Winning Hands

Winning hand

All Pungs

Worth 6 fans. The entire hand is made of pungs or kongs with no chows whatsoever, using any tiles as long as every meld is a set of three or four identical tiles. A reliable and popular strategy for players who favor matching over sequences.

Winning hand

All Types

Worth 6 fans. All five tile types — Characters, Circles, Bamboo, Winds, and Dragons — must each be represented somewhere in the hand. At least one tile from every category must appear, making this a breadth-over-depth hand.

Winning hand

3 Kongs

Worth 32 fans. Three kongs (sets of four identical tiles) anywhere in the hand, with the fourth meld and pair being anything. Extremely rare due to the difficulty of drawing four of any tile three separate times.

Winning hand

All Chows

Worth 32 fans. Three kongs (sets of four identical tiles) anywhere in the hand, with the fourth meld and pair being anything. Extremely rare due to the difficulty of drawing four of any tile three separate times.

Winning hand

All Terminals

Worth 64 fans. Every set and the pair consist exclusively of 1s and 9s across any suits, with no honor tiles and no middle number tiles. A demanding hand requiring terminal tiles only throughout every meld.

Winning hand

3 Suited Chows

Worth 32 fans. Three kongs (sets of four identical tiles) anywhere in the hand, with the fourth meld and pair being anything. Extremely rare due to the difficulty of drawing four of any tile three separate times.

Winning hand

All Green

Worth 88 fans. The entire hand is composed only of green tiles: 2, 3, 4, 6, 8 of Bamboo and the Green Dragon. Not a single tile in the hand carries any red or blue coloring.

Winning hand

All Honors

Worth 64 fans. The entire hand is made up of honor tiles only — winds and dragons — with no number suit tiles at all. Every set and the pair must be an honor tile pung, kong, or pair.

Winning hand

All Fives

Worth 32 fans. Three kongs (sets of four identical tiles) anywhere in the hand, with the fourth meld and pair being anything. Extremely rare due to the difficulty of drawing four of any tile three separate times.

Winning hand

Big Four Winds

Worth 88 fans — the maximum score. All four wind tiles (East, South, West, North) are collected as pungs or kongs, with any tile used as the pair. The rarest and most powerful wind-based hand in the game.

Winning hand

Big 3 Dragons

Worth 88 fans — the maximum score. All three dragon tiles (Red, Green, and White) are collected as pungs or kongs, with the remaining sets being anything. One of the most celebrated and difficult hands in Chinese Mahjong.

Winning hand

Chicken Hand

Worth 0 fans. A winning hand with no fan-scoring combinations at all — chows, pungs, and kongs across multiple suits with no special patterns. The minimum winning hand in the game, generally considered too easy and typically allowed only on a discard win.

Winning hand

Four Chows

Worth 32 fans. Four chows of the same suit where each starts one number higher than the last — for example, 1-2-3, 2-3-4, 3-4-5, 4-5-6. A staircase pattern of overlapping chows within a single suit.

Winning hand

Concealed Kong

Worth 2 fans. A kong formed entirely from self-drawn tiles, declared face-down so the tiles remain hidden. The rarest form of kong, requiring all four identical tiles to come from the wall without any discard pickup.

Winning hand

Greater Honors

Worth 24 fans. One each of all seven honor tiles (four winds plus three dragons) plus six tiles forming an irregular pattern across the three suits. An unusual structure that scores for covering every single honor tile.

Winning hand

Flower Tiles

Worth 1 fan each. Each flower or season bonus tile held by a player scores one fan. These tiles are drawn immediately and set aside, contributing fan points without forming part of the winning hand’s standard set structure.

Winning hand

Four Pungs

Worth 48 fans. Four pungs or kongs of the same suit in consecutive numbers, such as 3-3-3, 4-4-4, 5-5-5, and 6-6-6 of Characters. A demanding hand requiring four matched sets rising in sequence within one suit.

Winning hand

Dragon Pung

Worth 2 fans. A pung or kong of any one of the three dragon tiles — Red (中), Green (發), or White (白). Just one dragon pung in the hand contributes this fan value to the final score.

Winning hand

Full Flush

Worth 24 fans. The entire hand — every set and the pair — consists of tiles from only one suit (Characters, Bamboo, or Circles), with no honor tiles permitted. One of the most visually striking and satisfying hands to complete.

