Zha Jin Hua Rules: Hand Ranks, the 2-3-5, Blind Play and Comparing
Zha Jin Hua (also called Golden Flower or Three Card Brag) gives each player just three cards. The rules are simple and hands move fast, and the twist is playing blind: you can keep betting without ever looking at your cards. This guide covers the hand ranks, the 2-3-5 that beats three of a kind, how blind and seen bets differ and how comparing works, with three worked examples.
The basics
- Cards: one 52-card deck, no jokers, three cards each. Aces are high, then K, Q, J, 10 down to 2.
- Ante: at the start of every hand each player puts 1 ante into the pot.
- Blind: your cards are dealt face down. Until you look at them you are playing blind. You can look any time, and looking does not use up your turn.
- Taking turns: the player after the button acts first. On your turn you can call, raise, compare or fold.
- The end: when only one player is left, that player takes the pot. If the hand reaches its limit, everyone still in shows their cards together.
Hand ranks (best to worst)
| Hand | Example | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Trips (Leopard) | K K K | Three of a kind, the top hand; AAA is highest, 222 lowest. |
| Straight flush | ♥7 ♥8 ♥9 | A straight in one suit. |
| Flush (Golden Flower) | ♠2 ♠9 ♠J | Three cards of one suit, not in sequence. |
| Straight | 4 5 6 | Three ranks in a row, any suits. |
| Pair | Q Q 5 | Two of a rank plus one odd card. |
| High card | A 10 4 | No combination; the highest card counts. |
In straights, Q-K-A is the highest and A-2-3 is the lowest (it counts as a 3-high straight). Wrap-arounds like K-A-2 are not straights.
Special rule: 2-3-5 beats trips
A 2, 3 and 5 of different suits is normally the lowest possible high-card hand, but against trips it flips and wins. It only beats trips; against every other hand it is still the lowest. A 2, 3 and 5 of the same suit is a flush, not a 2-3-5.
When hands are the same type
- Trips, straight flushes and straights: compare ranks (a straight by its top card).
- Flushes and high card: compare card by card from the highest down.
- Pairs: compare the pair first, then the odd card.
In MacePlay, suits never rank. If all three ranks match: when you start a compare, the player who started it loses; when everyone shows together at the limit, the pot is split.
Betting: blind is cheap, seen pays double
The table has a current stake, which starts at 1 ante. In MacePlay the stake levels are 1, 2, 4, 6 and 10 antes, and the stake can only go up.
- Call: a blind player pays the current stake; a player who has looked pays double.
- Raise: lift the stake to a higher level, again at the blind price, or double if you have looked.
- Compare: pay one call and pick an opponent still in the hand; you compare cards privately and the lower hand is out. In MacePlay you can compare from the second round on, and blind players can start a compare too.
- Fold: give up the hand. Anything you have bet stays in the pot.
In MacePlay a hand lasts at most 10 rounds, and each player can put in at most 100 antes per hand (the cap). When the rounds run out or anyone reaches the cap, everyone still in shows their cards together; if anyone holds 2-3-5 at that point, every three of a kind is knocked out first and the rest compare normally. You have 15 seconds per turn; if time runs out you fold.
Worked examples
Example 1: which hand is higher?
- A has ♣9 ♦9 ♥K (pair of 9s), B has ♠9 ♥9 ♣A (pair of 9s). The pairs tie, so the odd card decides: the ace beats the king, and B wins.
- C has ♦Q ♠K ♥A (Q-K-A, the highest straight), D has ♥A ♣2 ♠3 (A-2-3, the lowest straight): C wins.
Example 2: blind and seen prices (ante 100)
The stake has been raised to the third level (4 antes = 400).
- Mei is still blind: calling costs her 400.
- Ming has looked at his cards: calling costs him 400 × 2 = 800.
- Ming likes his hand and raises to the fourth level (6 antes): that costs 600 × 2 = 1,200. If Mei calls blind after that, she pays 600.
Example 3: 2-3-5 against trips
In round three, B (♣2 ♦3 ♥5, a mixed-suit 2-3-5) compares against A (♠8 ♥8 ♦8, trips).
- 2-3-5 beats trips, so B wins and A is out.
- Next round C (♥4 ♠4 ♣J, pair of 4s) compares against B. Against a pair, 2-3-5 is just the lowest high card, so C wins and B is out.
The 2-3-5 only matters against trips; the rest of the time it is the lowest hand at the table.
Common questions
Why stay blind?
Calls cost half as much, and your opponents can't read your hand. The catch is that you don't know your hand either, so most players look once the rounds pile up.
Does a suited 2, 3 and 5 count as 2-3-5?
No. Three cards of one suit are a flush and rank as a flush.
Is A-2-3 the highest or lowest straight?
In MacePlay it is the lowest; Q-K-A is the highest. Some house rules treat A-2-3 as the second-highest straight, but not here.
Do I get my bets back if I lose a compare?
No. The losing player is out and everything already bet stays in the pot for the final winner.
Play Zha Jin Hua in MacePlay
MacePlay's Zha Jin Hua is a five-seat table with a modern red-and-black Chinese theme, dealt by the three Peony sisters in rotation. Your seat glows blue when you look, a gold line and clashing sparks link two seats during a compare, and trips bring a full-screen stamp with fireworks. Choose from beginner, standard and high-roller rooms, or open a private room for friends; AI players fill empty seats.
MacePlay is for adults 18+ and for entertainment only. Virtual coins have no cash value and cannot be exchanged for cash or goods.
Ready? Open a table in MacePlay
Five-seat Zha Jin Hua with effects for looking, comparing and fireworks for trips.
