How to Play Filipino Mahjong

Filipino Mahjong is a four-player game using a traditional 108-tile set. This guide explains the game flow, tile rules, claiming priority, joker usage, and the pot system.

For best understanding, watch Kling & Jhat’s live games while reading along.

1. Tiles & Special Treatment

Filipino Mahjong uses suited tiles for forming hands: Circles (Dots), Bamboo, and Characters — 36 tiles per suit, for a total of 108 tiles.

  • Winds, dragons, and flowers are treated as flowers.
  • Any flower drawn must be immediately revealed and placed face-up.
  • The player replaces a flower by drawing from the opposite end of the wall.

2. Joker (Wild Card)

Before the game begins, the dealer rolls the dice to determine the wall break and reveal the Joker.

The Joker acts as a wild tile and may substitute for any needed tile to complete a chow, pung, kong, or pair. In this ruleset, the Joker is fully open unless house rules state otherwise.

3. Tile Count & Winning Requirement

  • Each player maintains 16 tiles in hand.
  • A winning hand contains exactly 17 tiles.

You reach 17 tiles by:

  • Drawing a tile from the wall, or
  • Claiming a discard for chow, pung, kong, or mahjong.

After completing a set (or if you don’t win), discard one tile to return to 16 tiles.

4. Hand Structure & Special Wins

A standard winning hand consists of 5 sets (chow, pung, or kong) and 1 pair.

Special Winning Hands

  • 7 Pairs – Seven distinct pairs.
  • Pure Straight 1–9 – One suit, complete sequence.
  • Joker Eye – Final pair completed using a Joker on the winning draw.

5. Dealer Setup & Turn Flow

  • Dealer rolls dice to break the wall and reveal the Joker.
  • Wall counting starts from the side opposite the dealer.
  • Each player starts with 16 tiles.
  • The dealer starts with 17 tiles and discards first.
  • Turns proceed counter-clockwise.

On Your Turn

  • Draw one tile.
  • Check for a winning hand.
  • Discard one tile to end your turn.

6. Claiming Rules (Priority)

Claim Priority

  • Mahjong (Win) – Highest priority.
  • Pung beats Chow.

If multiple players call the same type, priority goes to the next player in turn order.

Chow may only be claimed by the next player counter-clockwise.

7. Pot System

The pot starts at 5.
If no one claims the pot, all players add +1 for the next round.

Pot Can Only Be Claimed With

  • 7 Pairs Bunot
  • Pure Straight 1–9 (same suit) Bunot
  • Joker Eye

Note: House rules can vary by table. If your group uses a different pot amount or claim condition, follow your table’s rules.