PLACEMENT OF A CALLED TILE (Article 5)

Commentary: When a player calls a discard to make an exposure or declare mah jongg, the tile must be placed on the flat part of the rack (NMJL Bulletin 2024). There is no penalty for breaking this rule, so if a player places the called tile in the sloped part of the rack, they should not be disqualified unless your group makes it a house rule.

Question from a player: Where should I put a tile after I call for it?

Answer from the NMJL: A called tile should be placed on top of the rack and not in the rack. It is preferable to place the called tile on top of your rack before taking the tiles from your rack to make the exposure. Once an exposure has been made, a player may add to or take away from the exposure up until the time the player has discarded.

Source: Mah Jongg Made Easy (2024 page 15 paragraph 2)

Other answers from the NMJL:

We have always suggested that a called tile be placed on the top of the rack, rather than in the rack itself. We decided to make this an official rule, although there is no penalty incurred for incorrect placement. Players should place the called tile on top of the rack, but the player is not called dead for not doing so, as in many tournaments. We feld this penalty is too severe for home play. As you know, table rules supercede NMJL rules, so if the members of your game wish to ammend the rules, you may.

A tile that is called for either an exposure or for mah jongg must be placed on the top of the rack. Also, “after much deliberation by the NMJL Committee, it was decided that no penalty would accompany this New Rule. This decision was made, based on the fact that the NMJL writes for home play, rather than tournament play. We fully realize that in tournament play, the placement of a called tile into the rack constitutes that player’s hand being called “dead”. The Committee agreed that this punishment was much too severe for home play; however, we realize that table rules made by each group of players supersede NMJL rules, which is fine. We suggest that each game determines what rule is acceptable to all players and that rule becomes part of the game’s repertoire. After all, we must remember that Mah Jongg is designed for pleasure and friendship, and should be enjoyed by all. Thank you so much for your ongoing support and helpful ideas regarding the game we all love.”

Source for other answers: National Mah Jongg League Bulletin (2024, 2023); email to a player 01/04/2023