The word “poker” often evokes mental images of expressionless faces, sunglasses and ridiculous sums of money being shuffled across a smoke-smothered table. The Chinese Poker Club at Ohio State offers a more relaxed variation on the game.

“[Chinese poker] is really popular in China, especially at universities,” said Nan Gu, a member of the club and fourth-year in finance and real estate. The game doesn’t get much publicity in the United States, so it remains hidden from most Americans.

“Both the Chinese Poker Club and the Chinese Mahjong Club are in cooperation with the Undergraduate Chinese Student Organization,” Gu said.

This alliance with the UCSO provides the club with access to more resources for promoting the Chinese Poker Club and the Chinese culture.

The game of Chinese poker has many different names said Yishuo Chen, club vice president and fourth-year student in finance and accounting. Some people call it Tractor, Level Up or 80 Points because 80 points are needed before a player can increase a level.

“You team up with someone and you’re not allowed to talk to each other,” Chen said.

Teammates sit across from each other, and the previous card that is played influences every move. The cards then become the only way for teammates to communicate, and each card has a specific point value.

“If you get more than 80 points, like 120, you get two levels,” he said. “The first level is 80 and the levels after that are only 40 points each.”

Whichever team has the most points at the end of the hand, wins. For each hand, Chen said one team is on defense and one team is on offense.

If the defensive team wins the round, they do not get any points, but they do prevent the others from winning anything.

“You have strategy between teams,” Chen said. “You have to count cards and remember what cards have already been played.”
Each round lasts until no cards are left to play.

“We do all kinds of poker,” Gu said. “We also do Texas Hold ‘em.”
Everything needed to play poker is provided, but the club does not play for money.

“You go hang out with people, but you don’t just sit there and talk,” Gu said. “You have something to do… It’s not as serious as Texas Hold ‘em.”
The poker and mahjong clubs use their coalition with the UCSO to their combined advantage, planning joint events around the games their members enjoy.

“There’s a Mahjong competition, a Level Up competition, maybe a Texas Hold ‘em competition too,” Chen said.

The exact date for their major event has yet to be determined, but will be open to anyone at the university. Gu said the UCSO is looking to recruit new members through the event and get both old and new members involved in something.

“We’re trying to hold events associated with other clubs,” he said. “Those events are going to be for entertainment, welcoming students and helping them with their social life. That’s why we’re planning to do a big event for poker next quarter.”

The UCSO is also planning on developing a Chinese New Year show. The event would be in coordination with the Chinese American Student Association and possibly the Taiwanese Student Association and the Hong Kong Student Association.

Information about the UCSO can be found at www.ucso.osu.edu. Anyone interested in learning the rules or joining the Chinese Poker Club can e-mail Chen at [email protected].