# Singaporean mahjong

The Singaporean Mahjong rules are similar to Old style / Hong Kong system (also known as Cantonese mahjong) with some important differences. These differences include, but are not limited to; the Animal tiles, immediate payouts and nuances to the Greater Sequence/All Chows/All Sequences/平胡 hand.

## Tile system

The standard Singaporean mahjong tile system consists of 148 tiles due to the additional Animal tiles, thus slightly different from that of other regional mahjong tile-sets. Therefore, the rules of the game somewhat vary from other scoring systems in the region. The stacking of tiles will be 19 stacks for the dealer (East) and the player opposite (West), 18 stacks for the rest. The Dead Wall (王牌) is 15 tiles. The tile set is described as follows:

### Full set

| | | Numbers | Numbers | Numbers | Numbers | Numbers | Numbers | Numbers | Numbers | Numbers |
| | | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 |
| Suits | Dots | | | | | | | | | |
| Suits | Bamboos | | | | | | | | | |
| Suits | Characters | | | | | | | | | |
| Honours | Honours | Winds | Winds | Winds | Winds | | Dragons | Dragons | Dragons |
| Honours | Honours | East | South | West | North | | Red | Green | White |
| Bonus | Bonus | Seasons | Seasons | Seasons | Seasons | | Flowers | Flowers | Flowers | Flowers |
| Bonus | Bonus | Spring | Summer | Autumn | Winter | | Plum | Orchid | Chrysan- themum | Bamboo |
| Bonus | Bonus | Animals | Animals | Animals | Animals |
| Bonus | Bonus | Cat | Rat | Rooster | Centipede |

### Suited tiles

Suited tiles run from 1 to 9; the Dots suit (筒子), the Bamboos suit (索子) and the Characters suit (万子). There are 4 of each suited tile, totaling 108 tiles.
Similar to other regions, some tiles have gained colloquial names. For example, 1 Dot (一筒) is sometimes referred to as "Panadol".

### Honour tiles

Honour Tiles (字牌 or commonly known in Singapore as 大牌) consists of 4 Wind tiles (四风牌) & 3 Dragon tiles (三元牌). There are 4 of each honour tile, totaling 28 tiles.
The 4 Wind tiles run from East (东), South (南), West (西) and North (北).
The 3 Dragon tiles run from Red Dragon (红中), Green Dragon (发财) and White Dragon (白板).

### Bonus (flower/animal) tiles

Bonus tiles consist of the Flower set (花牌), the Season set (季牌) and the Animal set (动物牌). Each set has 4 tiles, totaling 12 tiles.
The 4 Flower tiles run from Plum (梅), Orchid (兰), Chrysanthemum (菊) and Bamboo (竹).
The 4 Season tiles run from Spring (春), Summer (夏), Autumn (秋) and Winter (冬).
The 4 Animal tiles run from Cat (猫), Rat (老鼠), Rooster (公鸡) and Centipede (蜈蚣).

### General purpose tiles

In addition to blank tiles, these tiles may be found when purchasing a standard mahjong set from Singapore. However, these tiles are not usually used in Singaporean mahjong except in customary situations.
Face tiles/Head tiles (人头牌)
Joker tiles (飛牌/ 百搭牌)

## Gameplay
### Winning

A player wins the Hand by either drawing the winning tile or taking a discarded tile as the final tile required to complete the 14-tile winning combination. Note that a player can complete a winning hand by picking a winning tile discarded by any player.
The player has to reveal the remaining concealed tiles for inspection and the Hand finishes. The score of the winning combination is calculated, payments are made and the players get ready for the next Hand.

### Draw

A draw occurs when there are 15 tiles left in the Dead Wall. However, if any player has managed to form a Kong some time in that hand, the Hand is deemed to have finished and the players move on to play the next Hand.

### Instant payments

An immediate payment occurs for certain Player Moves. This is independent of winning or losing the Hand. This is through either obtaining a combination of Bonus tiles (咬 Yǎo) or Kong (槓 Gàng).
The combinations of Bonus tiles earning the Instant Payment are:
1. Obtaining the Cat (貓 Māo) and the Mouse (老鼠 Láo Shŭ)
2. Obtaining the Rooster (公雞 Gōng Jī) and the Centipede (蜈蚣 Wú Gōng)
3. Obtaining all four Animal Bonus tiles
4. Obtaining both Flower Bonus tiles with numbers matching your playing order of the hand
5. Obtaining either sets of 4 Flower Bonus tiles
Instant payments are generally doubled if 'Hidden' or 'Concealed' (暗 àn). If a player opens their tiles in the beginning of the game and sees any of the combinations above, he is considered to have 'Hidden Bite'. Note that it is not considered 'Hidden Bite' if the any of the combinations were achieved after replenishment of tiles (补花) happened.

