Pinfu

Pinfu

Pinfu (平和) is a fundamental one-han yaku in mahjong that rewards players for constructing a hand composed entirely of sequences with a valueless pair and a double-sided wait. It is one of the most common and accessible yaku in the game.

Pinfu at a glance

Pinfu is a closed-hand yaku worth exactly one han. To qualify, your hand must contain:

• Four sequences (chow/chi)
• One pair with no honor value
• A double-sided wait (ryanmen) on the final sequence

When pinfu is won by tsumo it is worth exactly 20 fu, the minimum fu value in the game; won by ron, the 10 fu closed-hand bonus brings it to 30 fu. This unique characteristic makes pinfu essential for understanding scoring calculations.

How Pinfu works

Hand Composition

Pinfu requires that all four melds be sequences rather than triplets. Each sequence consists of three consecutive tiles of the same suit (for example, 2-3-4 of characters or 5-6-7 of dots). The pair must be valueless: any number tile (including 1s and 9s) or a guest wind works, but dragons and your seat or round wind are disqualifying, as these would add fu value and disqualify the hand from being pinfu.

The Ryanmen Wait Requirement

The critical element distinguishing pinfu from other sequence-based hands is the ryanmen wait. A ryanmen wait occurs when you need a tile that completes a sequence from either end. For example, if your final sequence is 3-4-5, you wait on either 2 or 6 to complete it. This requirement ensures that pinfu hands maintain a specific strategic construction.

Fu Value and Scoring

Pinfu’s defining characteristic is its exactly 20 fu value when closed. This is the minimum fu count in mahjong and creates significant scoring implications. A non-dealer pinfu tsumo (pinfu plus menzen tsumo, 2 han 20 fu) collects 400 from each non-dealer and 700 from the dealer (1,500 total), while a bare pinfu ron (1 han 30 fu) scores 1,000 points from the discarder. These modest scores reflect the hand’s accessibility and frequency.

Closed Hand Requirement

Pinfu is only valid when your hand remains closed (menzenchin). If you call any meld at any point (chi, pon, or kan, including a concealed kan), pinfu is impossible. This restriction makes pinfu a pure strategy for riichi players committed to keeping their hands concealed until winning.

Seeing Pinfu in play

Consider this closed hand waiting to win:

Closed hand: 1-2-3 characters, 4-5-6 dots, 1-2-3 characters, 5-5 bamboo, 7-8 bamboo (13 tiles, waiting)

This hand contains four sequences (1-2-3 characters, 4-5-6 dots, 7-8-9 bamboo, and 1-2-3 characters) with a simple pair (5-5 bamboo). With the 7-8 bamboo ryanmen you wait on 6 or 9 bamboo to complete 6-7-8 or 7-8-9; winning on either tile with the valueless 5-5 pair gives you pinfu.