Of every part of American Mah Jongg, the Charleston is the most distinctive and the most disorienting for a new player. It's the part where, before any real play begins, every player at the table exchanges three tiles, three times in a row, with each of the other three players. It looks like a routine of choreographed confusion at first. By the third game, it tends to become the favorite part of the round.
If you've just started playing American Mah Jongg, or you're sitting down to learn, this guide will walk you through exactly what the Charleston is, how the passes work, what you can and can't pass, and what beginners should aim for. It's named, by the way, after the dance and once you see it in motion, the comparison is hard to miss.
What Is the Charleston in American Mah Jongg?
The Charleston is a sequence of tile exchanges that happens after the wall is built and tiles are dealt, but before formal play begins. Each player selects the three tiles that don't fit their target hand and passes them to a specific other player, then receives three tiles back. The cycle happens up to six times in two halves, three required passes, then three optional ones, followed by a single optional courtesy pass.
The purpose is simple: to give every player the chance to refine their starting hand toward the specific winning pattern they're targeting on the National Mah Jongg League card. Without the Charleston, players would be stuck with a random opening hand with no path forward except drawing from the wall. The Charleston turns the start of every game into a small puzzle of giving up what isn't needed to get closer to what is.
How Does the Charleston Pass Pattern Work?
The classic memory aid is the word ROLLOR: Right, Across, Left, Left, Across, Right. That's the order of the six passes; three to the right, three to the left, with crosses to the player opposite on passes two and five.
The First Charleston (Required)
- Pass 1 Right. Pick three least-wanted tiles and pass them to the player on the right. Receive three in return.
- Pass 2 Across. Pick three from the refreshed hand and pass them to the player directly opposite. Receive three in return.
- Pass 3 Left. Pick three more and pass them to the player on the left. Receive three in return.
Once the first Charleston ends, every player silently decides by checking their hand and reading the table whether to continue with the second. The second is optional, and any player can stop it before it starts, as long as no one has yet picked up the tiles passed to them.
The Second Charleston (Optional)
- Pass 4 Left. Three tiles to the left.
- Pass 5 Across. Three tiles across.
- Pass 6 Right. Three tiles to the right.
After the second Charleston, there's one final exchange the Courtesy Pass between the two players sitting across from each other. Both can agree to swap up to three tiles, or none at all. With the Courtesy Pass complete, the Charleston is officially over and play begins.
What Are the Rules About Jokers and Flowers?
Two tiles get special treatment during the Charleston:
- Jokers can never be passed. Ever. If a joker is passed by accident, the table convention is to apologize and continue but in tournament play it can disqualify the hand. Always sort jokers to one side before picking a pass.
- Flowers can technically be passed, but at most casual tables they aren't. Flowers are the only tile with eight identical copies, and they appear in many winning hands as pungs, kongs, and even sextets. Most experienced players hold their flowers through the Charleston rather than risk feeding a competitor's hand.
What Is a Blind Pass and When Can You Use One?
On the first left pass and the last right pass Pass 3 and Pass 6 a blind pass is allowed. A blind pass means a player only has one or two tiles they actually want to give up, and fills the third slot with a tile just received without looking at it.
It works like this: three tiles arrive on the across pass, but only one needs to go. One or two of the just-received tiles are slid into the pass without flipping them, and one chosen tile is added to make three. The next player receives the three-tile pass without knowing two of them came from someone else.
Blind passing is useful when a hand is already very close to the target pattern and giving up usable tiles just to fill a three-tile pass would be wasteful. Used well, it protects a near-finished hand.
What Should Beginners Aim For During the Charleston?
The most common beginner mistake is keeping too many options open and arriving at the end of the Charleston with a hand that could be three different things but isn't close to any of them.
A better approach: by the end of the first Charleston, commit to a section of the NMJL card. The card is divided into roughly nine sections 2026 (the year), 2468, Like Numbers, Quints, Consecutive Run, Singles & Pairs, Winds & Dragons, 13579, and so on. Pick one, sometimes two, and begin passing away tiles that don't appear in those sections.
A few starting principles for beginners:
- Identify the strongest section in the first 30 seconds wherever the most matches already exist.
- Pass numbers that don't appear in the target section. Going for 2026? The 1s and 9s are the first to go.
- Hold pairs. Pairs are the building blocks of most NMJL hands and give the hand flexibility as the round progresses.
- Hold all jokers and flowers every pass, every time.
- Use the second (optional) Charleston only if the hand has actually gotten worse instead of better. Usually it hasn't.
What Is the Courtesy Pass?
After both Charlestons (or after the first, if it was stopped), there is one final optional exchange. East and the player sitting opposite East may exchange one, two, or three tiles by mutual agreement. Either side can decline, and declining is perfectly fine. If you are one tile away from a strong hand, those final exchanged tiles sometimes complete the picture.
Charleston Strategy Tips
Decide on a direction early, but stay flexible. During the first Charleston, look for the section of the card your tiles point toward: evens, odds, consecutive runs, winds and dragons. Commit loosely. If the passes keep bringing tiles for a different section, be willing to switch through the second Charleston.
Pass tiles that do not fit, and pass them decisively. The most common intermediate mistake is hedging: keeping a stray tile "just in case" while passing tiles from your main direction. Tiles that do not serve your chosen section should leave your rack.
Do not pass pairs early. A pair is the seed of many hands. Unless you are certain about your direction and the pair truly does not fit, keep pairs through at least the first Charleston.
Never pass a joker. Jokers are the most valuable tiles in the game, and passing one gives an opponent a tile that fits almost any hand.
Watch what comes to you. The tiles you receive hint at what the player passing them is not collecting. At minimum, notice suits: if someone keeps passing bams, they are probably not building bams.
Common Charleston Mistakes New Players Make
- Passing without a plan. Every pass should serve a direction. Before the first pass, take thirty seconds, look at your tiles against the card, and choose a section.
- Mixing up the direction. Right, across, left, then left, across, right. When in doubt, ask. Nobody minds a quick confirmation.
- Forgetting the stop option. If your hand is already close after the deal, stopping the Charleston after the first round protects it.
- Passing flowers too freely. Flowers appear in many hands and are harder to replace than most tiles. Treat them as valuable unless your direction clearly excludes them.
- Rushing. The Charleston sets the terms of the entire hand. Take your time, especially while you are learning.
Why Is It Called the Charleston?
The name is generally credited to American players in the 1920s and '30s who saw the rhythm of the three-by-three pass and likened it to the Charleston dance a partner-changing, repeating-step dance that swept American ballrooms in that era. The pattern is purely American Mah Jongg; in traditional Chinese Mah Jongg, there is no Charleston. It's one of the things that makes the American game its own.
Charleston Questions
Do I have to participate in the Charleston?
Yes, it is part of standard American Mah Jongg. The only choice points are the optional stop after the first Charleston, the optional across passes, and the optional courtesy pass.
Can I stop the Charleston if my hand is bad?
You can stop it for any reason. In practice, players stop when their hand is already strong, because stopping when your hand is weak only denies you more chances to improve it.
Can I look at tiles I am passing blind?
No. You take tiles from the incoming pass and forward them without looking, announcing the blind pass to the table.
How many tiles do I pass in the courtesy pass?
One, two, or three, by mutual agreement between East and the opposite player. Either player may decline.
Should I change my planned hand during the Charleston?
Be open to it through the second Charleston. If the tiles keep pointing somewhere new, follow them. Once the draw phase begins, commit.
Keep the current National Mah Jongg League card beside your rack while you pass, and a Mah Jongg mat with Charleston rules printed on it makes the pass order easy to remember.