## Scoring points

Points (台) are scored from the difficulty of gathering the winning hand. If monetary rewards (and losses) are involved, it is common that playing parties will agree upon a monetary value awarded to a one-point winning hand. Subsequently, for each additional point scored, this value is accordingly doubled.
There is a typical maximum scoring limit of five (or six) points, though this has to be agreed among players. This point limit (simply known as the limit), and will be used to describe the points awarded by certain tile-combinations from now on. In other words, a certain tile combination that awards the limit means that it scores the maximum number of points, as agreed upon before the game.
For example, assume that players agree on a value of S$1 (5/1 rate) for a one-point winning hand. A two-point winning hand thus has a value of S$2, a three-point hand with a value of $4, up to a limit of $16 for a five-point winning hand. 3/6, 5/1 and 1/2 represent the hand value for a 0-point hand for those stakes. However, 10/20 and 20/40 cents represent the hand value for a 1-pont hand for those stakes.
Furthermore, the party who is guilty of discarding the tile which another party then takes to complete a winning hand has to pay double the agreed payout. Another situation where the winning player receives double the agreed payout is when he draws the winning tile by himself/herself i.e. Self-Pick (自摸).
In some playing circles, there are special hands (e.g. 13 wonders) whereby all players pay double that of the limit, regardless if the hand was won on a Self-Pick (自摸) tile or not.
In many playing circles, winner who Self-Pick (自摸) receives additional payment (e.g. $2, $5, $10 for 3/6, 5/1 and 1/2 rate respectively) from each player.
The following table summarizes the payouts, based on an assumed base payout of S$1 for a one-point winning hand (i.e. 5/1 rate).
| Points (台) scored | Losing players each pay | Guilty player pays | Winning player gains |
| 1 | S$1 | S$2 | S$4 |
| 2 | S$2 | S$4 | S$8 |
| 3 | S$4 | S$8 | S$16 |
| 4 | S$8 | S$16 | S$32 |
| 5 (Limit, if play till 5 tai) | S$16 | S$32 | S$64 |
| Special Hands (for limit till 5 tai) | S$32 | S$32 | S$96 |
| 6 (Limit, if play till 6 tai) | S$32 | S$64 | S$128 |
| Special Hands (for limit till 6 tai) | S$64 | S$64 | S$192 |
In the event that the winning player draws the winning tile by himself/herself, Self-Pick (自摸), all the players are to pay double of the agreed payout:
| Points (台) scored | All players each pay | Winning player gains |
| 1 | S$2 | S$6 |
| 2 | S$4 | S$12 |
| 3 | S$8 | S$24 |
| 4 | S$16 | S$48 |
| 5 (Limit, if play till 5 tai) | S$32 | S$96 |
| 6 (Limit, if play till 6 tai) | S$64 | S$192 |
Another common mahjong payout involves 'shooter pays all' whereby the person who discards the winning and kong tile will have to compensate for the rest of the players. Discarder would also have to compensate payments following from kong (e.g. Self-Pick (自摸) on replacement of gong, bite, self drawn exposed kong, concealed kong, complete animal or flower group). However for this rule, certain rules like 'Fresh Tile Mahjong Scenario (包生)' and '包满台' etc do not come in effect as the loser will have to pay for everyone when he/she discards the winning or kong tile anyway.
| Points (台) scored | Shooter pays |
| 1 | S$4 |
| 2 | S$8 |
| 3 | S$16 |
| 4 | S$32 |
| 5 (Limit, if play till 5 tai) | S$64 |
| Special Hands (for limit till 5 tai) | S$96 |
| 6 (Limit, if play till 6 tai) | S$128 |
| Special Hands (for limit till 6 tai) | S$192 |

### Kongs

A player who declares a kong (杠) gets an instant payout approximately equivalent of 1.5 points (i.e. $3 for 5/1 rate) for a melded kong (明杠), or 2.5 points (i.e. $6 for 5/1 rate) for a concealed kong (暗杠). Apart from that, kongs do not contribute to a player's score when determining the value of a hand.

### Triplet of any Dragon Tile (元)

Having a triplet of any Dragon Tile (元) scores 1 point. This triplet can be obtained by Pong (碰), Kong (杠), or simply having these 3 tiles in your hidden hand.
or or

### Winds (风)

Having a triplet of the seat wind or the prevailing wind scores 1 point. This triplet can be obtained by Pung (碰), Kong (杠gàng), or simply having these three tiles in your hidden hand.
or or or
If the Prevailing Wind (圈风) happens to coincide with your Seat Wind (门风), and you manage to obtain a triplet of that wind, you score 2 points. For example, if the prevailing wind is East and a player whose seat wind is East, a triplet of East by the player will score 2 points upon Mahjong.
If there is a triplet of both the Seat Wind (门风) and the Prevailing Wind (圈风), you score 2 points. For example, if the Prevailing Wind (圈风) is East and a player whose Seat Wind (门风) is South, a triplet of East and a triplet of South by the player will score 2 points (1 point for each triplet) upon Mahjong.
3 winds is limit 6 doubles but you must wait till all the cards to be suitable to game. This is 2 winds pong/gong and 1 with 2 at minimum. 3 pongs/gongs is also limit But 4 winds pong/gong 3 of them and last one has 2 you can game limit even if the last 2 cards are not related.

### Animal Tiles

Each animal tile obtained scores 1 point. One extra point (for a total of 5) is awarded if all 4 animals are collected.

#### Instant payment

It is commonly accepted that there will be a one-time payout by all playing parties to the party who collects either
a) Both the cat tile and the mouse tile.
b) Both the chicken tile and the centipede tile.
The above two events are known as 'Bitten' (咬到). This will earn the payout agreed for a 'Bitten' event.
Collecting all four animal tiles will earn an additional payout agreed for a 'Concealed Kong' (暗杠) event.
The double payout scheme applies when the collection of these tiles occurs before the 'Replacement Tile' (补花) event.

### Flower tile matching the Seat Wind (正花)

Each flower tile that matches a player's seat wind scores one point (正花). Other flower tiles (偏花) won't score any point.
* East player:
* South player:
* West player:
* North player:

#### Instant payment

It is commonly accepted that there will be a one-time payout by all playing parties to the party who collects both flowers (red and blue) that match the player's Seat Wind. This will earn the payout agreed for a 'Bitten' event.
The double payout scheme applies when the collection of both flowers occurs before the 'Replacement Tile' (补花) event.
Some house rules may include 'biting other flowers'. If Player A were to collect both flowers that match Player B's Seat Wind (i.e. bite other flowers), Player A will receive instant payment from Player B.