Winning hand

Little Four Winds

Worth 64 fans. Three of the four wind tiles are collected as pungs or kongs, while the fourth wind tile is used as the pair. A slightly lesser version of Big Four Winds but still an extremely rare and high-scoring hand.

Winning hand

Little 3 Dragons

Worth 64 fans. Two of the three dragon tiles form pungs or kongs, and the third dragon forms the pair, with the remaining two sets being anything. Requires controlling all three dragon types across a single hand.

Winning hand

Mixed Chows

Worth 6 fans. Three chows across the three suits, each starting one number higher in each successive suit — for example, 3-4-5 Characters, 4-5-6 Circles, 5-6-7 Bamboo. A diagonal staircase pattern ascending one step across each suit.

Winning hand

Mixed Pungs

Worth 8 fans. Three pungs of the same number, one in each suit — for example, 7-7-7 of Characters, Circles, and Bamboo. Similar to Triple Pung but with a slightly different structural definition and a lower fan value.

Winning hand

Melded Kong

Worth 1 fan. A kong declared using a tile taken from another player's discard, or by adding a self-drawn fourth tile to an existing melded pung. An open, visible kong that scores one fan for the extra tile commitment.

Winning hand

Mixed Double Chow

Worth 1 fan. Two chows of the same number sequence but in different suits — for example, 2-3-4 Characters and 2-3-4 Circles. A cross-suit mirror of Pure Double Chow that scores the same single fan.

Winning hand

Mixed 3 Chow

Worth 8 fans. Three chows of the same number sequence, one in each of the three suits — for example, 1-2-3 of Characters, Circles, and Bamboo. The fourth set and pair can be anything, but the three cross-suit mirror chows are the core.

Winning hand

Lower Four

Worth 12 fans. Every tile in the hand is a 1, 2, 3, or 4, with no tiles numbered 5 or above and no honor tiles allowed. Limiting the hand to the lower four numbers of the suit range makes this a challenging constraint hand.

Winning hand

Lesser Honors

Worth 12 fans. A 1-4-7, 2-5-8, 3-6-9 knitted sequence across the three suits forming a nine-tile dragon, plus one honor pung, one honor pair, and one additional set. A hybrid hand combining the knitted pattern with honor tile control.

Winning hand

Knitted Straight

Worth 12 fans. An irregular hand using tiles of values 1-4-7 from one suit, 2-5-8 from another, and 3-6-9 from the third, plus honor tiles. The tiles form no standard sets but follow this precisely defined cross-suit pattern.

Winning hand

Mixed Straight

Worth 8 fans. A 1-through-9 run formed using one suit for 1-2-3, a second for 4-5-6, and a third for 7-8-9, with the remaining meld and pair being anything. A cross-suit version of Pure Straight that is more accessible but still impressive.

Winning hand

Pung of Terminals

Worth 1 fan. A pung or kong of a terminal tile — a 1 or a 9 of any suit. A straightforward single-fan bonus for collecting three or four of the most extreme number tiles in the number suits.

Winning hand

One Voided Suit

Worth 1 fan. The hand uses tiles from only two of the three number suits plus optionally honor tiles, with one suit completely absent. Simpler than Full Flush but still requires deliberate discipline throughout the hand.

Winning hand

Pure Double Chow

Worth 1 fan. Two identical chows of the same suit and same numbers — for example, two sets of 3-4-5 Bamboo. The simplest repeating meld pattern in the game, contributing a small but meaningful fan value.

Winning hand

Pure Chows Step

Worth 16 fans. Three chows of the same suit, each starting two numbers higher than the previous — for example, 1-2-3, 3-4-5, 5-6-7. An ascending staircase pattern with two-step jumps within a single suit.

Winning hand

Prevalent Wind

Worth 2 fans. A pung or kong of the current round's wind tile — for example, an East wind pung during an East round. This fan scores regardless of the player's own seat position at the table.

Winning hand

Pure Chows

Worth 64 fans. A precisely defined hand using 1-2-3 and 7-8-9 of the same suit twice, a 5-5-5 pung of that suit, and a 2-8 pair of another suit. An elegant hand requiring exact tile control across specific sequences.

Winning hand

No Honors

Worth 1 fan. The hand contains no wind or dragon tiles whatsoever — every tile is a number suit tile from Characters, Circles, or Bamboo. A clean number-only hand that scores one fan for avoiding all honor tiles.

