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Audrey Chan

Mahjong is a tile game that is played in every corner of the world, and dates back to 19th century China and the late Qing dynasty era.
It remains a popular activity for family gatherings and celebrations – especially during the Lunar New Year holiday.
If you are new to the game, here is a simple guide to how to play, and win, a game of mahjong.
Mahjong is typically played with four players seated around a square table. Although some versions only require three players, we will stick with the basics.

To start a game, players first shuffle all 144 downward facing tiles.
Mahjong tiles, which are adorned with Chinese characters and symbols, are divided into different categories – suits, honours and bonus. The suits are characters, bamboo and dots. The honours are winds and dragons. The bonus tiles are flowers and seasons and are only used in more complex variants of the game.


Once the shuffling is done, each player randomly picks from the shuffled tiles until they have stacked two rows of 18 tiles face down in front of them. From these they then draw their hand – 13 tiles – which takes four rounds.
A round consists of each player in turn drawing tiles from the same stack. One player rolls the dice – this player is the dealer – to determine which of the four players goes first; starting with themself, they count around the table to find that player – for example, if they rolled 10 they go twice around the table, then count two more, meaning the player sitting opposite them goes first.
In the first round each player draws four tiles; the first player counts from one end of the stack the number they rolled on the dice, and that is the first tile they pick, along with the next three. After this the dice play no further role.
In the next two rounds players also draw four tiles each; in the fourth round three players draw one tile and the dealer draws two tiles. Each player arranges their hands into a “wall” that remains hidden from the other players – not unlike a game of Scrabble or Rummikub.
Sound of mahjong tiles fading as Hong Kong’s youth shun game
The dealer will start the next phase of the game by discarding their extra tile. The rounds continue, with each player drawing one tile; they can keep the tile they drew and discard another from their hand, or discard it immediately. Discarded tiles go into the middle of the table, face up. When the first stack is finished, players move on to the next stack.
So what is a basic winning hand?
The primary objective of mahjong is to build a complete hand of 14 tiles. A player wins by forming a hand of four sets of three, plus a pair of identical tiles. The most basic winning hand is also known as “chicken hand” – any sets from any category.

Keep your eyes peeled: the tile you need could appear at any moment when an opponent gives it up – or better still, you draw the winning tile yourself from a stack.
When building your sets of three tiles from the discarded pile, there are two ways to do so – pong and sheung.
Pong refers to a set of three identical tiles. You can only declare you are making this move if you already have two of the matching tiles in your hand. You can declare pong when you see the third tile you need being discarded, even if it is not your turn.
If a further tile is placed in the discard pile after it, then you have missed your chance and you cannot claim it.
Sheung refers to sequences of three consecutive tiles in the same suit – like “one, two, three”. Unlike pong, this can only be done if the tile you need has been discarded by a player immediately before your turn.

An additional way to win tiles from the discard pile is to complete the four-tile kong, which is done when you have three matching tiles – all drawn from the stacks – and the fourth matching tile is discarded by a player.
When you complete a set by drawing a tile from the discard pile, it must be shown face up for the rest of the game; if you complete a set by drawing a tile from a stack you can keep it hidden.
Once you assemble a winning hand of 14 tiles – 15 if the hand includes a kong – it is customary to announce your win by saying the much coveted phrase sik wu. If that is the case, congratulations!
Keep losing in mahjong? You need to learn some winning strategies
Winning at mahjong is not beginner’s luck if you know exactly what you are doing.
Look out for our next mahjong story on February 6 – about winning strategies.


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Chinese culture

How to play mahjong and how to win at mahjong: basic rules to get a game started, the suits, winning hands – and what to say to claim your victory

Want to win mahjong? Here are the basics of how to win in this traditional Chinese tile-based tabletop game. Photo: Antony Dickson

These mahjong tiles have been stacked into rows two tiles high. Players take a tile in turn from one of these stacks, moving on to the next stack when the first is depleted. Photo: Antony Dickson

An example of “chicken hand”, which is four sets of any category. Photo: Antony Dickson

Examples of “sheung” (top), “pong” (middle) and “kong”. Photo: Antony Dickson

China expects 9 billion domestic trips over Lunar New Year holiday. Indonesia could use some of those travelling Chinese, with its underused roads and airports

Last year there were huge crowds at the Shanghai Hongqiao Railway Station during the Lunar New Year holiday. This year, the demand is even greater, with many on waiting lists for tickets. Photo: Getty Images

Passengers queue to board a train in Nanjing, in Jiangsu province, China, on January 25. Lunar New Year in China means getting together with family, and with 9 billion domestic trips expected, it seems everyone in the nation will be on the go during the holiday. Photo: Getty Images

Tourists take part in a rabbit dance at the 40th Harbin International Ice and Snow Festival in Harbin, Heilongjiang province, China. Harbin is a popular destination for domestic tourists this year. Photo: Getty Images

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Balloon artist Wilson Pang with his 42-metre dragon sculpture - created to usher in the Year of the Dragon - and Guinness World Record certificate for the “largest balloon sculpture of a dragon” at TMTPlaza in Tuen Mun, Hong Kong. Photo: TMTPlaza

The dragon sculpture will be on display until February 17. Photo: TMTPlaza

Pang says he feels that he has succeeded in sharing a special moment with the public. Photo: TMTPlaza

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Dishes from Jiangsu Club’s Chinese New Year set meal for eight, including the “lo hei” tossed salad (front) for prosperity. It is one of 10 holiday dining options in Hong Kong we have picked out. Photo: Jiangsu Club

Dishes from Man Ho’s Chinese New Year à la carte menu. Photo: Man Ho

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Dishes from China Tang’s Chinese New Year à la carte menu, including its version of the “lo hei” tossed salad (front). Photo: China Tang

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Social interaction, moderate-intensity exercise, and playing games such as mahjong to keep the brain active are key to cognitive health, a study that involved 19,000 elderly Chinese adults shows. Photo: Shutterstock

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A group of elderly people exercising in a Beijing park. Photo: Shutterstock

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Catherine Leung had a double mastectomy in 2019 after her doctor found abnormal and potentially cancerous cells, and afterwards committed to being physically active, which included boxing. Photo: Xiaomei Chen

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Leung during her 70th birthday celebrations. Photo: courtesy of Catherine Leung Lam Yuk-ying

Leung with her grandson who “towers over me”. 

Leung and her friend Jesse Lau on holiday in Canada in 2015. 

Leung and Lau practise yoga with an instructor from Qintensity Fitness in July 2021. 

Leung strikes a boxing pose. She regularly spars with her friend Jesse Lau, 80. Photo: Xiaomei Chen

Lifestyle

Entertainment

Arts & Culture

Flowers, chicken hands, dragons – mahjong has a lot of terms that make it intimidating to the uninitiated, but the game is not as difficult to play as it seems
We break the tile game down to its basics, from how to set up, to the number of tiles you need in your hand, how to claim tiles and what to say when you win


Mahjong is all about tactics, cunning and strategy – on top of pure luck – and you had better learn how to walk before you run. Here are the basics of how to play and win the Chinese tabletop tile game.


Lunar New Year

Mahjong