### Complete flower group (一台花)

A complete group of 4 flower tiles of the same colour scores a total of 2 points, 1 for the flower tile that matches the player's seat wind, and 1 for collecting all four.
or

#### Instant payment

It is commonly accepted that there will be a one-time payout by all playing parties to the party who collects the complete set of flowers of the same colour. This will earn the payout agreed for a 'Concealed Kong' (暗杠) event.
The double payout scheme applies when the collection of the set occurs before the 'Replacement Tile' (补花) event.

### Two complete flower groups (花胡)

Any player who collects 2 complete groups of 4 flower tiles (8 in total) either by 'Self-Pick' (自摸 or by 'robbing', has achieved a '8 Flower Tile-set' (花胡) that scores the limit. Because of its rarity, this combination scores the maximum number of points. In classic Singaporean Mahjong rules, collecting 7 flowers scores 5 points, but the player still has to complete his hand.

#### (i) All Flowers & Seasons (八仙过海)

Any player who collects 2 complete groups of 4 flower tiles (8 in total) all by himself i.e. 'Self-Pick' (自摸) is called 'All Flowers & Seasons' or 'Eight Immortals' (八仙过海), a type of '8 Flower Tile-set' (花胡). The combination of hidden cards held by the player does not matter at all, and the game is considered to have been won and game is ended as a win for the player.
However, some players are notably particular regarding the above point. If any player collects the complete '8 Flower Tile-set', he wins the game, but he should never reveal his hidden cards to anyone. This follows from the fact that the player has not won the game by virtue of his hidden cards, which should be the case. If the player with the complete set of flowers display his hidden hand to the rest, and it is not a hand that fulfills any winning combination, he is considered to have cheated, or 'Fake Hand' (诈胡) and must instead compensate the rest of the parties. The point to note is that the player who collects the complete '8 Flower Tile-set' should immediately close his hidden cards and declare himself to have won the game.

#### Instant payment

The player who completes the flower set has triggered 3 events, on top of winning the game. He has gathered
* Both flowers (red and blue) which corresponds to his seat wind (This is a 'Bitten' event).
* A complete set of red flowers
* A complete set of blue flowers.
All 3 events above are liable for one-time compensation by the rest of the playing parties, if the event themselves are not compensated already. This is on top of the payout given to the winning party by winning the game.

#### (ii) Robbing the Eighth (七抢一)

If a player has already drawn 7 flower tiles, and any of the other three players draws the last flower tile, the player with the 7 tiles is considered to have won the game by "robbing" the last flower tile as a discard of the player that draws the last flower tile. This is called 'Robbing the Eighth' (七抢一).This is considered a sufficient condition for a '8 Flower Tile-set' (花胡) event.
The player who drew the last flower tile, and thus causing the player with 7 flower tiles to win the game, will thus be the 'guilty' party, and is subjected to the same payout scheme described in Table 1.1. This a special hand, so the 'guilty' player has to pay the limit, as if the hand was won on a Self-Pick (自摸) tile..
It is extremely important that, in the event that a player amasses 7 flower tiles, this player must declare that he/she demands an inspection of everyone's hidden hand at the end of the game and describe the 'Pao' (包 ) condition in this scenario which is described below. In the event if the eighth flower did not appear in the course of the game, and the game ends in either a stalemate or a win by another player, the player who amasses the 7 flower tiles must immediately declare that he/she will conduct an inspection of everyone's hidden hand, so to prevent anyone from dismantling their tiles away. After this declaration, the rest of the playing parties should reveal their hidden hand to the declaring player. If he/she discovers that one of the parties has been keeping the eighth flower within his hidden hand, he/she is considered to have won the game with a '8 Flower Tile-set' (花胡), even if the game has already ended. The 'guilty' party can either be made to pay for everyone's losses, or pay as if the game was won mid-way, as it should be. This will depend on the agreement between all playing parties. Any party who does not heed the declaration of card inspection and proceeds to dismantle the tiles upon the ending of the game (so that it will be impossible for the declaring player to inspect his cards) will also be deemed to be guilty of holding on the eight flower tile in secret, and the declaring player is considered to have won the game with a '8 Flower Tile-set' (花胡).
As described above, the winning party should not disclose his hidden hand, in the event of a '8 Flower Tile-set' (花胡), if it does not fulfill the criteria of any winning combinations. If he does, some players may consider this to be cheating, or 'Fake Hand' (诈胡), and the winning-turned-losing party must compensate the rest of the playing parties.

### All Triplets Hand
#### All Triplets (对对胡/碰碰胡)

A 'Triplets Hand' (对对胡 or 碰碰胡) scores 2 points.
The above is an example of a hand that satisfies a Triplets Hand combination that scores two points, that is, any 4 triplets and any pair of tiles (eyes) to fulfill this combination. It does not matter if your hand of tiles is a mixture of Exposed Pong (碰) tiles and triplets held within your hidden hand.
In some playing circles, winner with Triplets Hand receives additional payment (e.g. $5 in 5/1 or $10 in 1/2) from each player if won by Self-Pick (自摸) or from the discarder ($15 in 5/1 or $30 in 1/2).

#### Hidden Treasure (四暗刻/坎坎胡)

However a special condition arises when this combination is held entirely within the winning party's hidden hand. That is, the winning party fulfills this combination with a Self-Pick (自摸), and has no exposed 'Pong' (碰) tiles or 'Exposed Kong' (明杠). In other words, the winning party drew and obtained every tile in this combination himself. This hand is refer to as 'Hidden Treasure' (四暗刻 or 坎坎胡) is extremely rare and it is generally awarded the limit.
Note 1: To achieve the winning combination of Hidden Treasure, the winning party can only perform 'Concealed Kong' (暗杠) if he has 4-of-a-kind of a particular tile. He cannot perform an 'Exposed Kong' (明杠) on any discarded tile from the rest of the players. If he does, the winning hand can only be considered as a 'Triplets Hand'.
Note 2: To achieve a winning combination of Hidden Treasure, the winning party must complete the game with a 'Self-Pick' (自摸). It is immaterial whether he/she has already 4 hidden triplets, and is awaiting one single tile to complete the eye, or otherwise.

