American mahjong strategy: tips for beginners

1. Pick two or three hands, not one

• Sort your 13 tiles by suit, then winds, dragons, flowers and jokers.
• Ask what you have most of: evens, odds, consecutive numbers, a lot of one number, winds, pairs. That points you to a section of the card.
• Choose two or three hands that share tiles with each other and with your rack. Keep all of them alive through the Charleston.

2. Use the Charleston well

• Pass tiles that fit none of your candidate hands.
• Think before passing pairs and flowers. Many hands use them, so they are worth keeping early.
• Use the blind pass when you have nothing useful to give: pass on tiles you have not seen rather than break up your hand.
• If your hand is coming together nicely, you can stop the second Charleston.

Practise these choices with the Charleston trainer.

3. Stay concealed as long as you sensibly can

• Every exposure shows the table what you are building.
• Exposing locks you into hands that match the exposure; concealed tiles can still switch.
• Concealed hands are often worth more.
• Call a discard for an exposure once you are confident, or when it makes a hand that would otherwise be hard to finish.

4. Treat jokers as gold

• Jokers go in groups of three or more, so favour hands with pungs, kongs and quints if you hold several.
• Watch exposures for jokers you can redeem with a matching tile from your rack.
• Hands with no jokers pay double, so if you are close to a jokerless hand, consider keeping it pure.

5. Count tiles

There are four of each tile. If three are already discarded or exposed, a pung of that tile needs a joker; if all four are gone, it is impossible. Switch hands early instead of waiting for tiles that are not coming.

6. Play defense late in the game

• When someone has two or three exposures, work out which hands they could be making.
• Avoid discarding tiles that match their exposed groups or that their hand obviously needs.
• If your only safe discard is a joker, throwing it can be the right call.
• Throwing a tile that gives someone Mah Jongg costs you double, so a safe discard is often worth a slower hand.

7. Table habits that help

• Name every discard clearly and give players a moment to call.
• Do not rearrange your rack in revealing ways after a call.
• Check a declared Mah Jongg against the card before anyone touches the tiles.

Common questions

How do you pick a hand in American mahjong?

Sort your tiles, then look for what you have most of: even numbers, odd numbers, a run, winds, pairs or several jokers. Find two or three hands on the card that use those tiles, and narrow down during the Charleston.

What should I pass in the Charleston?

Tiles that fit none of your possible hands. Keep jokers (you cannot pass them anyway), and think twice before passing flowers and pairs, which many hands use.

When should I expose tiles?

Once you are fairly sure of your hand. An early exposure tells everyone what you are making and locks you in; a concealed hand stays flexible and is often worth more.

Should I ever discard a joker?

Sometimes, late in the game, when every other tile you could throw is likely to give someone Mah Jongg. A discarded joker cannot be called.

How do I play defense in American mahjong?

Watch other players' exposures and discards. If someone is clearly close to winning, avoid discarding tiles that fit their exposed hand, even if it slows your own.

How do you know if a hand is still possible?

Count what is gone. If three of a tile have been discarded or exposed, you can only make a pung of it with jokers. Switch hands early rather than chasing an impossible one.

What is the most common beginner mistake?

Locking onto one hand too early, and exposing too soon. The second is forgetting that a joker cannot be used in a pair.

New to the rules? Start with the complete rules.