--	7x7x7x	YES
--	--	--	--	8x8x8x	YES
--	--	--	--	9x9x9x	YES
--	--	--	--	10x10x10x	YES
--	--	--	--	JxJxJx	YES
--	--	--	--	QxQxQx	YES
--	--	--	--	KxKxKx	YES
--	--	--	--	AxAxAx	YES

Rules and Ethics

While it’s OK to quit the game or to get dealt out to take a smoke or a phone call at the beginning of an OFC hand, any hand started must be completed until scoring.

Since Fantasyland is treated as the extension of a previous hand, and the player in Fantasyland has a clear advantage, players at the table are not allowed to quit or skip the Fantasyland hand, if they played the hand that led to it. There is also a common-courtesy rule that asks the player in Fantasyland to announce that he or she is “staying” in Fantasyland.

House rules vary, but it’s also common for the Fantasyland player to set the hand face-down, and not change it before the other players start their round.

Variants

OFC is still a new game, however, the common rules for “standard OFC with Fantasyland” described above are nearly universal, both online and in the casinos that increasingly spread OFC whenever the poker tournament circuit comes to town.

There are also a few variants of the game that have caught a bit of steam in the poker community. One well-known variant is “criss-cross OFC,” which simply consists of two player playing two hands each, to form a four-handed OFC game. The hottest new variant of OFC that actually changes some rules is called 'pineapple OFC.'

Like other “pineapple” variants of poker games like Omaha and Texas hold’em, pineapple OFC deals each player three cards instead of one card per round, and that player must play two cards in turn, while discarding one.

Conclusion

Open-face Chinese poker is a new and exciting form of poker. It combines simple rules and the drama of drawing for big hands, as in Texas hold’em and seven-card stud, with the high variance of games like blackjack.

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The game is easy to learn and intuitive to play (don’t be scared by the table of bonuses), and like any good poker game, a beginner can win right away. Even better, unlike hearts, gin rummy, or even Texas hold’em (without the hole-card camera), you can learn the game by watching top players play. The game is played face up, so at every point in time, the player and the spectators have the same exact information.

Since the beginning of 2013, OFC has taken off as a mobile game. The screenshots used above to illustrate OFC rules are from the ABC Open-Face Chinese Poker App, available for the iPhone and iPad. There are several other good apps for playing OFC on mobile, against friends, against strangers, or against a computer opponent.

We’ll see you in Fantasyland!

OFC rules have been contributed by Nikolai Yakovenko. Known as 'Googles,' Yakovenko is originally from Moscow, Russia and is now a poker player and software developer residing in Brooklyn, New York. Yakovenko has made both World Series of Poker and World Poker Tour final tables. Meanwhile after several years at Google New York working on ranking algorithms, he's been developing independent software projects ever since. He also helped create the ABC Open-Face Chinese Poker iPhone App. You can follow Yakovenko on Twittter at @ivan_bezdomny.

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