### Suits
#### Half Flush (混一色 or 半色)

A 'Half Flush Hand' (混一色 or 半色) scores 2 points.
The above are examples of combinations which fulfill the 'Half Flush' criteria. This combination simply requires
1) a pure set of tiles from one single suit either from the 'Character', 'Dots' or 'Bamboo' tile sets, plus
2) any set of tiles from the 'Winds Tiles' (四风牌) or 'Dragon Tiles' (三元牌) suit.
The 2 points from 'Half Flush' can be stacked with other hands such as 'Greater Sequence Hand', 'Lesser Sequence Hand', 'All Triplets Hand' or 'Mixed Terminals'.

#### Full Flush (清一色)

If the set of tiles are entirely from one single suit only , then this combination is known as Full Flush Hand (清一色). This combination is awarded 4 points.
Again, special conditions can arise from this.
(i) Full Flush Greater Sequence Hand (清一色平胡)
If the set of tiles are entirely from one single suit, and it also fulfill the Sequence Hand, then this special combination is known as Full Flush Sequence Hand (清一色平胡). Due to its extreme difficulty, in addition to the probabilistic difficulty of not drawing any animal or flower tiles, it is generally awarded 8 points or the limit. 4 points for a full flush and 4 points for the sequence hand.
Most playing circles consider this a special hand, whereby all players pay double that of the limit, regardless if the hand was won on a Self-Pick (自摸) tile or not.
Full Flush Lesser Sequence Hand (清一色小平胡), in which the winning party has drawn flowers or animals, wins a total of 5 points, 1 for the Lesser Sequence Hand (小平胡) combination and 4 for Full Flush Hand (清一色) combination.
(ii) Full Flush All Triplets Hand (清一色碰碰胡)
Another special condition can arise from having a hand of all triplets and a pair of eyes, either from the Character', 'Dots' or 'Bamboo' tile sets. This Full Flush Triplets Hand (清一色碰碰胡) will score 6 points (2 for an All Triplets Hand (碰碰胡) combination, and 4 for a Full Flush Hand (清一色) combination), or the limit.
Some playing circles consider this a special hand, whereby all players pay double that of the limit, regardless if the hand was won on a Self-Pick (自摸) tile or not.

#### Nine Gates (九连宝灯)

(iii) Another special condition can arise from amassing the 13 tiles as shown below, either from the Character (万子), the Dots (筒子) or the Bamboo (索子) tile sets.
Notice that these 13 tiles do not constitute a winning hand. However, any player, by virtue of having these 13 tiles, can simply win the game with any discarded tile from that same suit. As long as a player amasses these 13 tiles without performing 'pung' or 'chow' (which waits for all 9 tiles of the same suit), and wins the game with any tile of the same suit, he will have completed this rare 'Nine Gates Hand' (九连宝灯), which awards the limit.
Most playing circles consider this a special hand, whereby all players pay double that of the limit, regardless if the hand was won on a Self-Pick (自摸) tile or not.
If a player is not waiting for all 9 tiles of the same suit and wants to complete the 'Nine Gates Hand', he has to complete the shape by Self-Pick (自摸).

#### Mixed Terminals (混么九/混老头)

A Mixed Terminals Hand (混么九/混老头), or commonly known as (大牌一九) scores 4 points (2 for triplets and 2 for mixed terminals).
This is a mixture of
1. ones OR nines (thus, terminals) from either of the wàn-zǐ (万子), tòng-zǐ (筒子) or suò-zǐ (索子)
or
2. either of the Winds tiles (风) or Dragon tiles (元 yuán).

#### Pure Terminals (清么九/清老头)

The 'Pure Terminals Hand' (清么九/清老头) is made up entirely of ones or nines from either of the 'Character', 'Dots' or 'Bamboo' tile sets. This condition is also known as 一九y. Due to its extreme rarity, this is awarded the limit.

#### All Honours (字一色)

The All Honours Hand (字一色) is made up entirely of tiles from either the Winds tiles (风) or Dragon tiles (元) tiles. This condition is also known as 大字 dà-zì.

### Greater Sequence Hand (平胡)

A Greater Sequence Hand scores 4 points. In addition, the winning player has to be waiting for at least 2 different tiles to complete a sequence in order to win. In some playing circles, winner with Greater Sequence Hand receives custom rate payment of $10/$20 for 5/1 or $20/$40 for 1/2, and the custom rate doubles up accordingly for a 5 point Greater Sequence Hand (e.g. additional point from Fully Concealed Hand, Robbing the Gong, Winning on last available tile).
A 'Greater Sequence Hand' is one where a player obtains a winning hand of 4 sets of sequences (順子) and 1 pair of tiles, all from either the Character, Dots or Bamboo tile sets. (However, special allowance is given to the nature of the pair of tiles. These pair of tiles can be from the Character tiles, Dots tiles or the Bamboo tiles, or any Winds (风) which is neither the Prevailing Wind (圈风) nor the Seat Wind (门风) of the winning player.
A 'Greater Sequence Hand' is considered difficult to amass because winning with this hand requires that
(i) the player does not draw any animal or flower tiles.
(ii) the player waiting for either an in-between tile, edge tile (an eight and a nine, waiting for a seven) or a single tile to complete the required pair can only claim a 平胡 hand if he self-pick (自摸) that particular tile.
Example: A player has the seven of the Dots tiles and the nine of the Dots tiles, he requires the eight of the Dots tiles to complete the winning hand. He cannot declare his combination of tiles to be a 'Greater Sequence Hand' if another player discards the eight of the Dots tiles (or even performing a "Jia Kang" on the eight of the Dots tiles". That is, the four point awarded to the Sequence Hand does not count. He can, however, still win the game by virtue of other points he has already scored, by drawing animals for example. But, if he manages to draws the eight of the Dots tiles by himself (自摸), his winning combination is considered to be a 'Greater Sequence Hand'.
If a player manages to amass a combination of cards that adheres to the requirements set above, but has drawn flowers and/or animal tiles, then he can only claim a 'Lesser Sequence Hand' (小平胡 x/ 臭平胡), which awards only 1 point, on top of any points awarded to him by the flower and/or animal tiles.

