02/02/26 🀄 Small Tweaks, Big Fun in Mah Jongg

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The Mah Jongg Insider 🀄
February 02, 2026

🧨️ Happy Mah Jongg Monday!️

February is the month of love, but the kind we celebrate at the Mah Jongg table isn’t about hearts and roses. It’s the understated kind.

It’s the friend who notices you’re off and checks in. The shared laughs, the patient pauses, the understanding when your mind drifts from the tiles to real life. In winter especially, those small moments of connection matter more than we realize.

Mah Jongg gives us more than a game. It gives us connection, encouragement, and a place to feel seen. And that’s a kind of love worth showing up for each week.

Here’s a quick preview of today’s issue. Scroll down to read each section in full.

🖥️ Behind the Tiles — A new month, a new player: Sara Linden at the table.

💡 Table Wisdom — When to hold a Joker for a finesse win.

🖐🏻 A Hand to Play — Which Dragon hand is actually valid?

🎁 Winning Picks — Year of the Horse finds for luck and celebration.

🎥 Max’s Minute — Charleston stops and calling out others’ hands.

❓ Ask Auntie — Sharing grief without changing the table.

📸 Spotlight — Lake trips, sleepovers, and Mah Jongg friendships.

🎂 Birthdays — This week’s AMJA members.

🖐🏻 Free Practice Sessions — See if we called your name.

… and more!

🖥️ A New Series: Behind the Tiles

Behind the Tiles continues this month inside the Mahj Insiders Club, and we’re pulling up a chair with a new player.

Behind the Tiles is a weekly series for Club members where we watch an experienced American Mah Jongg player play in real time. You see decisions as they’re being made, including the pauses, the tradeoffs, and the moments where more than one move could work. It feels like sitting at the table and listening to how someone thinks through a hand.

Each month features a different experienced player, exposing Club members to a range of styles, instincts, and decision-making approaches. Sometimes you’ll agree. Sometimes you won’t. Both sharpen your game.

This month’s Behind the Tiles series features Sara Linden, founder of Mahj Club. Sara has been playing Mah Jongg for over 30 years and teaching for more than 16. She’s known for her clear, steady approach and for helping players figure out what to do when it’s their turn and the choice isn’t obvious.

To introduce Sara, we recorded a short conversation so you can get to know her background and how she approaches the game.

Watch the short interview here 👇🏻

If you want to catch the first episode and follow along each week, you’ll want to join before this Wednesday.

⬇️ The Mahj Insiders Club ⬇️

💡 Table Wisdom

Playing With Finesse: Hold Your Joker for a Winning Exchange

Another player has just exposed a Joker. Do you take it now or wait for the right moment?

Holding your natural tile instead of exchanging it immediately can pay off. A self-picked Mah Jongg scores double, so if you can trade that tile for a Joker later, you gain both points and style. This strategic move is called a finesse.

 You can use a finesse in two ways:

  • When you have an exposure with a Joker and later pick the natural tile, hold it. Wait until your final discard is that tile, then exchange it for the Joker and win a self-picked hand.

  • When your pick is a tile that matches another player’s exposure, make the exchange and call Mah Jongg.

Whenever you have a tile that can be exchanged for a Joker, scan the table first. Make sure yours is the last available natural tile before holding it for the finesse. 

This may not always be the right move. If you can call any tile needed in your hand without the exposed Joker, go for the finesse. But if you need the Joker to secure your ability to call the tiles you need, grab it and save the finesse for another day.

Beginner Takeaway:
Don’t risk a Joker exchange that could make their winning hand Joker-free (also double the score). If only one Joker is showing and it’s the end of the game, leave it be.

Advanced Moves: Be ready to make this strategic move. Once your hand is mature enough to call any tile you need without the exposed Joker, hold any tile you can exchange, then wait to use it for the finesse and double pay out. 

🖐🏻 A Hand to Play

Which Hand Is Valid?

One of the most essential skills in Mah Jongg is the ability to read the NMJL Card and build a valid hand from it.

This week’s challenge tests how well you understand using both matching and opposing Dragons when building hands. Remember, each Dragon matches a specific suit, except when it’s used as a Zero in a year or addition hand.

With that in mind, can you identify the winning hand? Review the options below and choose the one that plays correctly. 

Then VOTE to see how your answer compares with other players!

🀄 Tile Spotlight: Today’s Hand to Play uses Mah Jongg Maven’s tiles.

Which hand below is valid?

Login or Subscribe to participate in polls.

Last Week’s 🖐🏻 Hand to Play Results:
We need to own this one. Last week’s image and description didn’t line up, which made the hand impossible to play as shown.

If you’d like to try the hand the way it should have been presented,  » CLICK HERE «

🐎 Year of the Horse Celebration Picks
The Year of the Horse brings energy, momentum, and plenty of good fortune. With Lunar New Year approaching, here are a few simple ways to bring in luck, brighten your home, and enjoy the season.

