- Chinese Online Poker – The Main Nuances of Playing on the Web. Pineapple Poker is more an exotic trend than a popular type of poker on the Web. You will not find it even on such famous poker rooms like PokerStars and 888. However, Chinese poker has turned into a rising trend. The increasing number of offline tournaments and Pineapple poker tables to the range of several online poker rooms are vivid evidence of this fact.
- By playing online, you can join the game popular in Asian countries without the need for expensive and difficult to obtain tickets to distant China. Poker masters themselves will tell you that playing Open Face Chinese Poker will not result in a 15 minute game. Go to GameDesire to set up your free account and start the game!
Open Face Chinese Poker (OFCP) is a new and exciting variation on the popular Chinese Poker betting card game. Played for real-money in home games and casinos for years, the game is now reaching sites offering online poker.
Maybe people aren’t aware of how many options they have to play poker.
This article is written for those of you who have never heard of the great game of Chinese poker, and explains its history, fundamentals and differences to the traditional game of poker as we Westerners know it.
Sometimes we are bored with the same routine and just want to try new things.
It can definitely fit the bill for enthusiasts who want a change, but with some of the same elements of their familiar game. And, of course, you can easily play online.
7Conclusion
The History of Chinese Poker
China, perhaps more than any other place on earth, has a very deep and wide history of games of chance. Many people feel that it’s a big part of the Chinese national character to love these games.
The earliest version of the game is unclear because this all started so long ago. But the current game of Pai Gow, as it is known today, has existed in various versions and forms for centuries now.
The modern version, Pai Gow, is a hybrid, incorporating many aspects of Western poker.
Chinese Poker and the Modern World
Many people in the West heard about the game for the first time back in 1995, when it was introduced to the Bracelet event put on as part of the WSOP (World Series Of Poker).
Unfortunately, it was dropped from the event two years later, but that did not stop curious people from wanting to know more about this fascinating game.
Casinos, first in Las Vegas, and then shortly after all over Europe, started picking the game up and including it in their offerings. The game caught on particularly all over Europe and is a staple feature now in many casinos worldwide.
Chinese Poker Goes Online
Despite the fact that the WSOP still hasn’t seen fit to re-integrate the game into its proceedings, it continues to surge in popularity, especially in the online casino sphere. Online casino software download.
As a matter of fact, many of the world’s most famous players have given the game glowing endorsements.
Phil Ivey, Phil Helmuth, and Doyle Brunson have all expressed an affinity for the game, saying that they like the added layers of complexity and the skill and patience required to play properly.
In today’s internet-based world, these words of praise quickly went across the globe and people are now following suit.
The Rules of Chinese Poker
In its present-day version uses the same 52-card deck of cards as Western one does. It’s a 4-player game, where each player gets 13 cards, which means the whole deck is used.
Players then have to make 3 different hands out of their cards:
- Three-card front hand
- Two five-card hands
- Being the middle
- Backhands
Values are similar to Western version (although in some variations there is a strict points system), and the main rule is that your backhand has to be the strongest, followed by the middle hand, then the front hand.
Differences in Strategy for Chinese Poker
Because of the fact that you are managing three hands instead of one, strategy (online or otherwise), varies greatly; it’s not just a matter of the complexity being tripled!
The other factor worth noting here is that you have a lot more control over what you do with your hand than you do with any Western variations.
This requires a lot more thought and patience in order to produce winning hands.
Games typically take a very very long time, especially compared to Western games, for this very reason.
Scoring In Chinese Poker
There are some variations in scoring, especially counting the infinite possibilities of online games, but generally scoring is determined as follows:
The four players form two sets of opponents, that is to say, one person plays against another person of the four, and the other two against each other.
Each hand competes against the corresponding hand of the players’ respective opponents. The winning hand gets awarded one point. In the case of a tie between two hands, no points are awarded whatsoever.
In the case of one player winning all three hands, the points are doubled for a total of six points.
Conclusion
We hope you enjoyed reading this brief introduction to Chinese poker and we encourage you in these trying times to check out many of the online offerings of this game.
This is truly a great game, and if you are in the category in which many people have found themselves at this present date (lots of time on your hands), we cannot recommend you enough.
It helps occupy your time and at the same time it’s not mindless entertainment; it keeps your grey matter sharp and well-exercised!
We’ll be seeing you on the other side of the virtual table. Casino online spielen.
FAQs
How do you play Chinese poker?To learn exactly how to play, watch this video.
What is Chinese poker called?It’s most often called Open-Face Chinese Poker or OFCP.
