Kina Poker Point

1. Interesting enough, these were the exact same laws right to down to article numbers and text that are used now in Taiwan, which you can find in my article on Taiwan Gambling Laws. This is because KMT was the government until they retreated to Taiwan in 1949, at which point the People’s Republic of China (PRC) was established.
2. Apr 15, 2009 Math and odds are important parts of Texas Hold’em poker. James Bond knows this (of course). In the final hand of Casino Royale, four players move all-in on the river and Bond scoops the $115 million pot, thanks to smart play. These were the cards on the board: Ah-8s-6s-4s-As And these were the players’ hands:.

Solutions

GRANDMASTER POKER: How To Play & Official Rules

Podcast: Texas Hold’em Poker “The scent and smoke and sweat of a casino are nauseating at three in the morning.” Texas Hold’em is a game of risk that forces players to rely on skill, strategy, and even patience, rather than mere blind luck, making this the perfect game for the modern version of a classic James Bond thriller.

It's not your grandfather's poker!

Check out and play Grandmaster Poker FREE now at:
www.tripleclicks.com/games/poker/

GAME OBJECTIVE:

In Grandmaster Poker, you'll attempt to put together the three best simultaneous poker hands you can, while using strategic hand-to-hand moves and timely discards, to win prizes, badges, and more! Grandmaster Poker has unlimited FREE plays daily, with no purchase necessary to win!

HOW TO PLAY:

At the start of a game, you will be dealt three random cards from a standard 52-card deck. Each of these three cards will represent the start of three separate hands. You will now begin drawing cards, one at a time, from the deck.

Each time you draw a card, you have the option of placing it on any of your three hands (click one of the three 'arrow' buttons to choose which hand you want to place your card on) until the hand is full (5 cards maximum per hand).

Again, your objective is to build the three best poker hands you can. And to score a win in Grandmaster Poker, you'll need to score a minimum of 1000 points (a 'grand').

PRIZE POINTS:

For each Poker hand you build, 'Prize Points' (points for earning recognition and prizes) are awarded* as follows:

• For a hand with one pair, you'll earn 100 bonus Prize Points
• For a hand with two pairs, you'll earn 250 bonus Prize Points
• For a hand with three of a kind, you'll earn 350 bonus Prize Points
• For a hand consisting of a straight, you'll earn 400 bonus Prize Points.
• For a hand consisting of a flush, you'll earn 450 bonus Prize Points
• For a hand consisting of a full house, you'll earn 500 bonus Prize Points
• For a hand with four of a kind, you'll earn 750 bonus Prize Points
• For a hand consisting of a straight flush, you'll earn 1000 bonus Prize Points
• For a hand consisting of a royal flush, you'll earn 1500 bonus Prize Points
• Add a timed bonus of up to 180 bonus Prize Points. You'll start each game with 180 points, with 1 point deducted for each second of game time. In other words, the faster you play, the more timed bonus Prize Points you'll get added to your score!Note: A minimum of 500 points must be scored (prior to timed bonus) in the game to earn these Prize Points.

Special Note: All three hands combine for your total score.

BURNS & MOVES:

As you're playing a game, you can discard ('burn') up to five cards that you don't think will help you build the poker hands you're after. Your first two 'burns' for each of your first 10 games are free; for each of your next 15 games, you get one free burn; for more than 15 games, you get no free burns. However, you can purchase burns. Each non-free burn costs 1 TCredit or 1 'Match' (packs of Matches may be purchased between games and are less expensive than TCredits). You can use a maximum of 5 burns (free and purchased) in each game.

During a game, you can also move up to five cards to help you build the poker hands you're after. Your first Move for each game is free (with a maximum of 10 free Moves per day). Each non-free move costs 1 TCredit or 1 'Move' (packs of Moves may be purchased between games and are less expensive than TCredits). These Burns & Moves expire 1 week from purchase.

PRIZES:

• Each time you score a grand (1000 points in a single game), you'll receive a free entry in the Daily Crown drawing for the following day where you can win a share in 75,000 Rewardicals! You get 580 chances to win with each Daily Crown entry! Note: Daily Crown entries that can be won via Grandmaster Poker are limited to your designated Prime 10* games each day (so up to 10 bonus Daily Crown entries per day).
• If you are in the top 10 for most Grandmaster Poker Prize Points scored during the month, we'll send you a free Grandmaster Poker t-shirt (shown at right)! Limit of 2 t-shirts per player/year. Note: Eligible points are limited to your designated Prime 10* games per day.