🐎 Year of the Horse Gold Coin / Lucky Charm
A small symbol of good luck. Many players keep one in their purse or Mahj bag for an extra boost. Carry some luck → 

🐎 Year of the Horse Socks
A festive way to step into the new year — fun, comfortable, and easy to wear for a little extra luck. Step into luck →

🧧 Red Envelopes (Year of the Horse)
Elegant designs featuring the horse — often shaped to echo the number eight, a symbol of prosperity. Our favorite envelopes this year. Shop envelopes → 

👕 Year of the Horse T-Shirt
A festive, wearable way to celebrate — great for parties, school events, or casual gatherings. Find it here → 

🥠 Fortune Cookies
A fun, festive treat for Lunar New Year or your Mah Jongg table. Individually wrapped, easy to share, and made in the USA. Crack one open →

(**As an Amazon Associate, The Mah Jongg Insider earns from qualifying purchases.)

This week’s top questions:
1️⃣ Can you stop the Charleston at any point besides after the first Left?
2️⃣ Is it considered good etiquette to call out what hands other players are playing?

Watch Max’s 1-minute video answer.
🎥 [Click here to watch]

Have a question for Max?
🎤 Leave him a [voicemail]

⬅️ Last Week’s Question
Auntie, I play Mah Jongg each week with a group of women who keep things light and friendly. Recently, I’ve been carrying a deep grief that has changed how I move through the world. I still show up, fake a smile, and go through the motions of play, but I'm really hurting. No one asks how I’m doing, but even if they did, I don’t know how to bring it up without shifting the tone of the group.
Should I share my sadness or keep it to myself?
- Anonymous

🥠 Auntie’s Advice 🥠

🗨 My friend, grief changes the way you inhabit a room, even when no one else can see it. The ache you’re feeling isn’t because the group is doing anything wrong. It’s because you’re carrying something heavy in a place designed for lightness.

You don’t owe the table your sadness, and you also don’t have to hide it perfectly. Those are not the only two options. A quieter middle path often serves best. You might let yourself show up a little less polished, a little less cheerful, without explaining everything. Grief does not need an announcement to be real.

If you do choose to share, it does not have to be the whole story. A simple line like, “I’m going through a hard season right now,” is enough. It tells the truth without changing the character of the group or asking anyone to carry what you are carrying.

Mah Jongg can be a refuge, not a place where you have to pretend.

📢 Readers’ Responses 📢

🗨 If you've been meeting with the same group of women weekly, it's likely
that someone has noticed you are faking it. They may not have said anything
because they don't want to appear "nosey". You could start by saying, "I'm
sorry if I've seemed a little out of sorts lately. Would it be OK if I
share something that's causing me sadness?" If they are true friends, they
will want to support you.
- Laura E.

🗨 I wouldn't bring it up. You go there to be among friends, to briefly
concentrate on something else. Grief just needs time to work its own
way through you.
- Dee S.

🗨 We always allow a half hour or so of sharing talk time before we begin to play. This is a safe place for any of our group to share anything that they wish- be it happy events, or more serious problems that may need some friendly support or advice. We all feel safe with our close group of friends.
- Judy C.

Whose response do you like best?

Login or Subscribe to participate in polls.

➡️ This Week’s Question
How do you stop players from chit-chatting while the game is in play?
-Anne V.

🤗 Want to share your advice?
🤔 Have a Mah Jongg manners or table moment dilemma?

📩 Send it to Auntie: [email protected]

📸 Get In the Spotlight

Our Mah Jongg group likes to take our games on the road. Last May, we took our friend’s camper to a lake and played till the late hours, cooked out, and slept in the next morning. We have been playing together for two years and have become fast friends off the table, too. We feel we were brought together for a reason in this new season of grandparenting. We are thankful our leader had the patience to teach all three of us to play.
Regards.
-Courtney Brown

We have a group of 13 ladies who meet every Monday to play. On July 22, 2025, we held our first annual “Mahjong-a-thon” sleepover. We started play at 2 p.m. on the 22nd and played through the afternoon, broke for appetizers and drinks, then resumed play until dinner. After dinner, we played a little longer. The ladies spent the night, we had breakfast the next morning, and played until lunchtime. Here is a picture of our entire group and some Mahjong cookies that I made and decorated for the event. Thank you.
—Michelle Davenport, Lake Burton, Georgia

📸 Share your Mah Jongg moments!
Send us a photo and a quick note — big wins, themed nights, or fun group shots — for a chance to be featured.

📩 Email: [email protected]

🎂 This Week’s Birthdays

Happy Birthday to these wonderful members of the American Mah Jongg Association!

Feb 02
Suzanne B. (NY)

Feb 03
Barbara M. (FL), Doris P. (VA), Lia M. (CO)

Feb 04
Anne M. (PA), Jean W. (OR), Judy S. (NC), Kathy P. (FL), Mariah H. (CA)

Feb 05
Barbara W. (FL), Dawn C. (GA), Virginia F. (FL)

Feb 06
Anne K. (MA), Barbara E. (FL), Darla J. (AZ), Grace H. (MD), Sheila W. (TX)

Feb 07
Elaine G. (BC), Kern E. (TX), Kern E. (TX), Stacie S. (CA)

Feb 08
Barry S. (CA), Jennifer D. (TX), Regina S. (SC)

If your name is Gloria , enjoy a FREE Practice Session 🖐🏻 on us!*

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