how to calculate waits fast

[Murena]

Hello,

I\'m trying to become fast at calculate waits on tenpai or even calculate fast if a hand is tenpai or not.

I found this game that is somewhat a good exercise

http://www.gamedesign.jp/flash/bamboo/bamboo.html

but perhaps too hard for me, sometimes i need minutes to figure out a hand completely.
And the hand is even organized, I once knew a japanese guy who could calculate almost instantly an unorganized hand.

Any method or advice to study correctly the problem?

[Shirluban]

To get familiar with waits, take very few tiles and look out deeply what tiles you can add to turn it into a set (or set(s) and a pair). Search for how many of theses tiles remains in game too.
Increase progressivly the number of tiles.

First, (re-)learn the base waits:
- wait on the pair
- closed wait (e.g. 4_6)
- terminal wait (i.e. 12_ ou _89)
- open chii wait (e.g. _45_)
- dual pon wait (e.g. 22 66)

NB: pair, closed and terminal waits are the only single waits possible for a regular hand.

Next, look at complex waits, you\'ll see they are all composed of some from these base waits.
Exemple:
2-bam 2-bam 2-bam 3-bam
can be see as : 22 + _23_ (pair + open wait)
and as : 222 + 3_ (pon + pair wait)


And don\'t do this on computer!
Use real tiles, so they would be easy to re-arrenge.


That\'s my 2 cents for now.

[alban lusitanae]

Hi Murena

Perhaps you should try praicing on this one as well, if you can\'t practice while playing with real opponents:

http://www.gamedesign.jp/flash/mahjong/mahjong_e.swf

Use a flash supporting browser

As to the waits, trust me, Shirluban gave you the starting ones and these you MUST be completely familiar with first before you attempt to memorize the advanced ones, such as combination waits (3 to 6 tiles waits) and knitted ones, for example.

Just play a lot, it will eventually become natural :)