PLAY & WIN LIMITS:

You may play an unlimited* number of games each day...FREE. There is no cost to play Grandmaster Poker or win prizes!

*You can play unlimited free games daily. However, only 10 games may be used towards Prize Points and (some) badges. YOU designate which games you want to use. These 10 games are referred to as your 'Prime 10.'

You may complete each FREE daily challenge a total of 5 times per day and each weekly challenge a total of 5 times per week.

TIPS:

• When you use a'Move,' the card you select to move will be placed back on the top of the deck to then reposition as desired. Note that the card that was on the top of the deck prior to your move will still be there and will be dealt to you next after completing your move.
• The first three cards you're dealt to start your three hands can be moved. Example: You get dealt three aces to start a game. You can move them all into one hand to form the nucleus of a high-scoring full house or a four-of-a-kind.
• You'll typically need to receive at least 5-6 cards before you can determine which poker hands you should go after. A good way to start is to try to form the foundation of a flush or straight. As you receive additional cards, you can then 'shift gears' towards, say, a full house or a three-of-a-kind.
• Make your TCredits go further by buying discounted bulk packs of 'Matches' and/or 'Moves' in between games.
• Themes you've purchased for Zackjack are free to use in Grandmaster Poker (i.e, they're interchangeable). Conversely, if you purchase a new theme for Grandmaster Poker, you can use it free in Zackjack.
• Be sure to try Grandmaster Poker with the sounds effects ON to really bring the game to life. You’ll find the on/off button at the bottom of the Grandmaster Poker dashboard screen.
• On small mobile devices (e.g. smartphones), we do not recommend playing Grandmaster Poker in horizontal mode.

REWARDICALS:

For each TCredit spent playing Grandmaster Poker, you’ll earn 10 Rewardicals, redeemable for free Bitcoin, gift cards, silver bullion, and more! If you’re an SFI Affiliate, you can also exchange your Rewardicals for unlimited VersaPoints, PSAs, CSAs, and PRMs!

BADGES

Collect these badges for bragging rights and a chance to win the monthly Badge Bounty drawing rights!

In It To Win It!

This badge is awarded for playing a Grandmaster Poker game. Play once a day to keep this badge. Once you’ve achieved 1000 points in a game, this will be replaced by the 'Grandmaster' badge.

Badge Quest Points: 10

Grandmaster

Achieving 1000 points in a game earns you the 'Grandmaster' badge (or an upgraded “X-Times Grandmaster” version of the badge). Add bronze trim upon achieving 1000 points ten times. Add silver trim upon achieving 1000 points fifty times, or add gold trim upon achieving 1000 points one hundred times.

Badge Quest Points:
In it to Win it: 10
No Trim: 50
Bronze Trim: 100
Silver Trim: 150
Gold Trim: 200

Grandmaster Poker Streak

Achieve a minimum of one 1000-point game five days in a row to earn the Grandmaster Poker streak badge (e.g. '5-Day Grandstand'). This badge will automatically update as you extend your streak. To retain this badge, maintain a minimum 5-day streak.

Badge Quest Points: 150

Yesterday's High Score

Achieve the highest number of points for the previous day (within Prime 10* games only) and earn the “Yesterday’s High Score” badge (expires in 24 hours).

Badge Quest Points: 50

High Score (10 Day)

Achieving the highest number of points during the previous 10 days (within Prime 10* games only) earns you the “High Score (10 Day)” badge (expires in 10 days or when another player achieves a higher score–whichever comes first).

Badge Quest Points: 75

High Score (30 Day)

Achieving the highest number of points during the previous 30 days (within Prime 10* games only) earns you the “High Score (30 Day)” badge (expires in 30 days or when another player achieves a higher score–whichever comes first).

Badge Quest Points: 100

High Score (60 Day)

Achieving the highest number of points during the previous 60 days (within Prime 10* games only) earns you the “High Score (60 Day)” badge (expires in 60 days or when another player achieves a higher score–whichever comes first).

Badge Quest Points: 150

High Score (90 Day)

Achieving the highest number of points during the previous 90 days (within Prime 10* games only) earns you the “High Score (90 Day)” badge (expires in 90 days or when another player achieves a higher score–whichever comes first).

