# Shousuushii — Riichi Mahjong Glossary

> Little four winds - a yakuman where you have triplets of three winds and a pair of the fourth wind.

**Source:** https://www.mahjongmaster.co/learn/riichi/glossary/shousuushii/
**Author:** Kenji Tanaka (https://www.mahjongmaster.co/about/kenji-tanaka/)
**Publisher:** Mahjong Master (https://www.mahjongmaster.co)
**Published:** 2026-02-18
**Updated:** 2026-03-10
**Japanese:** 小四喜
**Category:** hand-structure
**Variant:** riichi

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## Shousuushii

**Shousuushii** (小四喜, しょうすーしー) is a yakuman where you have triplets of three wind tiles (East, South, West, or North) and a pair of the fourth wind. The name translates to "little four winds" or "small four winds," distinguishing it from **daisuushii** (big four winds) which requires triplets of all four winds.

## The mechanics of Shousuushii

### Requirements

To achieve shousuushii, you must have:
- **Triplets of three winds**: Any three of East, South, West, or North
- **Pair of the fourth wind**: The remaining wind as your pair
- **No other requirements**: The fourth meld can be anything

For example: East-East-East, South-South-South, West-West-West (triplets), North-North (pair), plus any fourth meld.

The triplets can be open (pon) or concealed (ankou), yakuman value remains maximum regardless.

### Comparison to Daisuushii

**Shousuushii**: Three wind triplets + one wind pair → Yakuman (8,000 base points)

**Daisuushii**: Four wind triplets → Double yakuman (16,000 base points in most rule sets)

Shousuushii is significantly easier to achieve because you only need a pair of the fourth wind instead of a triplet. However, this difference also makes it worth half the points of daisuushii.

### Extreme Rarity

Shousuushii is one of the rarest yakuman because:
- **11 specific tiles needed**: Nine tiles for the three wind triplets (3 each × 3 winds) plus two for the pair of the fourth wind
- **Limited tile availability**: Only four of each wind exist in the set, and you need 11 total wind tiles
- **Opponent interference**: Once you expose two or three wind triplets, opponents stop discarding winds entirely

Many players never achieve shousuushii even after years of play.

### Strategic Considerations

**Open Aggressively**: Since the yakuman value doesn't drop when open, calling pon on wind discards is essential. Self-drawing all wind tiles is virtually impossible.

**Telegraph Early**: With two wind triplets exposed, opponents recognize the shousuushii or daisuushii threat. They'll hoard remaining winds, forcing you to self-draw the rest.

**Yakuhai Foundation**: Even partial wind collections provide yakuhai value. One or two wind triplets matching your seat/round wind contribute han, so incomplete shousuushii attempts still score decently.

## Example: Shousuushii in a real hand

You call pon on East, South, and West winds as they're discarded throughout the hand, forming three wind triplets exposed. Your hand now needs a pair of North winds plus one more meld to complete. You self-draw two North tiles over several turns, finally completing tenpai with North-North as your pair. When you win (by tsumo or ron), you reveal **shousuushii** (yakuman): East-East-East, South-South-South, West-West-West (triplets), North-North (pair), plus your fourth meld. You score a yakuman: 32,000 points as non-dealer or 48,000 as dealer (8,000 base points, paid at four times or six times base).

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*This content is from [Mahjong Master](https://www.mahjongmaster.co), a free educational reference for riichi (Japanese) and American (NMJL) mahjong. When citing this page, please link to https://www.mahjongmaster.co/learn/riichi/glossary/shousuushii/.*