China Daily Global Edition (USA)
YOUNG PLAYERS PUT MAHJONG SKILLS TO TEST
Hobby no longer sole preserve of seniors
Joanna Sim, 19, who will start university in August, had always been interested in learning how to play mahjong.
However, it was only last year that she became proficient at the game, with the help of her sister, Rachelle, 20.
Staying at home in Singapore during the coronavirus outbreak last year, the sisters and their parents turned a weekly game of mahjong into a family-bonding activity. They even created a scoreboard to keep track of the winning tallies.
“As my family members had to spend a lot of time together, we needed to find an activity that would involve all of us,” Joanna Sim said. “In addition, given that my sister and I are both older now, a typical family board game would not suit us.”
Often considered to be a game for seniors, mahjong has found new popularity among young people, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic.
A number of online mahjong groups catering to the young have emerged in recent years.
In Singapore, there are at least 12 groups for mahjong players. Some have nearly 10,000 members and serve as forums for people to ask questions about the rules of the game, share tile combinations or find new mahjong kakis, or “friends” in colloquial Malay.
For the past two years, Singapore Polytechnic student Lim Chuan Xun, 18, has seen more young people uploading photos of mahjong sessions on social media platforms such as Instagram.
“You’re naturally interested in what your friends are doing and want to give it a try,” he said.
Chuan Xun, who learned to play mahjong from his father at age 15, said he rushes through his assignments on weekdays so he can devote weekends to the game.
He has played mahjong every week during the pandemic, as more of his peers have learned the game.
Singapore retailers said that for the past year or so, they have sold more mahjong sets to players in their 20s and 30s.
Mahjong retailer Tong Cheong Soon Kee Trading has seen a 30 per cent rise in young customers since November.
Co-owner Jay Leow, 35, said these customers usually opt for mahjong tiles in bold and striking colors such as pink or gold.
“With the COVID-19 situation, many young people who like to travel are stuck in Singapore, so mahjong has become one of their new hobbies,” he said.
Some 80 percent of the customers at Tong & Da, which sells automatic mahjong tables, are in their 20s and 30s.
They buy starter mahjong sets mainly from the retailer’s e-commerce stores, and it has reported a 20 per cent rise in sales since the pandemic emerged. Undergraduate Brennan Lee, 21, has been playing mahjong more frequently — at least once a week — during the pandemic.
When the number of visitors to a household in Singapore was capped at five, he found the game, which requires four players, a good way to hang out with friends.
“I get to play mahjong and spend time with different groups of pals. It’s a win-win situation,” he said. Singapore Polytechnic graduate Vicki Wong, 20, missed mahjong so much during the “circuit breaker” introduced in the city-state during the pandemic last year that she played the game almost every other day as soon as the second phase of the city’s reopening started.
She is intrigued by the game, as it gives her a glimpse of each player’s character, such as whether he or she is a good sport or a bad loser.
“I feel a great sense of accomplishment after racking my brains to form a winning hand that is rare or difficult to achieve,” she said.
The game has also helped her to solidify friendships, such as that with fellow Singapore Polytechnic graduate Clarence Quek, 22, whom she met three years ago when both were novice players.
Quek said: “I would say she is around for at least nine out of 10 games I play. That’s why we ended up being best friends.”
Young people are also buying customized mahjong sets as housewarming or birthday gifts. Tiles include surnames or a cartoon design of the family dog printed on the back.
Agnes Ong, 33, founder of CustoMy Mahjong, which sells custom-made sets online, said more people in their late 20s to 30s have bought these gifts since 2019.
Three years ago, civil servant Alex Cheng, 30, customized a fruit-themed mahjong set for his brother and sister-in-law. Pineapples, a symbol of prosperity, adorn the back of the tiles to bestow extra luck. The tiles come with images that include oranges and apples — perfect for his brother, who loves fruit.
As more young people become interested in playing mahjong, John Shepherd Lim, chief well-being officer at the Singapore Counselling Centre, warned them to avoid becoming addicted to the game.
Warning sounded
A group of friends should decide how often they play mahjong, to avoid such sessions having a negative impact on financial resources and personal well-being, he said.
