Chinese Poker

Rules
Each player is dealt 13 cards. The object is to arrange them into two hands of five cards and one hand of three cards, beating the hands made by the other players.

The three hands consist of a "back" hand of five cards, a "middle" hand of five cards and a "front" hand of three cards. The back hand must beat the middle hand, and the middle hand must beat the front hand. Otherwise, the player pays a penalty to each opponent.

Only three hand types are possible for the front hand: three-of-a-kind, pair and high card. Straights and flushes typically don't count (see clean sweeps below). Click on each card to select it from your total of 13 and to make it part of your front, middle, or back hand.

The back hand, a straight flush, beats the middle hand, four-of-a-kind, which beats the front hand, three-of-a-kind.

The game stakes are quoted in dollars per unit. Once the hands are played, each player compares his or her three hands against those of the other players. So, in a four-player game, each player makes three separate comparisons, one against each opponent.

You win one unit for each corresponding hand of another player that you beat and lose one for each hand that beats you. When the hands match, you neither win nor lose.

Don't forget, your back hand goes head-to-head against each of the other players' back hands, middle vs. middle, etc.

After tallying all possible combinations, A gains three, B loses seven, C gains five and D loses one.

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