How do you win in Chinese poker?You get 1 point for each hand of your opponent you beat. If you manage to do a sweep you win against all three hands of your opponent and get awarded 3 points. Since there is no betting or raising in this game you have to agree on a point value, for example, 1 point = $1. At the end of the game, you summarize your points and a winner is selected.
Chinese poker is a beginner-friendly poker game, where players don’t need to bet or bluff, and only play with points. Instead of holding just one hand, however, players hold 3; a bottom and middle hand with a total of 5 cards, and a top hand with a total of 3.
These hands are arranged like a pyramid, and in Open Face Chinese (OFC) Poker, they are also displayed face up. This means all players can view the cards you have in play, and makes the game less about representing a hand and more about making well-calculated choices in arranging the cards dealt to you.
The number of cards you receive in each round depends on the variation you’re playing, and we’ll get into more detail on the rules and variations of OFC below.
OFC Games Available on CoinPoker
For the moment you will be able to find OFC Pineapple, the game’s most popular variation, in the CoinPoker lobby. Depending on community feedback, more versions of this fast-paced poker game will be added in the future.
OFC Classic and Pineapple Rules
Classic Open Face Chinese and its Pineapple variation are strikingly similar games with just a few key differences. Below we’ll cover the basics of the classic game, and point out how Pineapple differs and why it makes it a faster-paced and more popular variation.
OFC Basic GameplayClassic OFC can be played by 2, 3, or 4 players while its Pineapple counterpart has a maximum number of players set at 3. The reason for this difference is that more cards are dealt in Pineapple, but we’ll get into that a little later.
Every OFC cash game follows the same principles as Hold’Em or PLO in the sense that they have a set buy-in. The difference is that when you sit down at the table with your buy-in there will be no bets or chips. Instead, you will compete for points, and each table has an assigned value to one point. For example, a 500 CHP buy-in game will usually have a 5CHP/point value set.
Each round is referred to as a set, and the number of hands in a set depends on the number of players at the table.
- A Set with 2 Players Consists of 2 Hands
- A Set with 3 Players Consists of 3 Hands
During the game you will sometimes notice that the number of hands increases, this is because of the Fantasyland feature, which will be explained later on.
The game starts with the player left of the dealer, and each player is given 5 cards to start with. Players need to arrange the cards into 3 hands, consisting of 13 slots, which will be visible to everyone at the table.
After the first 5 cards are dealt, players are dealt one card at a time in Classic OFC, or 3 cards at a time in Pineapple. Pineapple is a lot faster paced, and in this variation players get these cards face down, choose 2 to play with and reveal, then discard the third.
Fouling and Hand OrderOFC is less about bluffing your opponents and more about calculating the odds of making a certain hand. When arranging the cards into each row there are a few important rules to consider in addition to trying to make the best possible hand.
- Your bottom row must be stronger than the middle and top rows
- Your middle row must be stronger than the top row
Failing to comply with these rules results in a foul. Fouling gets you -6 points at the end of the hand. That’s the same penalty as losing all three rows, and fouling will cut these points off your score regardless of whether or not your rows are stronger than your opponents’.
Scoring and Royalties in OFCOnce all 13 cards are placed and you have successfully avoided fouling, it’s time you compare hands with your opponent(s). The system for scoring is the same in both Classic OFC and Pineapple, and can seem a little confusing at first.
- Best Hand in Any Row: +1
- Best hand in All Rows: +6 (+1 point for each row +3 points for getting a Scoop)
- Lost Hand in Any Row: -1
- Lost Hand in All Rows: -6
- Incorrect Hand Order: -6 (Foul)
In addition to these points, OFC and Pineapple scoring also includes royalties. These are special points awarded for certain hands, and are added to the basic scores. Higher hands on the top row get the highest number of royalty points, followed by the middle and bottom rows.
You can find a handy cheat sheet for all OFC royalties here.
Rules of FantasylandIf you manage to get QQ or higher in your top row without fouling then you enter into what is called Fantasyland. Fantasyland gives you the special advantage of receiving 13 cards at once in Classic or 14 in Pineapple (1 you would discard) instead of just the initial 5 on your next hand.
Chinese Poker 13 Cards
You can then use these cards to make your hands without the uncertainty that comes with drawing 1 or 3 at a time. Players can stay in Fantasyland in the next hand and beyond by satisfying any of the following conditions during the current hand:
- Trips in your top hand
- Quads or higher in your bottom hand
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Fantasyland adds an extra hand to your existing set, giving you a huge advantage during the hand and an opportunity to grab more points from your opponent(s).