Badge Quest Points: 200

High Score (All Time)

Achieving the highest number of points all-time (within Prime 10* games only) earns you the “High Score (all-time)” badge (expires if and when another player achieves a higher score).

Badge Quest Points: 500

Royalty

Achieving a Royal Flush in a single game earns you the 'Royalty' badge.

Badge Quest Points: 100

Master Of Hearts & Diamonds

Finishing a game with all three hands containing only red cards earns you the coveted and rare 'Master of Hearts & Diamonds' badge.

Badge Quest Points: 350

Master Of Clubs & Spades

Finishing a game with all three hands containing only black cards earns you the coveted and rare 'Master of Clubs & Spades' badge.

Badge Quest Points: 350

Triple Triple

Achieving a three of a kind in all three hands in a single game earns you the coveted and rare 'Triple Triple' badge.

Badge Quest Points: 250

Fullest House

Achieving a full house in all three hands in a single game earns you the coveted and rare 'Fullest House' badge.

Badge Quest Points: 400

Grandmaster Poker Leaderboard

This badge is for Prize Points scored all-time (points included from Prime 10* games only). The minimum leaderboard rank to receive a Grandmaster Poker Leaderboard badge is 500. Add bronze trim by achieving a top 200 rank. Add silver trim by achieving a top 50 rank. Add gold trim by achieving a top 10 rank. You can view the Grandmaster Poker Leaderboard HERE. Note: So that all players have the opportunity to reach the top of the leaderboard, Prize Points won are halved every 30 days. Example: You scored 800 points today. 30 days from now, those points are now worth 560 points. 60 days from now, those points are now worth 392 points. 90 days from now, those points are now worth 274 points. And so on. Keep playing to maintain your leaderboard position!Badge Quest Points:
No Trim: 50
Bronze Trim: 100
Silver Trim: 150
Gold Trim: 200

Monthly Champ

Get this badge when you place within the top 20 leadership rank for Grandmaster Poker for the previous month. Get the basic badge for placing within the top 11 to 20 ranks. Add a bronze trim for placing within ranks 3 through 10, a silver trim for winning the Runner-Up slot, and a gold trim for the Champion score.

Badge Quest Points:
No Trim: 250
Bronze Trim: 500
Silver Trim: 750
Gold Trim: 1000

Grandmaster Poker Daily

Place within the top 10% of scorers in the daily Grandmaster Poker Challenge to win this badge. Place within the top 10% of scorers in the daily Grandmaster Poker Challenge 25 times to add a bronze trim, 50 times to add silver trim, and 100 times to add gold trim.

Grandmaster Poker Weekly

Place within the top 10% of scorers in the weekly Grandmaster Poker Challenge to win this badge. Place within the top 10% of scorers in the weekly Grandmaster Poker Challenge 5 times to add a bronze trim, 10 times to add silver trim, and 25 times to add gold trim.

Check out and play Grandmaster Poker FREE now at:
www.tripleclicks.com/games/poker/

♥ ♠ OFFICIAL RULES ♣ ♦

NO PURCHASE OR PAYMENT OF ANY KIND IS NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN.
The GRANDMASTER POKER Contest is sponsored by TripleClicks.com (“Sponsor”). This contest is governed by these official rules (“Official Rules”). By participating in the contest, each entrant agrees to abide by these Official Rules, including all eligibility requirements, and understands that the results of the contest, as determined by Sponsor and its agents, are final in all respects. The contest is subject to all federal, state and local laws and regulations and is void where prohibited by law.

ELIGIBILITY
The Contest is open to legal residents of their respective countries where not prohibited by law, who are eighteen (18) years of age or older at the time of entry who have Internet access and a valid email account. Sponsor has the right to verify the eligibility of each entrant. Sponsor employees and members of employees’ immediate family are not eligible to participate.

CONTEST PERIOD
Entries may be submitted 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

HOW TO ENTER
Enter at https://www.tripleclicks.com/games/poker/. No purchase is necessary to enter or win. Some restrictions may apply.

