Where do people who live in Las Vegas go looking for jackpots? North Las Vegas, of course.
The winner, who asked to remain anonymous, won nearly $188,000 playing Pai Gow Progressive at the Cannery Casino.
They placed a $1 bet on the progressive jackpot, a $10 bet on the regular game and an extra $3 on the fortune bet. The winning hand was a 7-card straight flush with the 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, Joker and 8 of spades.
And when it was all said and done, they won $187,778. The casino commemorated the win with an image of a giant check on its Instagram page and on its X account.
Celebrating our Las Vegas local for scoring a whopping $187k Pai Gow Progressive jackpot with a 7-card straight flush! 🎉💰 pic.twitter.com/y4bF5SCiar
— Cannery Casino (@CanneryCasino) October 18, 2024
The Cannery Casino Hotel is a Boyd Gaming facility. Cannery offers an 86,000 square-foot casino with more than 1,300 slot machines, 21 table games, a race and sports book and a 300-seat bingo hall.
This story is reminiscent of the Las Vegas man who recently won nearly $260,000 on a Pai Gow Poker side bet.
How To Play Pai Gow Poker
The beauty of Pai Gow Poker is that it allows you to stretch your dollar a little further. How? Well, more than 40% of hands end in a push. It’s considered a low-risk casino game.
The objective in Pai Gow Poker is to form two poker hands that outperform the banker's hands. Typically, the player and banker each win one hand, resulting in a push where no money changes hands.
After all bets are placed, seven cards are dealt face down (or face up) to each player and the banker in a clockwise rotation.
Players and the dealer may take turns acting as the banker. Using their knowledge of poker hand rankings, players arrange their seven cards into a 'high' five-card hand and a 'low' two-card hand, also known as the backhand and the front hand. The high hand must outrank the low hand, which can only contain high cards or a pair.
How To Win at Pai Gow Poker
Each round ends with one of three outcomes:
- The player wins: Both player hands outperform the banker’s, resulting in even money.
- Push: Each wins one hand, and the player’s bet is returned.
- Player loses: Both banker’s hands beat the player’s, or identical hands favor the dealer.
Hand Rankings Are Slightly Different Than Texas Hold'em
Hand rankings in Pai Gow Poker are identical to Texas Hold’em, with a couple exceptions:
- Five Aces (4 Aces plus the Joker)
- Royal Flush (A-K-Q-J-10 of any one suit)
- Straight Flush (5 consecutive cards of any one suit)
- Four-of-a-kind
- Full House
- Flush
- Straight (highest Straight is A-K-Q-J-10, second highest Straight is A-2-3-4-5)
- Three-of-a-kind
If you’d like to practice playing Pai Gow before hitting the casino floor, check out where you can play Pai Gow Poker online.
