video poker strategy

[RoyalFlush]

This is for Jacks or Better 9/6 with max coins.

Decisions are straightforward down to a four card flush draw.



Return - Hand
4,000 Royal Flush
250 Straight Flush
125 Four of a Kind
98 Four to a Royal Flush
30 Full House
25 Flush
21 Three of a Kind
20 Straight
17 Four to a Straight Flush with 2 Outs
12 Two Pair
11 Four to a Straight Flush with 1 Out
8 High Pair
7 Three to a Royal Flush
5 Four to a Flush

[RoyalFlush]

Things get messy once we have less than four to a flush.



Return - Hand
4.4 K Q J T with no more than 2 of any suit
4.1 Low Pair
3.4 to 4.0 Four to an Outside Straight (except K high which is above)
3.2 Three to Three-Way Straight Flush (ie 5h 6h 7h)
3.0 Two Suited High Cards
2.7 Four Broadway (A, K, Q, J, T) Cards (except K high and two suited high which are above)
2.7 K Q J 9
2.7 Three to One-Way Straight Flush with one or more high cards (ie Jc Tc 7c)
2.5 to 2.7 Three to Two-Way Straight Flush (ie 4s 6s 7s)
2.5 K Q J
2.4 Two Unsuited High Cards
2.4 Suited T J, T Q or T K
2.3 High Card
2.2 Three to One-Way Straight Flush (ie 4c 7c 8c)
1.8 Discard Everything

[RoyalFlush]

There are some simple rules to help remember how to play the big draws.

1. Four to a ROYAL Flush is a monster. Don't throw away any made hands with it except a straight flush. If we are dealt K:c: Q:c: J:c: T:c: 2:c: then we discard 2:c:. If we are dealt K:c: Q:c: J:c: T:c: 9:h: then we discard 9:h:. However, if we are dealt K:c: Q:c: J:c: T:c: 9:c: then we don't discard anything.

2. Four to a Straight Flush isn't as good as a made flush or a made straight but it does beat a high pair. If we have K:d: Q:d: J:d: T:d: 5:d: then we don't discard anything. If we have K:d: Q:d: J:d: T:d: 9:s: then we don't discard anything. If we have K:d: Q:d: T:d: 9:d: K:s: then we discard K:s:.

3. Three to a Royal Flush beats Four to a regular flush. Both these draws are better than a low pair but worse than a high pair. If we have Q:h: J:h: T:h: 5:h: 4:s: then we discard 5:h: 4:s:. If we have Q:s: J:s: T:s: 4:s: Q:h: then we hold Q:s: and Q:h:. If we have Q:s: T:s: 9:s 3:s: T:h: then we discard T:h:.

[RoyalFlush]

There is a weird exception where 4 to an Ace high flush beats 3 to a Royal Flush. It happens when there is a suited ten ace and the unsuited card is another ten or a broadway straight out: T:h: T:s: A:h: K:h: 5:h:

[dlbarlowe]

Things do get messy with the lesser hands. Using an odds calculator, I can't mimic the results in all cases. When I tried suited 10/J with 6c, 3c, As I got a return of 2.577, not 2.4. It seems counter-intuitive for four to an A-high flush to beat three to a RF under any circumstances, but it makes sense given the scenario you described.

[cruelsebastian]

I do agree with those simple rules mentioned above; the high pair scenario you mentioned. With four suited cards and only one to go, the odds are great. You can definitely hope for a to draw to a flush than turning a single pair into two pair. So yes...always aim for a flush when you have four suited cards.

[RoyalFlush]

Another way of thinking about decisions is to start with made hands (low pair or better). There are only 4 kinds of made hands that we consider breaking:

Flushes and Straights should never be broken unless you have Four to a ROYAL. Said another way, the only made hands Two Pair or higher that can be broken are straights and flushes and they are only broken for Four to a Royal draw. If you have K:c: Q:c: J:c: T:c: 9:d: then discard 9:d:. If you have K:c: Q:c: J:c: T:c: 2:c: then discard 2:c:.

High Pairs should never be broken unless you have Four to a ROYAL or Four to a Straight Flush.

Low Pairs should never be broken unless you have Four to a ROYAL, Four to a Straight Flush, Three to a ROYAL, Four to a Flush or KQJT.