WINNER SELECTION
Contestants who score 1000 Prize Points or more in a game, will automatically receive one bonus entry in the following day's TripleClicks Daily Crown drawing, provided the game has been designated by the player as a Prime game. Contestants may win one bonus Daily Crown entry for each Prime game (up to 10 per day). The contestants who score the top 10 Prize Points totals for each month will also qualify for a Eager Zebra Grandmaster Poker Champion t-shirt (limit 2 t-shirts per player/year). Upon the request of the Sponsor, winners may be required to return an Affidavit of Eligibility, Release and Prize Acceptance Form and IRS W-9 form. Failure to comply may result in the winner being disqualified.

PRIZES
Contestants who score 1000 Prize Points or more in a game, will automatically receive one bonus entry in the following day's TripleClicks Daily Crown drawing, provided the game has been designated by the player as a Prime game. Contestants may win one bonus Daily Crown entry for each Prime game (up to 10 per day). The contestants who score the top 10 Prize Points totals for each month will also qualify for a Eager Zebra Grandmaster Poker Champion t-shirt (limit 2 t-shirts per player/year). Terms and conditions may apply. Incidental expenses and all other costs and expenses which are not specifically listed as part of a prize in these Official Rules and which may be associated with the award, acceptance, receipt and use of all or any portion of the awarded prize are solely the responsibility of the respective prize winner. ALL FEDERAL, STATE AND LOCAL TAXES ASSOCIATED WITH THE RECEIPT OR USE OF ANY PRIZE IS SOLELY THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE WINNER. PLAY & WIN LIMITS You may play an unlimited number of games each day...FREE. There is no cost to play Grandmaster Poker or win prizes.

CHALLENGE MODE

Click the Daily Challenge or Weekly Challenge button on the main Grandmaster Poker game page to play. Each Challenge is free to play and includes 5 games to complete. All players use the same decks and start off with the same cards dealt to level the playing field. Player's overall score is equal to the sum of all points scored for each of a challenge’s five games. Players may complete each FREE daily challenge a total of 5 times per day and each weekly challenge a total of 5 times per week.

ADDITIONAL LIMITATIONS
Prize is non-transferable. No substitution or cash equivalent of prizes is permitted. Sponsor and its respective parent subsidiary companies, agents, and representatives are not responsible for any typographical or other errors in the offer or administration of the contest, including, but not limited to, errors in any printing or posting or these Official Rules, the selection and announcement of any winner, or the distribution of any prize. Any attempt to damage the content or operation of this contest is unlawful and subject to possible legal action by Sponsor. Sponsor reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to disqualify any individual it finds, in its sole discretion, to be tampering with the entry process or the operation of the game or the Website; to be in violation of TripleClicks user agreements; to be acting in violation of these Official Rules; to be acting in a unethical or disruptive manner, or with intent to annoy, abuse, threaten or harass any other person, as determined by Sponsor at its sole discretion. Sponsor reserves the right to terminate, suspend or amend the contest, without notice, and for any reason, including, without limitation, if Sponsor determines that the contest cannot be conducted as planned or should a virus, bug, tampering or unauthorized intervention, technical failure or other cause beyond Sponsor’s control corrupt the administration, security, fairness, integrity or proper play of the contest. In the event any tampering or unauthorized intervention may have occurred, Sponsor reserves the right to void suspect entries at issue. Sponsor and its respective parent and subsidiary companies, agents, and representatives, and any telephone network or service providers, are not responsible for incorrect or inaccurate transcription of entry information, or for any human error, technical malfunction, lost or delayed data transmission, omission, interruption, deletion, line failure or malfunction of any telephone network, computer equipment or software, the inability to access any website or online service or any other error, human or otherwise.