Lim also advised players to set wagers within their means. He said the “vicious circle” of playing more to recoup losses can quickly get out of control when debt is involved.
Lee, the undergraduate, only plays the game with close friends and sets modest, friendly wagers.
For Joanna Sim, a game of low-stakes mahjong remains the best way to spend quality time with her loved ones.
“Were it not for mahjong, I probably wouldn’t have spent as much time as I have with my family and friends,” she said.
With more young people taking up mahjong, what should lovers of the game bear in mind to keep on the right side of the law?
Singapore’s Ministry of Home Affairs said that according to the Common Gaming Houses Act, gambling in public places is a criminal offense.
“Social gambling among family and friends, such as playing mahjong with monetary stakes in private places, is not criminalized under the act,” the ministry added.
Gloria James, head lawyer at law firm Gloria James-Civetta & Co, said the act makes it illegal to gamble in a common gaming house, which is defined as a place accessible to the public or kept for habitual gaming.
She said the trend of online mahjong groups being used to recruit new players may be considered illegal if the invitation is open to the public and the newcomers are strangers.
Those found guilty of managing or assisting in managing a common gaming house can be fined between 5,000 and 50,000 Singapore dollars ($3,763 to $37,633) and be imprisoned for up to three years. Those convicted of gaming in a common gaming house can be fined up to 5,000 Singapore dollars, imprisoned for up to six months, or both.
James said the police will also assess whether the premises are kept primarily for gambling.
“Even if the private gambling sessions are held frequently, there is only criminal liability if the premises are kept primarily for the purpose of gambling,” she added.
In Singapore, at least six expatriate associations have mahjong groups.
Sue Chamberlain, the mahjong group coordinator for the Australian and New Zealand Association, or Anza, organizes weekly sessions for more than 100 members and also teaches the game to newcomers.
The 59-year-old learned to play mahjong nearly 16 years ago, when she moved to Singapore with her Australian husband, who is a research and design manager.
Discussing the game’s appeal, she said: “You can have four players with different skill levels and still enjoy it. One of the beauties of mahjong is that your mistakes and victories are your own.”
Western-style mahjong is played by most expatriate groups in Singapore.
Chamberlain said the Western version has at least 120 winning combinations known as “hands”, and every hand has a name such as “dragon’s breath” or “sunset”.
The tiles come with English words and players have to declare that they are “fishing” — meaning they need only one more tile to win.
Before the pandemic emerged, the Anza group hosted weekly mahjong games at a restaurant on Robertson Quay, an upstream wharf area near the source of the Singapore River. There were two to nine tables each time.
The restaurant also used to host mahjong sessions for the American Women’s Association, or AWA, and the British Association of Singapore.
Chamberlain now hosts weekly sessions of the game at home for a maximum of eight friends from Anza, who come from countries such as the Netherlands, France and South Africa.
Evening sessions
Despite social distancing measures due to the pandemic, more members are playing mahjong. A rising number of male players have started to take up the game after Chamberlain launched evening sessions two months ago to enable working partners to play the game together. For Vishali Midha, mahjong chair of the AWA, the game is a good way to make friends and it also provides insights into Chinese culture. She learned to play Chinese-style mahjong seven years ago in Shanghai and switched to the Western version a year later. “Chinese mahjong is usually played by seasoned players who are very fast, so it is more stressful,” said Vishali, who is in her early 40s. Last month, to mark the Hindu festival of Holi, she invited friends from the AWA to her home to play with colored powders before a mahjong session. “When there is a festival around the corner, we try to set themes for our mahjong sessions. It lets you learn a little of the different cultures,” she said. The AWA mahjong group has 134 members from countries such as the United States, Spain and Italy. About eight new players join each month. Chamberlain said there is a steady stream of Anza members keen to learn the game. “New people are always arriving and looking to explore Singapore and learn something special like mahjong, so that one day when we leave the city, we can take a little bit of Asia with us,” she said.
Were it not for mahjong, I probably wouldn’t have spent as much time as I have with my family and friends,”
Joanna Sim, a 19-year-old Singaporean who will start university in August