It is straight forward down to low pairs but things get messy below that. Things like Three to a Straight Flush are all over the place.

[dlbarlowe]

Remembering what to do and the exceptions to generally advisable plays is a lot, especially because I try to play as many hands/hr as possible. I just searched for memory tips/tricks for video poker and the closest things related to the subject were posts/videos about remembering the cards in the deck and counting them. It'd be great if someone would create some sort of system specifically for video poker. The advice you're sharing here will help me to improve my return overall, I think, but I'll lose volume in terms of hands/hr until I have everything down.

[cruelsebastian]

Consider the scenario: I got this hand Ac Kc Qd 4d 6s. I got the best choice to be to HOLD Ac Kc and remove Qd 4d 6s (2.887). However, it still made me wonder since holding a Kc Qd and discarding Ac 4d 6s presented 2.417 ... wouldn't you consider that too instead of the first recommendation?

[RoyalFlush]

Looking at low pair and down, I think we'll have to divide this up into a limited strategy (that makes small errors but is easy to memorize) and a thorough strategy.

Here are some limited (and sometimes wrong) rankings:


-Low Pair
-Four to an outside straight
-Two suited high cards
-Four broadway cards
-Three to a straight flush
-Two unsuited high cards (choose lowest if there are 3)
-Suited TK, TQ or TJ
-High Card

[dlbarlowe]

Looking at low pair and down, I think we'll have to divide this up into a limited strategy (that makes small errors but is easy to memorize) and a thorough strategy.

I think that'll be really helpful

[RoyalFlush]

My thoughts are more organized now for the limited strategy. Here it is:

There are only 3 types of made jacks or better hands that can be broken:
1. Break a made flush for four to a royal flush.
2. Break a made straight for four to a royal flush.
3. Break a high pair (JJ, QQ, KK or AA) for four to a royal flush or four to a straight flush.

Things are more complicated when we have less than JJ.

We have some options below JJ:
-Limited Strategy. Somewhat easy to remember but not perfect.
-Through Strategy. Covers most everything but hard to remember.

Limited Strategy when dealt less than JJ:


-Three to a royal flush
-Four to a regular flush
-KQJT
-Low Pair
-Four to an outside straight
-Two suited high cards
-Four broadway cards
-Three to a straight flush
-Two unsuited high cards (choose lowest if there are 3)
-Suited TK, TQ or TJ
-High Card

[RoyalFlush]

There is a weird exception where 4 to an Ace high flush beats 3 to a Royal Flush. It happens when there is a suited ten ace and the unsuited card is another ten or a broadway straight out: T:h: T:s: A:h: K:h: 5:h:

This exception is a funny one.

[cruelsebastian]

On the topic of a Low pairs...if we get 2c 2s 5c Jd 9s ..I think realistic we only got 2 changes right?
-> Discard the 3 cards and hold the low pair OR hold the two low cards and the Jack as hoping for a three of a kind OR a pair of Jacks of Better. Any thoughts?

[dlbarlowe]

On the topic of a Low pairs...if we get 2c 2s 5c Jd 9s ..I think realistic we only got 2 changes right?
-> Discard the 3 cards and hold the low pair OR hold the two low cards and the Jack as hoping for a three of a kind OR a pair of Jacks of Better. Any thoughts?

I'd hold the 2s and drop the other three cards.

[dlbarlowe]

Your limited strategy really is a lot easier to remember. What do you think the potential "cost" of using this tact is compared to the more involved strategy in terms of winnings and losses?

[upsman]

hi all very new to video poker have been working on the trainer and love it i have a questions is there a game on the trainer that would give me correct moves for double double bonus i like that game a little better but i know that the moves are different because of the low straght flush pay and the higher 4 of a kind with kicker options all comments welcome also any tips for a new guy im all ears

[givememyleg]

hi all very new to video poker have been working on the trainer and love it i have a questions is there a game on the trainer that would give me correct moves for double double bonus i like that game a little better but i know that the moves are different because of the low straght flush pay and the higher 4 of a kind with kicker options all comments welcome also any tips for a new guy im all ears

Welcome to the forum!

Unfortunately, our trainer doesn't support Double Double Bonus yet, only Double Bonus.

[RoyalFlush]

Welcome, upsman!