JILI365 Pekwa Card Game: Stuck With Cards? Fix It

If you are stuck holding cards you cannot place, the Pekwa card game feels unfair, but the rule behind it is simple: every row grows from a seven. Pekwa is the Filipino name for the Sevens game, called Fan Tan or Parliament elsewhere, and the aim is to be first with an empty hand. This page follows the Pagat reference and sits under the card game rules pillar, and the same layout idea is covered as a casino table in the Fan Tan game on casino tables.

Pekwa card game: the five steps

Deal every card one at a time, clockwise, using a standard 52-card pack for three to about eight players.
Start the layout with a seven. The player to the dealer’s left begins, and each seven opens a row for its suit.
On your turn play one card of your choice that sits next to a card of the same suit already out, one rank higher or lower.
Pass only if no card in your hand can be played.
Win by playing your last card first.

Ranks run from ace to king, with the ace high in the standard rules and low in some groups.

What the layout looks like

Suit row	Starts at	Grows downward to	Grows upward to
Each of the four suits	The seven	Two	Ace (or king if ace is low)

Lower cards go on one side of the seven and higher cards on the other. Many tables stack the high cards on the eights and the low cards on the sixes to save space.

A worked turn

The layout holds the 7 of spades, the 7 of hearts and the 8 of spades. You hold the 6 of spades, the 9 of spades and the 5 of clubs.

Your card	Legal?	Reason
6 of spades	Yes	Next below the 7 of spades
9 of spades	Yes	Next above the 8 of spades
5 of clubs	No	No club is out yet, and a club row opens with the 7

Problem and fix at the table

Problem

You hold only cards that need a rank nobody has played yet.

Fix

Pass if truly nothing fits, and wait for the neighbouring rank to land. Passing is only legal when no card in your hand can be placed.

Problem

You can play two different cards and cannot decide.

Fix

Either is legal. Both choices stay open under the rules, so pick the one that keeps your remaining cards playable and read the table’s house rules for any penalty.

What decides who empties a hand first

Three things decide it, in this order:

The deal, because players with more cards play first.
The sevens you hold, since each one lets you open a row yourself.
Your choice between playable cards, which is the only place skill shows.

Players with more cards get to play first, and the sevens you hold decide how many rows you can open yourself. No choice here guarantees a win.

Some groups add a pool: everyone pays a chip before the deal, anyone who passes adds a chip, and the winner collects. Treat any such stakes as a house rule that is agreed before you begin.

Pekwa against other card games

Feature	Pekwa	Tong Its
Players	About 3 to 8	Exactly 3
Cards in play	Whole pack dealt out	12 or 13 each, stock left over
Melds and discards	None	Yes
Win	First empty hand	Tongit, Draw or lowest count

Unlike rummy-style Tong Its with its melds and sapaw, Pekwa has no melds and no discards, only a shared layout. If you want a number-draw game with no cards at all, the keno game and how spots are picked works differently again.

FAQ

Ano ang Pekwa card game?

It is the Filipino name used for the Sevens card game, known elsewhere as Fan Tan or Parliament. Players lay cards in suit rows starting from the sevens.

Can I pass in Pekwa when I have a playable card?

No. In the standard rules you must play if you can, and passing is only allowed when no card in your hand fits the layout.

What decides who finishes first?

Mostly the cards you were dealt and the order cards open up. Your own choices only matter when you hold more than one playable card.

JILI365 Pekwa Card Game: Playing Cards From the Sevens