INDEMNIFICATION AND LIMITATION OF LIABILITY
BY ENTERING THE SWEEPSTAKES, EACH ENTRANT AGREES TO INDEMNIFY, RELEASE AND HOLD HARMLESS SPONSOR AND ITS PARENT, AFFILIATES, AND SUBSIDIARY COMPANIES, ADMINISTRATOR, ADVERTISING AND PROMOTIONAL AGENCIES, AND ALL THEIR RESPECTIVE OFFICERS, DIRECTORS, EMPLOYEES, REPRESENTATIVES AND AGENTS FROM ANY LIABILITY, DAMAGES, LOSSES OR INJURY RESULTING IN WHOLE OR IN PART, DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY, FROM THAT ENTRANT’S PARTICIPATION IN THE CONTEST AND THE ACCEPTANCE, USE OR MISUSE OF ANY PRIZE THAT MAY BE WON. SPONSOR AND ITS PARENT, AFFILIATES, AND SUBSIDIARY COMPANIES DO NOT MAKE ANY WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, AS TO THE CONDITION, FITNESS OR MERCHANTABILITY OF THE PRIZE. SPONSOR AND ITS PARENTS, SUBSIDIARIES, AFFILIATES, ADVERTISING AND PROMOTIONAL AGENCIES, AND ALL THEIR RESPECTIVE OFFICERS, DIRECTORS, EMPLOYEES, REPRESENTATIVES AND AGENTS DISCLAIM ANY LIABILITY FOR DAMAGE TO ANY COMPUTER SYSTEM RESULTING FROM ACCESS TO OR THE DOWNLOAD OF INFORMATION OR MATERIALS CONNECTED WITH THE CONTEST. PUBLICITY By participating, each entrant grants Sponsor permission to use his/her name, likeness, or comments for publicity purposes without further notification, payment of additional consideration, except where prohibited by law.

SPONSOR
The Grandmaster Poker contest is sponsored by:

TripleClicks.com
A division of Carson Services, Inc.
PO Box 5206
Lincoln, NE 68505 USA

Any questions regarding this contest should be directed to TripleClicks Customer Care at: support.tripleclicks.com

There are now many forms of legal betting in Chinese Mainland including sports betting, lottery, and virtual terminal games that function similar to slot machines. In 2012 these combined to generate profit of RMB 261.5b (USD $42 billion). If we also include Hong Kong and Macau, on a gambling by country basis, the People’s Republic of China (PRC) ranks number one in overall gambling revenue.

Despite this, many forms of gambling such as casino games, mah-jong, poker and sports betting with non-approved channels are crimes. It is also interesting that we spent centuries trying to prevent gambling, and banned it entirely in 1949, only to become the world’s largest legalised gambling market. In this article I start by covering our current gambling laws. I then cover our history to show how we went from a nation opposed to gambling to one that embraces it. You can then continue to read about how our many forms of legal gambling work.

Gambling Laws of China

The law that makes non-approved forms of gambling a crime in mainland is Article 303 of the Criminal Law of the People’s Republic of China. This law states:

Kina Poker Point System

Whoever, for the purpose of profit, gathers people to engage in gambling, runs a gambling house or makes gambling his profession shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than three years, criminal detention or public surveillance and shall also be fined.

You might notice this law is vague and does not make casual gambling a crime. It is still often treated as a crime due to old policy dating back to Mao’s day.

Since 1957, we have had a program called re-education through labour to punish minor offenses of gambling, petty theft, fraud, fighting, prostitution, soliciting and illegal drug use. It is a special committee under police authority that does the sentencing. While it is possible to demand a defense attorney, seek repeal, or even litigation against the committee, success in fighting sentences is not common.

The actual practice of Chinese authorities is to simply fine casual gamblers. These authorities do use the media to report hundreds of thousands (sometimes millions) of annual gambling arrests. Understand this is sensationalized reporting designed to scare people into believing casual gamblers are often detained, which is not the case.

In 2012 there were an estimated 347,000 citizens prosecuted for gambling offenses. This same year the government claimed success in closing down over 30,000 illegal casinos and breaking up over 10,000 gangs responsible for running these casinos and illegal bookmaking operations. There were also many arrests involving junket operators, web-cam casinos, promoters, agents and banks. This is where the bulk of those prosecutions came from. Of the 347,000 prosecuted, only 5,700 people were sentenced to detention. More than 80% of those sentences were for 15 or less months.

It is important to note that what is done in practice, and what is said, are sometimes two different things. The police authorities claim they are not focused on casual gambling (for example: friends betting mah-jong is not a focus) but there are more than 430 committees for sentencing and each ranking police official has much control in who is arrested and then sentenced. This means it is possible to be arrested and sentenced for casual gambling, it is just extremely rare this happens. The penalty for casual gambling is generally a fine not exceeding 3,000 yuan.

Online Gambling Laws

There is no difference in the level of crime between players betting with illegal land-based casinos or betting with foreign gambling websites. While the government is very active in blocking access to these websites, there are ways to use them and it is very rare to hear of any players arrested.

History of Gambling in China

The gambling policy and government views of gambling developed over the course of many centuries. In this section I cover how it was that gambling became so popular, and progress through the various social and legal developments up until the modern day. First it is important to note that while neither archaeological nor credible written evidence exists to support, some historians claim it existed since at least 2300 BCE.

