It was my understanding that if nobody had a mahjong at the end of a round, it wasn't random chance that decided if anybody had to pay. If you're one tile away from finishing, that's called a different kind of hand (tenpai comes to mind for some reason) than if you're not about to make a mahjong. If both are one away or if neither is one away, then nobody pays. If one is and one isn't, the person that's farther away either puts more money in the pot or pays the closer person directly (I believe I've seen both in different mahjong games).(posted 8777 days ago)Just so you know. :)
Cheers, Brian