NEW ZEALAND GAZETTE

No. 180

"Cut" means a process for dividing, into eight groups of four, a set of thirty-two pai gow tiles that has been stacked by the dealer, each of which groups is to be delivered to a box on the pai gow layout, and which dictates the order in which the tiles shall be delivered to the boxes;

"Dice Cup" means the device described in rule 2.4 (b) of this division;

"Box" means a group of four tiles which is delivered to a hand and which, if and when it is set, consists of a high hand (of higher rank or value) and a low hand (of lower rank or value), each of two tiles;

"House" means the casino operator;

"House Way" means the set of rules contained in Appendix C to this division which, where applicable, dictate how a hand shall be set;

"Laja" means an additional mix of the tiles that may be performed by the dealer, a player or a player/banker in accordance with these rules;

"Losing Wager Area" means that part of the layout in front of the dealer which is designated as the area for placing losing wagers, as shown in Diagram 13;

to "Match" means to compare:

(a) the high hand in a player’s hand with that in the banker’s hand, and

(b) the low hand in a player’s hand with that in the banker’s hand,

for the purpose of determining whether any wager on either of the hands wins, loses or constitutes a push;

"Player/Banker" means a player who holds or is to hold the bank in a round of play, either as the banker or as a co-banker;

"Push" means stand off;

"Round of Play", in relation to the game of pai gow, means a period of play commencing with the cut of the tiles and concluding when the dealer matches the hands and, if applicable, collects losing wagers, determines pushes and pays out winnings;

to "Set", in relation to a hand, means to divide the hand into a low hand and a high hand, each consisting of two tiles;

"Setting" means the manner in which a hand is set;

to "Shuffle", in relation to the pai gow tiles, means to randomly and thoroughly mix all of the tiles by hand in a washing or swirling motion, while they are spread face down on the table;

"Tile" means one of the set of thirty-two tiles used in the game of pai gow and described in rule 2.4 (a) of this division; and

"Total" means the sum of the dots on the high or uppermost sides of the three dice in the dice cup following a spin of the dice.

2.0 Table Layout and Equipment

2.1 Pai gow shall be played at a table having on one side eight places for the players, and on the opposite side a place for the dealer.

2.2 The layout cloth covering the pai gow table shall display the name and/or logo of the casino, have numbered areas designated for the placement of wagers, and be marked in a manner similar in substance to that shown in Diagram 13.

2.3 A set of three identical six-sided dice shall be used in the game to determine which box receives the first set of tiles from the cut. The dice shall be constructed of plastic, and be precision made with faces of a minimum size of 10 millimetres square. The sides of each die shall be clearly marked by the use of dots with values from one to six, so arranged that the sum of the values of any pair of opposite sides is seven, and have a finish and texture exactly identical to that of all the other sides. The weight of each die shall be equally distributed throughout, and no side shall be heavier or lighter than any other. The dice shall operate as a random number generator, in that their use in the game shall result in the selection of a value which is:

(a) statistically independent;

(b) uniformly distributed over its range; and

(c) unpredictable.

2.4 The following equipment shall also be used in the game of pai gow:

(a) a set of thirty-two tiles, in the nature of dominoes, which are identical in size and shape:

(i) the faces of which bear the individual markings shown in Appendix B to this division, and

(ii) the backs and sides of which are of the same colour and design, and appear identical in all other respects;

(b) a dice cup, being a cup-like device with a non-transparent cover which shall be used to contain and shake the three dice referred to in rule 2.3 of this division;

(c) where rule 5.8 of this division applies, 2 buttons, one marked “+4” and the other marked “-4”;

(d) a marker button marked “Off”, which shall be used to denote a box removed from play under part 10 of this division;

(e) a chung, one face of which shall be marked either “Co-banker” or otherwise so as to indicate a co-banking situation, and the reverse face of which may be marked “Banker”; and

(f) a float tray constructed of metal and with a clear lockable lid, which shall be attached to the table and shall house the chips.

2.5 Each pai gow table shall have a drop box attached to it.