Pung, Chow and Kong

Chow: three in a row

A Chow is a run of three numbers in one suit, like 3-4-5 bamboo. Winds and dragons have no numbers, so they can never be part of a Chow.

You can make a Chow from tiles you draw. You can also grab a discard to finish one, but only from the player on your left, because they go just before you.

Pung: three of the same

A Pung is three identical tiles. If you hold two and someone throws away a third, you can call Pung and take it. Unlike a Chow, a Pung can come from anyone at the table.

Kong: four of a kind

A Kong is all four copies of a tile. It counts as one set. Because it uses an extra tile, the four go beside your hand and you take a spare tile from the end of the wall, so you are never short.

Kongs only turn up now and then. In Mala Mahjong the Kong button is there whenever you can make one, and on Easy the table points it out for you.

What happens when you grab a tile

The finished set goes face up beside your hand, where everyone can see it, and it becomes your turn. You then throw away a tile as usual, and play carries on from you.

Not every tile is worth grabbing. Each set you claim shows the table what you are collecting, and a hand you finish without claiming anything scores more.

When two players want the same tile

Sometimes a discard helps more than one player. The stronger claim gets it:

1. Mahjong! beats everything.
2. Pung beats Chow.
3. Chow comes last.

So if you ask for a Chow and don’t get the tile, someone with a stronger claim took it first.