This dating originated in 1943 when Han era (206 BCE – 220 CE) graves were excavated and the board games Liubo and Boju were found. Chinese history told of these games being played thousands of years earlier. Many failed to account for (or knew) these stories were only written around 100 BCE. As of modern day, the oldest versions ever found of either game date to fourth-century BCE. While it is possible it existed prior, it is worth noting in Iran, India, Iraq, and Egypt much older discoveries have been found. Also, in many of these places – written history tells of gambling long before written history tells of the same in China. And the final note is that there is not much credible information to support the idea either of these games were gambling games.

The oldest archaeological finds of what may have been gaming instruments in China are dice dating to around 600 BCE. The oldest ancient scroll telling of gambling dates to 200 BCE. This tells of a story from the same period. Specifically, of a ruler named Cheung Leung inventing Bái gē piào (白鴿票) to raise money for defence around 200 BCE. His invention was an early form of the game now played in the West called Keno. Accounts of the same story attributing Bái gē piào to having much earlier financed the building of the Great Wall date a few hundred years later and is likely only a legend.

There is much evidence to suggest gambling existed but was not any sort of social phenomenon during the Qing Dynasty (221 to 206 BCE). This is when CuJu – an early form of football (soccer) – developed. Sports betting was one of the most popular early forms of gambling in China. During the Han Dynasty (206 BCE – 220 CE) more and more writing about gambling appeared. As history progressed the stories began telling of gambling in earlier times. There were even references to Cuju being played in 2600 BCE claiming it was a method used to train samurai. No such claims existed in the written findings that date only 100-200 years earlier. This suggests both gambling and sport became widespread during the Han Dynasty.

Early Gambling Laws

The earliest stories of a law prohibiting gambling tell of the Wei Kingdom (403 – 225 BCE) outlawing the activity with a monetary fine for those caught. The first actual legal documents on record that include the Chinese word for gambling (Dǔbó – 赌博) of current time as a legal provision appeared during the Tang Dynasty (618 AD/CE to 907).

It was said during the Tang Dynasty that gambling had infiltrated all walks of society. While dice, tile and card games existed sport was the most popular form of gambling. There were professional Cuju leagues and other sports popular were Jiju (an early form of Polo), Chuiawan (an early form of golf), aerobics and ice-skating. The penalty started as a monetary fine but in time included forced military service. The penalty for military or officials caught gambling was much more severe and included caning and even execution for serious offenses.

At the start of the Song Dynasty (960–1279) Emperor Taizu of Song (Zhao Kuangyin) order that habitual gamblers have their hands chopped off. Military allowing gambling could receive corporal punishment as well. History notes that enforcement against led to a sharp decline in gambling popularity. This however changed during the sixteenth century when European Imperialism in Asia led to many anti-gambling measures becoming less effective.

Kina Poker Points

European Imperialism in China

My article Macau Gambling History covers developments of gambling in China from 1557 onward. This was the year the Portuguese began leasing Macau as permanent base for trading. As they also governed the territory, and there were no laws to prevent gambling in Macau, games such as Pai Gow, CLU-CLU (sic-bo) and Fan Tan were allowed to develop here without fear of prosecution. These were literally played out in the streets. This is a period in Chinese history where gambling really boomed.

It was during the nineteenth century that legal forms of gambling came to China. This can largely be attributed to the incompetency of late Qing Dynasty governments and the need for war funds. Two Opium Wars (1839 and 1856) against the British Empire, and the Sino–French War (1884-85) left China weak. We were unable to resist political interference and territory encroachment by the West, thus leading to the many Unequal Treaties. With China in weaken state Japan saw the opportunity to invade too.

I already mentioned the history of gambling in Macau, but the history of Gambling in Hong Kong is also an interesting read. In short: Macau became a Portuguese colony in 1887 (though was Portuguese governed since 1557) which lasted until 1999. England gained sovereignty of Hong Kong in 1842 which lasted until 1997. Today both are special administrative regions of China with their own governments, laws, passports and currency. Japan controlled many areas of China including Taiwan and Shanghai since 1895. This was brief in Shanghai but lasted until 1945 in Taiwan. You might also be interested in my article on the history of Gambling in Japan.

