Dueces Wild Optimal Play
July 21, 2008
The following strategy is based on the “full pay” deuces wild paytable below. Full Pay Deuces Wild Hand Payoff Probability Return Royal flush (natural) 800 0.00002208 0.01766709 Four deuces 200 0.00020342 0.04068426 Royal flush (wild) 25 0.00179518 0.04487958 Five of a kind 15 0.00320057 0.04800855 Straight flush 9 0.00413697 0.03723269 Four of a kind 5 0.06492502 0.32462510 Full house 3 0.02122914 0.06368741 Flush 2 0.01658389 0.03316779 Straight 2 0.05659214 0.11318429 Three...
Dueces Wild Simple Strategy
July 21, 2008
The following strategy is my “simple strategy” for deuces wild video poker. Using the strategy on a full pay machine will result in an expected return of 100.71%. Compared to the optimal strategy return of 100.76%, mistakes in the simple strategy will cost 0.05%, or one total bet every 1869 hands.To use the strategy look up all viable ways to play an initial hand on the following list and elect that which is highest on the list. 0...
Jacks or Better Intermediate Strategy
July 21, 2008
The following strategy is my “intermediate strategy” for jacks or better video poker. Using the strategy on a full pay machine will result in an expected return of 99.52%. Compared to the optimal strategy return of 99.54%, mistakes in the simple strategy will cost 0.03%, or one total bet every 3805 hands. To use the strategy look up all viable ways to play an initial hand on the following list and elect that which is highest...
Simple Jacks or Better Strategy
July 21, 2008
The following strategy is my “simple strategy” for jacks or better video poker. Using the strategy on a full pay machine will result in an expected return of 99.46%. Compared to the optimal strategy return of 99.54%, mistakes in the simple strategy will cost 0.08%, or one total bet every 1178 hands.To use the strategy look up all viable ways to play an initial hand on the following list and elect that which is highest on the...
Jacks or Better Strategy
July 21, 2008
The following strategy is for full pay jacks or better video poker. “Full pay” designates the following paytable, per coin based on five coins bet, which returns 99.54% of money bet assuming optimal strategy. Full Pay Jacks or Better Hand Payoff Royal flush 800 Straight flush 50 Four of a kind 25 Full house 9 Flush 6 Straight 4 Three of a kind 3 Two pair 2 Jacks or better 1 To use this strategy look up all reasonable ways...
Video Poker Return Tables
July 21, 2008
The following tables show the payoff, probability of forming on the second draw, contribution to the total return, and the overall total return of various forms of video poker. The payoff table is per coin based on maximum coins played. The total of the expected returns is the expected total return for the game, in other words what the game pays back on average per coin bet, assuming five coins played and perfect strategy. Table of contents Jacks or Better Deuces Wild Loose Deuces Bonus Deuces Joker...
Video Poker Strategy
July 10, 2008
Video poker made its entry to the casino in the seventies and is today one of the most popular forms of gambling. For the player who likes a game of skill, a low house edge, the possibility of large wins, and the anonymity of playing alone there is nothing else that can compare to video poker. The rules of video poker are simple; you play 1 to 5 coins, the machine give you five cards, you choose which to hold and...
Beatable Video Poker Machines
July 8, 2008
There are some video poker machines out there that you can play that actually have a positive advantage for the player. The payouts on video poker machines are determined by; 1) the pay schedule and the part that is up to you 2) how you select discards, since selecting the wrong cards to deep-six will reduce your overall payout. Even if we list the best-of-the-best machines to play, it won’t help you to swing the odds in your favor unless you learn how to play each hand correctly. Below...
Double Up Bonus
July 8, 2008
If you play video poker for any extended period of time then you know it’s a great game that you can make some serious money by playing. One thing that confuses even experienced players is the double up bonus. If some of the machines that you play on have the “double up” option. then you might want to know what the odds are when played for each attempt. Some people are confident that the odds get worse as you retry, but that’s not the case. Bodog Casino is part of real...
Triple & 5 Play Quarter Machines
July 8, 2008
If you are new to video poker then most likely you tried learning the game on singlehand, 5 coin machines. Today however the casinos are putting in more and more quarter video poker machines and many patrons are moving towards the popular Triple Play, Five Play, or even Ten Play quarter machines. These machines may be popular, but they can be bankroll cleaners. A quarter Triple play, if you play the maximum number of coins on each hand, leaves 15 coins, or $3.75 at stake each time. On quarter...