### Winning on Replacement Tile (花上,杠上)

A special event known as 'Winning on Replacement Tile For Flower' (花上) scores one point.
This event happens when a party, who is waiting for a tile to complete his winning hand (also known as the 'Ready Hand' (听牌)), draws a flower and/or animal. This will require him to replace the drawn flower and/or animal by drawing a 'Replacement Tile For Flower' (补花) from the end of the wall. In the event that the tile drawn to replace the flower and/or animal is the tile needed to complete his winning hand, he is considered to score a 'Winning on Replacement Tile For Flower' (花上). This event itself is worth one point, as mentioned above, in addition to any points scored by the combination of his winning hand.
There exists a special event in which a player draws two flower and/or animal tiles in a row, and upon the second consecutive 'Replacement Tile For Flower' (补花), he draws the tile which he requires to complete his winning hand. This event is known as 'Flower on Flower' (花上花).
Another special event known as 'Winning on Replacement Tile For Kong' (杠上) scores one point.
This event happens when a party, who is waiting for a tile to complete his winning hand (also known as the 'Ready Hand' (听牌)), either
1) draws a tile which complete a 4-of-a-kind in his hidden hand, in which he can perform a 'Concealed Kong' (暗杠), or
2) has a 3-of-a-kind in his hidden hand, and any other player discards the last tile of that kind, in which he can perform a 'Exposed Kong' (明杠), or
3) has a Pong (碰) triplet exposed, and draws the last tile of that kind himself, in which he can perform a 'Jia Kong' (加杠)
Any of the above 3 events will require him to replace the Kong (杠 gàng) by performing a by drawing a 'Replacement Tile For Kong' (补杠). In the event that the tile drawn to replace the 'Kong' (杠 gàng) is the tile needed to complete his winning hand, he is considered to score a 'Winning on Replacement Tile For Kong' (杠上). This will event itself is worth one point, as mentioned above, in addition to any points scored by the combination of his winning hand.
In Case 2, if Player A discards for Player B to make a 'Exposed Kong', Player A has to pay for all players if Player B were to get a "Bite" or Self-Pick (自摸) from the replacement tiles.
Instant payment
Note 1: It is common that an instant payout is given to the party who performs a 'Exposed Kong' (明杠), and the payout follows that of a 'Bitten' event. For the performance of a 'Concealed Kong' (暗杠), it will generally earn double that of the 'Exposed Kong' (明杠).
Note 1.1: However, in the event of a 'Robbing the Kong' (抢杠), the player who performs the 'Kong' (杠) need not be compensated, and instead will be the 'guilty' party who is considered to have discarded that tile for the player performing a 'Robbing the Kong' (抢杠). This event is described in the next section.
A special event can also be triggered from a 'Winning on Replacement Tile For Kong' (杠上). The sequence of events is as follows
1) Player A has a concealed triplet in his hand, and any other player discard the last of that tile, or
2) Player A has a concealed triplet in his hand, and he draws the last of that tile himself, or
3) Player A has an exposed triplet, and he draws the last of that tile himself
In all 3 scenarios above, he is able to perform a 'Kong' (杠 gàng) and must perform a 'Replacement Tile For Kong' (补杠). In the event that he draws a tile from this 'Replacement Tile For Kong' (补杠), in which he is already holding on to either
4) a concealed triplet of that tile in his hand, or
5) an exposed triplet of that tile,
he is then naturally able to perform another Kong (杠 gàng) and then another 'Replacement Tile For Kong' (补杠). If and only if Player A draws a replacement tile (from this particular second-in-a-row 'Replacement Tile For Kong' (补杠)) which he is able to complete a winning hand, he is considered to have performed a 'Kong on Kong' (杠杠胡 gàng-gàng-hú). Due to the immense probabilistic difficulty of such a feat, it is generally awarded the limit.

