D. Playing the Hand:
Illustration No. 8.
The wall—after the original hands have been drawn.
Wall showing draw.
Each player then takes his original hand and arranges it to suit his own convenience. It is advised, however, that he arrange it in suits in order to see at a glance, the value of any one tile to his hand in the drawing and discarding of which the rest of the game consists.
When the hands have been arranged, East Wind starts the play by discarding any tile in his hand, face up in the center of the table. It is because of this first discard that he drew an extra tile. The play then goes to the right, it becoming the turn of South Wind to draw the next tile in the wall and discard any one he may choose. West Wind then draws and discards and so on around the table, constantly in a counter-clockwise direction.
The players during this drawing and discarding are gradually improving their hands, and matching them into four sets and an extra tile, a set being three of a kind, four of a kind, or three in a sequence.
Illustration No. 9.
Examples of
Three of a kind Four of a kind Three in sequence
When a player accomplishes this, he must only match the extra tile forming a pair and thus, completing his hand, having four complete sets and a pair. He announces "Mah-Jongg" wins, the game is over, the scores are settled and the wall built up for the next game.
Illustration No. 10.
Several completed hands
As completing a hand entirely by draw from the wall would be a difficult task, the players are permitted to make use of any discard, as it is discarded, provided they have the required tiles already in their hand as explained below in "Chow" and "Pung."