Mahjong 101

Learn and Play with Us

At Sik Wu Mahjong, we split players into three skill levels so everyone plays at the right table. The better we understand your experience, the better we can match you with others at a similar level — all working together towards the top.

New Beginner (Silver 银 (Yín))

Completely new to Mahjong. You’ll learn everything you need to know, starting with no points (Chicken Hand) before moving on to points once you feel comfortable playing more (supervised throughout).

Beginner Points (Gold 金 (Jīn))

You know the basics and rules of Mahjong, and you’ve learnt how to play with points (3 Point Minimum). Now you just need more playing time to practise and improve (less supervision, playing more independently).

3 Point Minimum (Jade 玉 (Yù))

You’re comfortable with the rules, know how to play with points, and are confident playing on your own, independently (no supervision needed).

In all of our sessions, we’ll have a Mahjong teacher there to help, teach, guide, and answer your burning Mahjong questions. You’re in safe hands — we’ll make sure you’re comfortable with the basics and fundamentals first, and only move you up a level once we see you progressing and playing well.

We take real pride in making sure everyone who learns with us knows the rules and fundamentals from day one. We’ll give you the tools, knowledge, and tips to build a winning hand — the rest is down to you, whether you’re playing for fun and socialising, or aiming to get more competitive.

FREE Mahjong Beginner’s Guide & Resources

If you want to learn how to play Mahjong with us, we have all-new Beginner-Only sessions, and our Saturday afternoon sessions will have a table reserved just for beginners. You can see availability on our home page here.

Alternatively, if you’d rather learn by yourself, or with family and friends — at home or anywhere in the world — we’ve got you covered too.

We are making all our Mahjong guides and resources free for everyone to download and enjoy, because Mahjong is first and foremost about bringing people together and connecting through a shared interest.

By making these resources free, my hope is that everyone can learn this beautiful game, and that it spreads to people all around the world who may be looking to build a sense of belonging within their community through love, fun, and play.

Here you can download:

• Sik Wu Mahjong Beginner’s Guide — the same guide we give to everyone who joins our Beginner’s sessions. You’ll learn all the rules and instructions, how to build a winning hand, and how to build your wall — pretty much everything you need is in this guide. (Our Beginner’s Guide)
• Complete Mahjong Cheatsheets — the front sheet helps you familiarise yourself with the tiles and what they are; the back sheet is our points scoring sheet, covering 4 basic winning hands and all our additional points. Red dots highlight easy one-point bonuses — perfect if you’re playing with a 3-point minimum and building an All Sheung hand. (Front Single Copy, Front Three Copies, Back Single Copy, Back Three Copies)
• Special Winning Hands — the advanced special hands we play at our club, for anyone lucky enough to build and win one (max points set by house rules). (Advanced Winning Hands)
• Winds & Flower Guide — quickly find your wind and flower points. (W & F Guide)

Easy to Use (Cheatsheets & Scoring Guides):

• Download instantly and print at home.
• Includes both a large reference sheet and a smaller version (3 per page) to share with friends.
• For longer use, laminate them so your cheatsheets and scoring guides last game after game.

Perfect for beginners who want a clear reference while learning to play!

A lot of the material in this pack was created because I needed resources for people to refer back to — something to guide them through learning Mahjong from the very beginning. While Mahjong isn’t complicated to learn if explained well, having a teacher to guide you is still the best way to start. Once you’ve learned the basics, understand the foundations, and are ready to play with points, you won’t need a teacher anymore.

After that, all you need is practice. The more you play, the better you’ll get. I hope you can use these resources for yourself, friends, family, and colleagues — Mahjong is a game for everyone, so spread the love!

If you find these resources helpful and would like to donate £5, that would be so amazing — it would mean a lot and show us that they’re of real value to you.