### Robbing the Kong (抢杠)

Robbing the Kong (抢杠) scores one point.
This event occurs when
1) a playing party has a 'Pong' (碰) triplet exposed,
2) and draws the last tile of that kind himself, and in which he
3) perform an Exposed Kong (明杠 mìng-gàng), and
4) another player, who is waiting for that very last tile of that kind to complete his own winning hand,
5) 'robs' the 'Kong' (杠 gàng) to complete his winning hand.
This exact sequence of events must occur for a 'Robbing the Kong' (抢杠) event to be triggered. Note that 抢杠 can be for any combination in the hand i.e. it does not have to only be 平胡 or 臭平胡) to win.
However if there are already 3 same tiles that has been 碰 by player A and player B is waiting for that particular last tile to form his 平胡 hand and this happened to be an in between tile or corner tile (一万&二万 waiting for 三万 or 七筒&九筒 and waiting for 八筒) , 抢杠 will only give the winning player 1 point upon mahjong as the 平胡 rule is not in effect. However if player B is waiting for 2 tiles to form 平胡, a 抢杠 will give him 5 points (4 for 平胡 and 1 for 抢杠).
Note that the other variant of 'Exposed Kong' (明杠) in which a player calls a "Kong' from a discarded tile with a triplet in his hidden hand, does not count as 'Robbing the Kong' (抢杠). The player who requires that last tile can still declare a win (胡 hù), but will not have deemed to have performed a 'Robbing the Kong' (抢杠) event.
There is a special condition where 'Robbing the Kong' can be used to rob a 'Concealed Kong' (暗杠). The condition is that a particular player is waiting for his last tile to complete the Thirteen Wonders (十三么). This is the only condition where 'Robbing the Kong' can be used to rob a 'Concealed Kong'.
Also if you play with blank cards(jokers), and someone wants to pong and someone has the pure cards. If the person with the jokers is in front, the person with the joker has the right to pong and the person with the proper real version cannot pong. However, if the person with the jokers is behind, the person with the real ones gets to pong. This is for both gaming and normal pong scenarios

### Winning on the Last Available Tile (海底捞月)

A special event known as 'Winning on the Last Available Tile' (花上) scores one point. The winning hand means "scooping the moon from the ocean bottom". The last available tile is the last 16th un-drawn tile from un-drawn stack.
Note: Generally, "Winning on the Last Available Tile' does not stack with 'Replacement Tile For Flower' (补花) or 'Replacement Tile For Kong' (补杠)
Example 1. Player A draws the last 17th tile, which is a flower. He proceeds to perform a 'Replacement Tile For Flower' (补花) by drawing the last 16th tile. In the event that he wins with that last tile, it will not be considered 'Winning on the Last Available Tile'.
Example 2. Player A draws the last 17th tile, which he does not want, and discards it. Player D performs a gàng (杠), and 'Replacement Tile For Kong' (补杠) by drawing the last 16th tile. If Player D wins on the last tile, it will not be considered 'Winning on the Last Available Tile'.

### Three Lesser Scholars (小三元)

The 'Three Lesser Scholars' (小三元) scores three points.
Example 1:
Example 2:
Example 3:

### Four Lesser Blessings (小四喜)

A 'Four Lesser Blessings' (小四喜) scores limit. Bonus points for a pong/kong of the prevailing wind and/or player wind will be counted above and beyond. Stackable with 2 points Half Flush (混一色/半色) and 2 points All Triplets (对对胡/碰碰胡)
Example 1:

### Three Great Scholars (大三元)

A 'Three Great Scholars" (大三元 ) scores the limit.
Note 1 : A common rule in Singapore dictates that any player who collects all 3 triplets of the 3 元 tiles, either by having them in your hidden hand, or by performing Pong (碰) to obtain exposed triplets, can declare himself to have fulfilled the 大三元 combination. The combination of the hidden hands, under this rule, does not matter. Invoking this rule when a player collects all 3 triplets earns that player 5 points (which may not be the 'limit'). Some playing circles consider this a special hand, whereby all players pay double that of the limit, regardless if the hand was won on a Self-Pick (自摸) tile or not.
Note 1.1 : Care must be taken by any player, who invokes the above rule, to conceal their hidden hand while declaring the game to be won. Otherwise, if the hidden hand is incomplete but the entire hand is revealed, certain players consider this to be cheating, because the said party has not won the game by virtue of his entire hand of tiles, as it should be. If such a situation arise, the winning-turned-losing party must compensate the rest of the playing parties.

### Four Great Blessings (大四喜)

A 'Four Great Blessings' (大四喜) scores the limit
Note 1 : For 'Four Great Blessings', a common rule in Singapore dictates that any player who collects all 4 triplets of the 4 individual Wind (风) tiles, either by having them in your hidden hand, or by performing 'Pong' (碰) to obtain exposed triplets, can declare himself to have fulfilled the 大四喜 combination. The combination of the hidden hand (more specifically, the last required pair of any tile) under this rule, does not matter. Invoking this rule when a player collects all 4 triplets earns the limit. Some playing circles consider this a special hand, whereby all players pay double that of the limit, regardless if the hand was won on a Self-Pick (自摸) tile or not.
Note 1.1 : Care must be taken by any player, who invokes the above rule, to conceal their hidden hand while declaring the game to be won. Otherwise, if the hidden hand is revealed, certain players consider this to be cheating, because the said party has not won the game by virtue of his entire hand of tiles, as it should be. If such a situation arise, the winning-turned-losing party must compensate the rest of the playing parties.

### Thirteen Wonders (十三幺)

* The "Thirteen Wonders" or "Thirteen Orphans" (十三幺) Hand scores the limit.
+ any tile in the same set
In Singapore, this winning hand is considered to be one of the hardest to accomplish and therefore has priority to win from a tile from any player's discard, superseding players in front of you who could have gamed from that tile. Thirteen Wonders is the only hand that can snatch a 'Concealed Kong' (暗杠 àn-gàng). Due to the immense difficulty in assembling this hand, all players pay double that of the limit, regardless if the hand was won on a Self-Pick (自摸) tile or not.

### Other scoring rules
#### Minimum & Maximum Points 台 tái to Game

Singaporean scoring rules typically required a minimum of either 1 or 2 points to game and a set maximum of either 5 or 6 points. These points may vary from host to host, so it is advisable to check before the start of the game.

#### Animal Special

All 4 players are randomly assigned each of the 4 animals. If a player obtains his own animal, he will receive instant payment.

#### Eighteen Arhats/Four Kongs (十八罗汉)

This refers to the scenario where the player manages to win after performing 'Kong' (杠) four times. It results in the player having 18 tiles excluding flower and animal tiles, hence its name.

