Agari

What Agari means

Agari (上がり) is the act of winning in mahjong by completing a valid winning hand and declaring victory. A player achieves agari by either drawing the winning tile themselves (tsumo) or by calling another player’s discard (ron).

Agari in detail

Agari represents the ultimate goal in mahjong, the completion of a hand that meets all winning conditions. To achieve agari, a player must form a complete hand consisting of four melds (triplets, quads, or sequences) plus a pair, or the two exceptions to this shape: chiitoitsu (seven pairs) and kokushi musou (thirteen orphans).

The winning hand must satisfy several fundamental requirements. First, it must contain exactly 14 tiles in standard play (13 tiles plus 1 drawn tile). Second, the hand must be composed of four complete melds and one pair. Third, the hand must meet minimum point requirements, typically at least one han (scoring unit) in most rule variations, though this requirement varies depending on house rules and tournament regulations.

There are two primary methods of achieving agari:

Tsumo occurs when a player draws the winning tile directly from the wall during their turn. This is considered a self-drawn win and typically awards bonus points to the winner. The player immediately declares agari upon drawing the completing tile.

Ron occurs when a player wins by calling another player’s discard. When a player discards a tile, any other player at the table may declare agari if that discard completes their hand. Ron wins typically award points from the player who made the discard, and in some variations, the discarder may pay additional penalty points. Some rule sets allow only one ron per discard, giving priority to the player closest to the discarder in turn order (atamahane), while others, including EMA rules, allow multiple players to win on the same discard.

The declaration of agari is immediate and binding. Once a player declares their win, the hand is scored according to the point system used in that particular rule set. The scoring considers factors such as the number of han (scoring units), fu (minipoints), and any bonus payments from other players.

It’s important to note that not all hands that appear complete are valid agari. A hand must be genuinely winning according to the specific rules being played. Some variations require that a winning hand be “tenpai-ready” before a player can declare agari on a discard, meaning the hand was waiting for a specific tile before the winning discard was made.

Seeing Agari in play

During a game, Player A has been building a hand throughout the round. They currently hold three complete melds and a pair, waiting for one specific tile to complete their fourth meld. On their turn, Player A draws a tile from the wall that completes their fourth meld. They immediately declare “Agari!” or “Tsumo!” to announce their win.

Alternatively, Player B discards a tile during their turn. Player A recognizes this tile as the one they need to complete their winning hand. Player A declares “Agari!” or “Ron!” to claim the win from Player B’s discard. The hand is then scored, and Player A receives payment from the other players based on the point value of their winning hand.