During these early periods of invasions, gambling in China became widespread. Horse racing was brought to Macau, Hong Kong and Shanghai in 1842. Hong Kong is now home to some of the famous horse racing known worldwide. In 1847 the Portuguese government of Macau began regulating and taxing casinos. Today this the largest casino market in the world in term of net gambling win. Lottery was introduced by Japanese government to Taiwan in 1906. During these periods, games now popular such as Mah-jong developed.

Early Chinese Lottery

Gambling had already spread to China due to foreign powers and occupations here. In 1885 the Qing Dynasty was motivated by Spain’s success in using the lottery to generate tax in preparation for the Spanish-American war. It implemented a similar plan and allowed authorised lotteries to operate legally in exchange for paying tax. The first was started in Canton (Guangdong –which borders Macau) in 1886 called the Wei Seng Lottery (sometimes referred to as surname lottery). There are many archives that discuss this lottery: you can read a newspaper article from 1893.

Rigged Games

It did not take long for the idea of legal lotteries to sour. In 1905, a Fujian lottery company conducted 17 lottery draws with the jackpots rigged so that their own friends and relatives would win. During this ordeal angry mobs were lied to by the police who later lied in court. The press revealed the truth in great detail and afterwards lottery was banned in the province. A short while later, similar scandals were uncovered in Zhejiang and Anhui provinces. The ban on lottery was then expanded to include their provinces as well.

”Republic of China”

Lottery and all other forms of gambling were initially banned in the “Republic of China” (1912-1949) which is the period between the end of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1912) and the start of The People’s Republic of China (1949-Current). Upon its establishment, the Nanjing Provisional Government banned lotteries in the Provisional Constitution. Soon later guidelines set the fine for purchase of lottery tickets at one-hundred yaun plus two times the cost of the purchase.

However, China was frequently at war and in the period known as the era of Beiyang Government where various warlords ruled. Under the guise of raising money for charity and relief many lotteries such as Xiang Relief Charity, Hubei Prize Pay, Law and Business Raffle, Hubei Military Aftermath Prizes, Shandong Industrial Vote, Zhejiang Association and others were allowed. It is believed a lot of this money just went to the warlords to grow fat. Illegal casino and horse race betting were popular under these warlord governments too.

On March 10, 1928 Kuomintang Government created several gambling laws and added them to the Penal Code. Interesting enough, these were the exact same laws right to down to article numbers and text that are used now in Taiwan, which you can find in my article on Taiwan Gambling Laws. This is because KMT was the government until they retreated to Taiwan in 1949, at which point the People’s Republic of China (PRC) was established. During KMT governance of mainland China there were several approved lotteries such as Huang He lottery and the Aviation lottery.

People’s Republic of China

Our country was established as the People’s Republic of China (PRC) in 1949 when the Chinese Civil War between Communist Party of China (CPC) and Kuomintang (KMT) that had begun in 1927 neared its end. It was Mao Zedong who in that year declared the founding of PRC as a one-party socialist state controlled by the Communist Party. He governed the country as Chairman of the CPC until his death in September 1976.

Mao Zedong considered gambling one of the great ills of socialist society and banned all forms, including lottery, nationwide since PRC was founded. In 1957 his government created the re-education through labour program used to this day to punish certain gambling offenses. In 1966 he launched a nationwide campaign called the Cultural Revolution that was a program to eliminate counter-revolutionary elements in Chinese society. During this period the mere act of playing mah-jong (even with no gambling involved) was a crime.

Following the 1976 death of Mao Zedong much change in China began. In the 1980’s the Mahjong law was repealed. In 1984, the Beijing International Marathon took place. In order to raise funds the Chinese Athletic Association offered sports betting on the event. The following year such activity became regular practice of the National Sports Commission and was approved by the State Council.

The government made moves in 1986 to restrict sports betting, but it remained a topic of internal debate. In 1987 the tides turned entirely with creation of our current Welfare Lottery. If this is a topic of interest to you then I suggest reading a 1987 interview that OnlineBetting.com has added to Google Docs. This properly explains the reasons why legal gambling returned to China. It was from here the gambling in China of today all developed. You can learn about it including our many lotteries, legal sports betting, and our newest popular form of gambling which functions similar to slot machines in my article titled Gambling in China.

1 Next: Sports Betting and Lottery Legal in China 3