Tips for Occassional Casino Goers
June 16, 2008
There are plenty of players out there who only occasionally make a trip to the casino, and we want to make sure that if this is the case for you then you get the most out of your trips. These are three strategies that we think you can put into play right away to win more and have more fun at the casino. Video Poker Over Slots Video Poker gives you the advantage of higher paybacks than if you play slots. If you want to learn more about the game, pick up a few books from the experts and read some...
Quick Video Poker Strategy
May 21, 2008
Here is a couple of quick answers to Jacks-or-better video poker strategy questions such as which is the better draw: an open-end 4-card straight versus no high cards, one high card, two high cards or three high cards? A low pair opposed to two high cards? Two cards to a royal flush against a high pair (a winning hand), and three cards to a royal versus a high pair? Casino expert Mark Pilarski weighs in on these answers which should help you get a quick grasp on how to lower the house edge on the...
Jacks or Better Payouts
May 21, 2008
Jacks-or-better video poker machines have different paytables with the main difference being how much you are paid for a full house. The key to playing video poker is to make sure that you are getting the best return for your money possible. Most of the time, the higher the payout for a full house and a flush, the greater the return. Let’s look at the payouts: 9 for a full house, 6 for a flush has a 99.5 percent return 8 for a full house, 5 for a flush has a 97.4 percent return 7 for a full...
Video Poker Three of a Kind Improving
May 21, 2008
There is one hand that personally vexes me when playing video poker and that is when I get three of a kind. It seems that when I need to draw two cards, I rarely get a full house or even a four of a kind. The odds didn’t seem like they would be that good of improving since there are not a lot of cards out there to help improve the hand, so I decided to do some research and find out the true odds of improvement. I found out that while improving shouldn’t be expected, drawing to a full...
Video Poker Starting Hands – Jack – Ace
May 21, 2008
In video poker, which start-up hand is more valuable, one with an ace or one with a jack? Most people would probably instinctively say the Ace since it’s the higher card, but the Jack has more playing hands that go with it. Also, what do you think of two aces against two Jacks for a starting hand? Let’s see what casino expert Mark Pilarski has to say. Get up to 145% in Bonuses at BetUS! In Jacks-or-better video poker a lone Jack is worth more than a single Ace. True, paired up after...
Four Aces & Joker in Video Poker
May 20, 2008
A few weeks ago while playing video poker I got four aces and a joker before the draw, so I wanted to do a little research on those odds. Here is what I found: The probability of being dealt 5-Aces (53-card deck-including the Joker) before the draw are 2,869,684 to one. If you are playing on the same type of machine and receive four to a royal and the joker dealt naturally the odds on that hand would be 119,569 to one.
Video Poker & Comps
May 20, 2008
If you factor in the comps that you receive from the casino, then you will find yourself in the positive over the long haul if you play perfectly on a full-pay Jack-or-better machine that pays nine coins for a full house and six coins for a flush. The key is to use a casino slot card to get credit for your play because in the United States alone, casinos give away over a billion dollars in comps each year. The amount of the comp is usually based off of the number of coins you cycles through the...
Drawing to Inside Straights in Video Poker
May 14, 2008
We frequently get questions from visitors regarding inside straights in video poker. Some people think that there are times that it is acceptable to draw one, and other people think that there is never a situation in which it would be appropriate. Let’s take a look at an example so we are all on the same page. An inside straight would be a hand like 4-5-7-8, a hand in which you would be hoping to draw a six. Is it smart to keep these cards and try to get the six? Not really, but that...
Odds on Natural Royal Flush in Video Poker
March 8, 2008
You could almost bet someone a large amount that they would never be dealt a natural royal flush on a video poker machine and feel pretty safe that you are never going to have to pay up. With a 52-card deck there are 2,598,960 possible hands, and what you’re asking for is that one of them to be dealt straight away. Those are long, tall odds. And what about all that time and money spent chasing down a natural Royal flush in hearts? Well, here’s the barnyard math. At a buck and a quarter...
Video Poker Odds Royal Flush
March 8, 2008
Doesn’t it seem that every time you are dealt one card short of the royal flush, when you draw you never get the card that you need? It can lead you to believe that the casino controls who and when someone hits the jackpot and takes home the cash. However, casino expert Mark Pilarski is here to deal with this nasty rumor and set you down the right path: I could bore you to tears by trying to explain how the pseudo-random number generator determines the cards you will get, but instead, I’ll...
