VIDEO POKER
Video poker machines work a lot like slot machines, except that they use poker cards to give you a random hand of five-card draw poker. This game was created during the 1970s, at the same time the PC was devised.
Today's video poker looks nothing like those early machines. Like a slot machine in concept, a player inserts money, presses the button, and he gets a hand of five cards. The player has the choice to switch some of the old cards for new cards. They are permitted to swap up to three cards, unless they hold an ace. In this instance they can swap four cards and hold only the Ace.
The objective is to achieve the best possible poker hand. One extraordinary feature of video poker is that the player can play many hands simultaneously and try to win faster. Some machines allow players to play as many as a hundred hands at the same time!
The best poker hands are listed here from lowest to highest:
- Pair: Two cards of the same value. Ex. K 9 7 3 3
- Two Pair: Two groups of two cards of the same value. Ex. K 9 9 3 3
- Three of a Kind: Three cards of the same value. Ex. K 9 3 3 3
- Straight: All five cards in sequential order, regardless of suit. Ex. 5 6 7 8 9
- Flush: All five cards having the same suit, regardless of order.
- Full House: One pair with a three of a kind. Ex. 9 9 9 3 3
- Four of a Kind: Four cards of the same value. Ex. K 9 9 9 9
- Straight Flush: All five cards in sequential order and of the same suit. Ex. 7 8 9 10 J (all hearts)
- Royal Flush: All five cards of the highest rank in sequential order and of the same suit. Ex. 10 J Q K A (all spades).
There are several common variations of video poker you need to know about. They are based on the same game of five-card draw, but change their criteria for winning hands. These include:
- Jacks or Better
This is the most common version. It only entails that the minimum paying hand is a pair of jacks.
- Tens or Better
This is a much less common version. It only entails that the minimum paying hand is a pair of tens.
- Deuces Wild
This is a fun version where twos (also called "deuces") are considered wild cards, which means that they can represent any card in the deck. This makes it much easier to make a strong hand since the two can play for any card you are missing. This game has a higher expected rate of return, and can even be positive, i.e., in the long run, you can win more money than you lose. In order to make this happen, you must bet the maximum amount of coins for each hand to get the best rate of return.
- Bonus Poker
The basic form of Bonus Poker has another payout arrangement for four-of-a-kind hands. In Double Bonus Poker, a four of a kind with an Ace pays more than one without an Ace. In Double Double Bonus Poker, when you have four aces with a 2, 3 or 4, you get paid even more! The reverse is also true (four twos, threes or fours with an ace). These games have an exciting twist that keeps players coming back again and again.
Now that you understand the most common types of video poker games, you're ready to hit the casino and play video poker!