At age 24, San Francisco grandson start youth mahjong club to pay homage to heritage

Ancient Chinese Mahjong game gaining popularity among young people with help of new clubs

A 25-year-old man pays homage to his Chinese heritage and brings the community together by starting a mahjong club in San Francisco. The tile game has long been associated with older generations, but is gaining popularity among young people.

SAN FRANCISCO - At age 24, Ryan Lee started a mahjong club named Youth Luck Leisure in San Francisco to pay homage to his heritage.  

He held one of his pop-up events at Harbor View Restaurant in the Financial District.

Lee is introducing an ancient Chinese tile game to a new generation of players: most are in their 20s and 30s. 

"My grandparents knew how to play," he said. "My grandparents are from Hong Kong and we had the sets in the storage unit. I've never opened them before." 

But he  did open up sets belonging to his family after he learned to play from a college classmate.

Now, he's promoting the game to honor  his heritage and redefine community.

"You sit down with four people each time.  It feels like it's a game where you click and bond with the people next to you," said Lee. 

It's a game of strategy, skill, and luck.

At a table of four, each player takes turns drawing and discarding tiles to form a wining hand of 14 tiles.

The first person to have four sets of three tiles and one pair wins.  
 
Last year, Lee started with 3 tables in his San Francisco apartment with 12 friends.

Now, a little more than a year later, he pairs dj music with his events.

They're held  every other week at venues including restaurants, bars, and  nightclubs,  accommodating up to 200 people.

"It becomes a place where  we meet new people our age doing different things in the city. So it's kind of a win- win," said Jennifer Jing, a member of the mahjong club.  

The events attract people from different backgrounds, including one man who describes himself as being Mexican-American. 

"It is not something I would naturally play," said Adam Sousa, club member. "It's not part of my culture. It's not part of what my day to day is. So to step out into something that is outside who I am is really nice. And to actually learn about other people through it and what their background is as a result of it,  has been cool." 

One scene in the film Crazy Rich Asians which showed  the lead characters playing mahjong gave people unfamiliar with the game a glimpse.

Angie Moran who attended a pop-up event for the first time said that movie scene and trying the game made her want to play.

 "I won that first game that we played and immediately after, I won," Moran said. "I was like when's the next game. I feel like once you pick up the rules, you have that competitive urge to keep going."  

Lee's events don't involve any prize money and there's no gambling.

In Chinatown, behind the walls of buildings and in some basements, mahjong is a way of life for many in the immigrant community.

Gambling is one aspect,  but it is part of the social interaction with one another. 

KTVU was allowed access into a family association  on the condition that no faces of the players are shown and the location not be revealed.

Younger players said mahjong is played by their older family members and that it's believed to be mentally stimulating .

"Mahjong itself is a very good activity for the brain. You need to act fast," said Jing.    

KTVU's Amber Lee played for the first time at Lee's event, but she said she had watched her mother and aunts play while growing up.

With a little help, she was able to pick up the game and even won a hand.

Lee plans to expand his club into Hollywood in June.

Sharing his love for the game and building on its growing popularity.

"It's the perfect activity where you can get to know someone while stimulating your competitive juices," Lee said the popularity of his pop-up events has grown immensely in just the past year.

Initially, it would take a week and a half to sell out.  Now, it takes only about two hours after he posts on social media.  

And there's a waiting list.

Amber Lee is a reporter with KTVU. Email Amber at [email protected] or text/leave message at 510-599-3922. Follow her on Facebook @AmberKTVU,  Instagram @AmberKTVU  or Twitter @AmberKTVU