To truly appreciate Pai Gow Poker history, it’s worth traveling back further than the late 1980s, when the game first debuted within live casinos. Pai Gow Poker is a variation of an old Chinese game called (simply) Pai Gow. While historians seem uncertain of the time period that gave birth to the original game, many place it during the Song Dynasty, which ruled China from 960 to 1279 AD. The game is still played today and uses 32 dominoes, aka pai gow tiles, that are ranked to determine winning “hands.”

Pai Gow migrated to the U.S. with Chinese immigrants during the mid 1800s. Because the game had been suffused deeply into Chinese culture for several centuries, the immigrants understood it well. It was second nature to them. Americans, on the other hand, were confused by the dominoes; they were accustomed to using playing cards. Even though the game eventually caught on, its popularity grew slowly.

The details above, while focused on the older game, are important to appreciate modern Pai Gow Poker history.

Modern Pai Gow Poker History

During the 1980s, a man named Fred Wolf managed the Commerce Casino in California. At the time, Wolf and his associate Sam Torosian, had created a game called Super Pan-9. To launch Super Pan-9, they rented a large section of the casino floor at the Bell Club in Bell, California (a city in Los Angeles County). Because of stiff competition from other L.A. casinos, Wolf and Torosian created another new game – Pai Gow Poker – to draw attention.

It worked. Both games became instant hits with local gamblers. Before long, Pai Gow Poker began to penetrate other California casinos and eventually proliferated into casinos throughout the globe.

Where To Enjoy The Fruits Of Pai Gow Poker History

Today, you can play Pai Gow Poker in nearly every casino in the world. You can also enjoy the game from the comfort of your living room. If you’d like to play it online, we recommend that you visit Bodog Casino and create your free account. Bodog has designed an attractive playing environment through which you can enjoy no download Pai Gow Poker directly through your browser. You can also download their free gambling software.

Bodog will give you an instant 10% match on your first deposit, and provide everything you need in order to get started immediately. Visit Bodog Casino today to enjoy the fruits of Pai Gow Poker history.