#### Heavenly Hand (天胡)

This refers to the scenario where the dealer wins the round instantly at the start of the round. Because of its extreme rarity, this criterion is awarded the limit.

#### Earthly Hand (地胡)

This refers to the scenario where a non-dealer wins from the dealer's first discard. Because of its rarity, this criterion is awarded the limit.

## Paying for all players (包牌)

For paying for all players, the "guilty player" who discarded the winning tile has to pay all the winnings to the winning player.

### Rationale

Such rule is to prevent and disincentivise players from discarding a highly dangerous tile knowingly aware of a likely high point hand scenario. The general situation is, if a player (for example, Player A), has already melded (chow/pong/kong) tiles that points to a certain kind of winning hand (for example Full Flush 清一色) , another player (for example, Player B) discarded a tile resulting in Player A to Chow/Pong/Kong, advancing further to the Full Flush (清一色) hand. Player B is then responsible if Player A eventually proceeds to win off a Full Flush (清一色) by Player B discard or if Player A Self-Pick (自摸).

### Paying for all players under shooter mode

Players are already naturally responsible to pay for all winnings if they discarded the winning tile. Therefore, players will only need to take note of being responsible to pay all winnings for Self-Pick (包自摸Bāo-) on behalf of all players.
* 12th tile (4th set) rule: When Player A has already melded 9 or more tiles (3 sets), Player B proceeds to discard a tile resulting in the Player A melding the 4th set. Player B is then responsible to pay all the winnings if Player A eventually win a certain hand type by Self-Pick (自摸).
* Win on Kong replacement: Player A discards a fresh tile resulting in Player B to Kong. If Player B wins on the Kong replacement tile, Player A will need to pay for all winning.

### Paying for all players under non-shooter mode

Players are normally not required to pay for all winnings if they discarded the winning tile. Therefore, players will need to take note of being responsible to pay all winnings for Self-Pick (包自摸Bāo-) and upon discard (包输Bāo shū) on behalf of all players.
* 9 or 12 tiles rule: When Player A has already melded 9 tiles (3 sets), Player B proceeds to discard a tile for Player A to immediately win a certain hand type. Player B is then responsible to pay all the winnings. If Player A did not win immediately but only melded (chow/pong/kong) on the discard, leading to 12 tiles (4th) set melded. Player B is then responsible to pay all the winnings if Player A eventually win by Self-Pick (自摸) or on Player B's discard (包输Bāo shū).
The following is a typical list of hand types where players have to take note of:

### Dragon Tile Set Scenario (包三元)

Player A has two Dragon Pongs or Kongs exposed. Player B discards a third Dragon and the Player A is able to Pong/Kong it or complete an eye with it (and thereby winning), forming a third set of Dragons. If Player A wins the game with Player B's discard or his own tile, Player B pays all winnings.
Example:
Player A's exposed melds:
High-risk discard would be:

### Wind Tile Set Scenario (包四喜)

Same as Dragon Tile Set Scenario, but requires three exposed Wind sets and completing a fourth with a discard.
Example:
Player A's exposed melds:
High-risk discard would be:
Note: Dragon tiles are also considered high-risk discard:
due to the possibility of a 'All Honours Hand' (字一色).

### Point Limit Scenario (包滿貫)

Player A has 4 points exposed in a game with a point limit of 5. Player B discards a Dragon tile, a Prevailing Wind (圈风) or a Player's Seat Wind (门风) that is taken by Player A, thereby granting Player A the point limit of 5 points. If Player A wins the game instantly with Player B's discard, Player B pays all winnings. Another scenario is where Player A has 3 points exposed. Player B discards the Wind tile that is both the Prevailing Wind and the Player's Seat Wind, that is taken by Player A, thereby granting Player A the point limit of 5 points. If Player A wins the game instantly, Player B pays all winnings.
Example:
The limit is 5 points. Player A already has 4 points on his exposed tiles. His seat wind is South and the prevailing Wind is East.
Player A's exposed tiles:
High-risk discards:

### Full Flush/All Honours/Pure Terminals Scenario (包清一色/包字一色/包清么九/包清老头)

Player A has 3 or 4 sets of the same suit (bamboo, dots, character) or honours or terminals exposed. If Player B discards a tile of the same suit or honours or terminals respectively and Player A uses it to win Full Flush/ All Honours/ Pure Terminals hand, Player B pays all winnings. If Player B discards a tile of the same suit or honours or terminals respectively and Player A forms a 4th set, Player B is liable to pay all winnings if he subsequently discards a tile of the same suit or if Player A Self-Pick (自摸) and win Full Flush/ All Honours/ Pure Terminals hand.
Example:
Player A's exposed melds:
High-risk discards: Any tile from the same suit as player A's exposed melds.

### Pure Terminals Scenario (包清老头)

Player A has 3 or 4 triplets exposed, all of which are of the terminal number one or nine of any suit. If Player B discards a tile of the terminal number one or nine, and Player A uses it to win, Player B pays for all winnings.
If Player B discards a terminal tile and Player A forms a 4th set, Player B is liable to pay all winnings if he subsequently discards a terminal tile for Player A to win or if Player A Self-Pick (自摸) to win full flush hand.
Example:
Player A's exposed melds:
High-risk discards:
Of course, realistically, the high-risk discards are just since the rest have already appeared in Player A's exposed melds and can't form either the triplet or pair when he goes Mahjong.

