Tedashi (Playing from Hand) - Choosing Tiles to Discard

What is Tedashi?

Tedashi (playing from hand) means selecting a tile from your existing hand to discard, as opposed to tsumogiri (discarding the drawn tile). It indicates active hand improvement and provides reading material.

Observing which tiles are tedashi versus tsumogiri helps deduce opponent hands and targets.

Tedashi vs Tsumogiri

Why Tedashi Happens

1. Removing waste

   • Cut isolated tiles
   • Fix bad shapes

2. Expand acceptance

   • Better forms
   • More winning tiles

3. Build yaku

   • Target specific hands
   • Increase value

Reading Tedashi

Early Game

Mid Game

1. Dora tedashi

   • Hand is set
   • Aiming higher yaku
   • Safety focus

2. Pair half

   • Choosing sequences
   • Shape selection
   • Dropping pairs

3. Connected tiles

   • Prioritizing elsewhere
   • Yaku change
   • Acceptance shift

Late Game

• Safe tile tedashi → Still developing
• Danger tedashi → Near tenpai
• Yakuhai tedashi → Different yaku confirmed

Strategic Tedashi

Efficient Order

1. Isolated first

   • Most useless
   • Yaku-unrelated

2. Compare shapes

   • Keep good forms
   • Cut bad forms

3. Future potential

   • Low-growth parts
   • Few acceptance

Reading Techniques

Beginner:

Observe: Early middle tile tedashi
Deduce: Terminals heavy, flush aim?

Intermediate:

Observe: 5m then 7m tedashi
Deduce: Drew 6m, or cut from 46m

Advanced:

Observe: Dora 3p tedashi, then 2p tedashi
Deduce: Drew 1p or 4p, sequence complete

Practical Application

Early Selection

Priority:

1. Complete isolates

   • Non-yakuhai honors
   • Edge numbers

2. Weak shapes

   • Penchan
   • Distant pairs

3. Excess tiles

   • 4th copy
   • Same function

Mid Decision

• Room to improve → Tedashi
• Shape set → Tsumogiri
• Yaku change → Tedashi

Observing Opponents

Checkpoints:

1. Order and type

   • Their priorities
   • Target yaku

2. Timing changes

   • When strategy shifted
   • Tenpai signals

3. Special tedashi

   • Dora cuts
   • Yakuhai cuts
   • Danger cuts

Psychology

Beginner Patterns

1. Mechanical tedashi

   • Edge to middle
   • No deep thought

2. Emotional tedashi

   • Disliked tiles first
   • Visual judgment

Intermediate Growth

1. Calculated tedashi

   • Efficiency focus
   • Future planning

2. Reading awareness

   • Avoid being read
   • Order tricks

Advanced Skills

1. Info control

   • Reveal only needed
   • Induce misreads

2. Adaptation

   • Match opponent level
   • Situational change

Digital Mahjong

Auto-Sort Impact

Pros:

• Easy to spot tedashi
• Clear observation

Cons:

• Different from live
• No sort info

History Feature

• Check later
• Pattern analysis
• Self-improvement

Common Mistakes

1. Wrong tedashi

   • Cut needed tiles
   • Break shapes

2. Over-reading

   • Tedashi ≠ always incomplete
   • Could be fake

3. Your own tedashi

   • Readable order
   • Giving away info

4. Observation gaps

   • Missed which was tedashi
   • No memory

Related Terms

• Tsumogiri: Discard draw
• Dahai: Discarding
• Riipai: Sorting hand
• Hai-kouritsu: Tile efficiency
• Kawa: Discard pile

Summary

Tedashi is choosing tiles from your hand to discard, the core of hand-building. Beginners should learn “discard unnecessary tiles” and develop efficiency awareness. Also observe opponent tedashi to improve reading. Understanding tedashi vs tsumogiri is a crucial step toward mahjong mastery.