Video Poker
March 8, 2008
In video poker, only 21% of the hands dealt are winning hands of Jacks or better and 79% are downright dogs. Herein lies the difference between the winning and losing player: what you do with those 79% of the hands that need to be groomed into winning greyhounds. The best way to give yourself the greatest chance of victory at video is to read, absorb, embrace and pledge allegiance to these playing tips. o Seek out Jacks or better machines that pay 9 coins for a full house and six coins for a flush. o...
How Progressive Jackpots Rise in Slots & Video Poker
March 7, 2008
Progressive jackpots are a favorite of the casino patron. The desire to leave the casino after a few hours of playing with riches beyond your wildest dreams is an urge that few of us can control. Have you ever wondered how the progressive jackpots rise in both slots and video poker. Well we brought on Mark Pilarski to give us the details. The rate at which the meter progresses upward is based on a pre-set percentage of all the money cycled through the machine. The meter rates will vary from machine...
Multi Play Video Poker
March 5, 2008
This week’s article from Mark Pilarski looks to clear up some confusion on Multi Play Video Poker. Dear Mark, I’m hoping you can clear up a question that’s been bothering me for long time. I’ve noticed quite frequently on 50 and 100-play video poker machines that when I get dealt two pair, I very rarely see any full houses. It’s almost as if the machines are rigged against me! It seems like the 50 and 100-play have different programming or something. A video poker...
Is Video Poker Draw Poker?
February 27, 2008
If you think draw poker is the same as video poker, then there are purists out there that would look at you and scoff. However, if you look at it this way, video poker is just you playing against the machine. The machine displays the cards as graphic images on the screen and the player has to place a stake. Then they are dealt five cards from a standard 52-card deck with a chance to then discard any number of unwanted cards in order to draw an equal number of replacements from the cards the remain...
Vigorish on 9/6 Video Poker Machines
February 18, 2008
9/6 Video Poker is a Jacks or better machine that pays 9 for a full house and 6 for a flush with one coin inserted. A lot of the posted house edges out there will show you the odds when the royal flush is included with maximum coin play. That’s because the odds up in favor of the player when you play this way. If you choose to not play maximum coins then it works in the house’s edge. The house edge on a Jacks or Better video poker machine with maximum coin play is 0.5%. Now if you...
6/5 Video Poker Machine v. 9/6
February 18, 2008
There have been some questions coming in from visitors on whether it is better to play a loose Jacks or better 6/5 video poker machine or a very tight full-pay Jacks or better 9/6 poker machines, but there is no real difference in reality. Every hand is dealt out randomly by the machine, so the tightness and looseness of any given video poker machine is based strictly on the paytables. A 6/5 paytable with 6 coins returned for a full houseand 5 for a flush with one coin inserted would be considered...
Odds on Video Gambling Machines
February 18, 2008
There are some visitors who ask if the odds are the same on video games like blackjack and craps as their real-life counterparts. So let’s see if this is the case of the odds are altered to benefit the casino. It is a Nevada (and I’m sure most states follow suit) law that video representations of dice and cards follow the same odds as those in a real game with a human dealer. If the games are already profitable based...
Easy Casino Games to Play
February 18, 2008
Some people want a challenge and some want easy casino games to play. Whatever your poison we want to get you aligned with the game that is the right fit for you. You most likely want the game that has the lowest house edge, so use that as your first hurdle to pass before getting your action. There are a lot of people who do not understand what the fascination is that people have...
Double Up Feature in Video Poker
February 18, 2008
Some casinos, allow you a double-or-nothing or double up feature of video poker with their machines if you had a winning hand. All you have to do is press the “Yes” button after a win, the game then deals one card face up for the dealer and four cards face-down for the player. You can then choose one of the face-down cards, if the card beats the dealers then you get double the amount you previously won, along with the option to try...
Triple Play v Single Play Video Poker Machines
February 7, 2008
Deposit with Your Checking Account! We have been asked before whether or not the odds of hitting a straight flush on a Triple Play video poker machine are different from when you are playing a single-hand machine. The truth is that playing any three, five, 10, 50 or even a 100-Play video poker machine does not change the arithmetic. Each and every hand has its own deck, and the odds of completing a straight flush are exactly...