Winning hand

Outside Hand

Worth 4 fans. Every set and the pair contains at least one terminal (1 or 9) or honor tile, so no meld consists entirely of middle number tiles. A constraint hand that forces terminals or honors into every single meld.

Winning hand

One Type

Worth 6 fans. All tiles are from a single number suit, but honor tiles (winds and dragons) are also permitted alongside it. A more accessible version of Full Flush that allows the inclusion of honor tile pungs or pairs.

Winning hand

Shifted Pairs

Worth 88 fans. A special hand built with a specific sequence covering 1-1-1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-9-9 in one suit plus any matching tile as the pair. Known in Chinese as 九莲宝灯, it is one of the most celebrated hands in the game.

Winning hand

Pure Straight

Worth 16 fans. A complete 1-through-9 run in a single suit formed across three consecutive chows (1-2-3, 4-5-6, 7-8-9), with the remaining meld and pair being anything. The full nine-number sequence in one suit is a rewarding and recognizable achievement.

Winning hand

Reversible Tiles

Worth 8 fans. The entire hand is made of tiles that look the same when rotated 180 degrees: 2, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9 of Circles and 2, 4, 5, 6, 8 of Bamboo. A visually symmetrical hand based on the rotational appearance of specific tiles.

Winning hand

Three Big Winds

Worth 12 fans. Three of the four wind tiles form pungs or kongs, with the remaining two sets and pair being anything. A partial wind collection hand that falls short of Little Four Winds but still carries significant value.

Winning hand

Thirteen Orphans

Worth 88 fans. One each of 1 and 9 of all three suits, all four winds, all three dragons, plus one duplicate of any of those tiles as the pair. A completely unique hand pattern that defies normal set structure entirely.

Winning hand

Tile Hog

Worth 2 fans. All four copies of the same tile are present in the hand, whether used across multiple sets, as a kong, or split between a set and the pair. Holding every copy of one tile triggers this fan automatically.

Winning hand

Seven Pairs

Worth 24 fans. The entire hand is composed of seven distinct pairs, with no chows, pungs, or kongs, and no two pairs can be the same tile. A completely unique structure requiring patience and careful tile management.

Winning hand

Quad Chow

Worth 48 fans. Four identical chows all in the same suit — for example, four sets of 1-2-3 Bamboo — with the pair being any tile. Requires drawing and controlling four of the exact same three-tile sequence.

Winning hand

Short Straight

Worth 1 fan. Two consecutive chows in the same suit that together span six consecutive numbers — for example, 1-2-3 and 4-5-6 of Bamboo. A connected double-chow pattern bridging the lower and upper halves of a suit.

Winning hand

Seat Wind

Worth 2 fans. A pung or kong of the player's own seat wind tile, which corresponds to their position at the table. This fan is personal to each player and scores based on their individual seat assignment.

Winning hand

Upper Tiles

Worth 24 fans. Every tile in the hand is a 7, 8, or 9, with all sets and the pair formed using only these high-number tiles across any suits. Restricting the hand to the top third of the number range makes this especially difficult.

Winning hand

Upper Four

Worth 12 fans. Every tile in the hand is a 6, 7, 8, or 9, with no tiles numbered 5 or below and no honor tiles allowed. Limiting the hand to the upper four numbers of the suit range makes this a challenging constraint hand.

Winning hand

Two Terminal Chows

Worth 1 fan. The 1-2-3 chow and the 7-8-9 chow of the same suit held together in the hand. The two extreme ends of a single suit represented as chows, bookending the number range.

Winning hand

Triple Pung

Worth 16 fans. Three pungs or kongs of the same number across all three suits — for example, 4-4-4 of Characters, Circles, and Bamboo. The fourth set and pair can be anything, but the three matched pungs across suits are the key.

Winning hand

Two Melded Kongs

Worth 4 fans. Two kongs that are both declared openly — either taken from another player's discard or self-drawn and revealed — with the remaining two sets and pair being anything. Visible kongs require more tiles and invite more attention.

Winning hand

Two Concealed Pungs

Worth 2 fans. Two pungs or kongs that are both fully concealed — drawn entirely from the wall without taking any tile from discards. Hidden sets are harder to assemble and carry a bonus reward for the extra difficulty.