### Fresh Tile Discard (生牌) Scenarios
#### Definition of 'Fresh tile' (生牌)

'Fresh tiles' (生牌) are tiles that have not been discarded.
However, exposed tiles from 'Chow' (吃) sets are not considered as 'discarded' tiles. For example, if Player C has a 'Chow' (吃 chī) set of one-two-three 'Character' (万子wàn-zǐ) exposed, and none other of these three 'Character' (万子 wàn-zǐ) tiles are not found in the discard pool, then all these three 'Character' (万子) tiles are considered to be 'Fresh' (生) tiles.
As for 'Pong' (碰) sets are not considered as 'Fresh' (生牌) tile since someone did discard it to allow the set to be melded.
There appears to be variants of the "Definition of Fresh" tile among different players as opposed to the one already mentioned above.
The variants are:
* Some players define "fresh" as any tile that is not already present in the discard pool.
* while other player define "fresh" to be any tile that is not already exposed somewhere on the table.
I.e. to say, if a certain tile is present in one of the melded sets of a player but absent from the discard pool, it will be considered "fresh" under the definition of the first variant but not under that of the second variant.
As mentioned, it will be wise to agree upon the rules with all playing parties before the below two scenarios are triggered.

#### Fresh Tile Discard Kong Scenario (包杠)

There are fewer than 7 tiles remaining in the wall (excluding the last 15 tiles that are meant to be untouched). If Player B discards a 'Fresh' (生牌 shēng-pái) tile (one not previously discarded) and Player A performs any Kong (杠 gàng) with that discarded tile, Player B pays all the associated compensation that Player A should receive. This has no effect on the payout when the game is won. However, if Player A wins by a 'Winning on Replacement Tile For Kong' (杠上) from that discard, Player B will be responsible to pay for all players.

#### Fresh Tile Mahjong Scenario (包生)

There are fewer than 5 tiles remaining in the wall (excluding the last 15 tiles that are meant to be untouched). If Player B discards a 'Fresh' tile and Player A wins the game with that tile, Player B pays all winnings payable to Player A for the points he has scored. That is, if Player A wins with a 5-point Hand, Player B will compensate Player A with S$64. Players C and D will not be involved in any payment within this scenario. The description of 'Fresh' (生) tiles above applies here.
A simple phrase to help remember the number of the tiles remaining for the 'Fresh' tile discard scenarios is simply "7 tiles Pao Kong,5 Tiles Pao Fresh" (七张包杠,五张包生).

### Wrong Winning Claim Scenario (诈胡)

A scenario where a player claims he has completed his winning hand but in fact, he has not done so or there is a mistake in his hand. This scenario is called Fake or Trick Hand (诈胡).
Usually he will be penalised to pay 5 points or the Limit to the other three players. The discarder will get double, whereas the other two players get the normal rate. If it is the offender that wrongly claim the "winning tile" which he drew it himself, i.e.Self-Pick (自摸), then he will pays all the three players double.
Note 1: Usually the penalty for this scenario is 5 points as most players set the Limit to 5 points, but it will be wise to confirm with all playing parties beforehand regarding the penalty when this scenario arises especially when the Limit is more than 5 points.
Note 2: In the shooter pay scenario, a player who has wrongly claimed a winning hand will have to compensate all three players the same amount (e.g. $32 each for 5/1 rate) to mitigate collusion amongst players. If he/she has Self-Pick (自摸) the wrong winning tile, he/she will have to compensate everyone the winnings equivalent to 5 points Self-Pick (自摸) rate (e.g. $35, $32 plus $3).

## Other Penalties
### Short Hand (小相公)

Short Hand is when the offending player has less than 13 tiles in hand, exposed or concealed (Kong is counted as 3 tiles) .
The penalty will be the offender has forfeited the right to win for the current hand. However, the offender is still allowed to claim Kong for instant payment because unlike Long Hand, Short Hand reduces the chance of Kong with instant payment.
In Shooter Pay style, offender will forfeit the right to win and collect additional payments from gong and bite, and also be liable to pay on behalf of all players if someone else bite, self draw an exposed or concealed gong and win on Self-Pick (自摸).

### Long Hand (大相公)

Long Hand is when the offending player (i) has more than 13 tiles in hand, exposed or concealed (Kong is counted as 3 tiles) and/or (ii) has drawn the wrong tile/s from the wall and/or (iii) melded the wrong discarded tile.
When detected by other player, the penalties will be the offender has forfeited the rights to win and to claim any Kong for instant payment for the current hand.
In Shooter Pay style, offender will forfeit the right to win and collect additional payments from gong and bite, and also be liable to pay on behalf of all players if someone else bite, self draw an exposed or concealed gong and win on Self-Pick (自摸).

### Miscellaneous Rule-breaking (乱象)

Players can also break the rules in other ways, such as: drawing tiles from the wrong wall, accidentally discarding flowers, exposing an entire wall, calling hu on the wrong tile, taking the wrong tiles for a 'Chow', 'Pong' or 'Kong' etc. In Shooter Pay style, offender will forfeit the right to win and collect additional payments from gong and bite, and also be liable to pay on behalf of all players if someone else bite, self draw an exposed or concealed gong and win on Self-Pick (自摸).

### Missed Discard (过水牌)

If a player missed pong or win on a discard tile by other players, the same player can only pong or win on the same discard pile after drawing in a tile.
The missed discard tile rule also applies to the tile you just discarded.
If the player is on a 2 sided wait to win, holding and waiting for to win, and missed a discard tile (either or ) by other players to win, the same player is not allowed to win if another player discard the alternative side of the wait ( or ).
Similarly, the rules apply to a 3 sided wait.
The penalty is relieved once you draw in a tile.

## Limitations (限制 Xiànzhì)

You are not allowed to discard the very same tile that you just called meld on. This rule is to prevent players from skipping their turns.
Example:
Pong with already on hand and discard immediately.
Chow with already on hand and discard immediately.
The rule also extends to discarding the other side of a completed sequence.
Chow with already on hand and discard immediately.