Video poker has unique differences from normal poker & therefore you need an equally unique video poker strategy to gain the full advantage. Your decision comes after receiving the first five cards that are dealt automatically. You must then make a choice of what cards to replace & which to keep. That’s the basics to the game but there are a multitude of video poker varieties to choose from and the strategy may differ in each.

Two fundamental rules

Please keep in mind the two fundamental rules that you should always abide by. The number one rule is if you have initially been dealt a winning hand of any value, even a low one, do not break the hand in a hope of getting a higher paying one. A win is a win at whatever value. The next important rule is to always wager the maximum number of coins, unless your bankroll is totally unable to support it. Why is this? When you look at the payout chart on any video poker machine you’ll see that it has five columns depending on the number of coins wagered. For most winning lines the payment is simply the amount for one coin times by whatever number of coins you choose to play with each time. So usually there is no additional benefit for playing with larger capital. But when it comes to a win with the royal flush, a wager of five coins is not simply five times a one coin bet but sixteen times. Imagine you obtain the royal flush & had bet any less than five coins; you would have missed out on the biggest payday given by the machine.

Jacks or Better strategy

Jacks or better is actually the basic game of video poker that all the other variations stem from. We will present a strategy that you can use on these machines. The payout table feature the following wins: jacks or better, two pairs, three of a kind, straight, flush, full house, four of a kind, straight flush & the highest, the royal flush. If you receive cards that make up any of the above hands, you should hold them.

Whenever you receive four cards that that could make a flush, always hold them & replace the other card. If you obtain a 10, J, Q, K of any suit, you should hold them & replace the other card. Do the same if you have four cards for a straight. If you receive three cards contributing towards a straight flush or royal flush, you should hold them and replace the other two cards.

Whenever you receive any single pair, you should keep it & replace the remaining three cards. If you have any two cards of the same suit that are 10-J-Q-K-A, you should hold them & replace the other cards. The same applies to unsuited cards, only not including the ten (10). If you have a solitary jack, queen, king or ace, you should hold it & replace the others. If none of the above apply to the five cards you have received, then do not hold any of the cards & simply discard all the cards.