A 5-Minute Guide to Video Poker

Strategies to Lower The House Edge

If you want to make use of a simple strategy, but without giving it too much thought, then video poker is the go-to game. You'll find it has a number of different variants and each version of the game has its own optimal strategy.

In order to get you up and running on the road to success, we've put together a video poker strategy guide. This has been designed so that anyone can start to play immediately. When optimal video poker strategies are used correctly, the house edge can be reduced to less than half a percent. In fact, in some version of the games, it is possible to make the house edge negative. After you have some strategic gameplay know-how, you should keep learning about video poker gaming strategies and pay tables in order to be able to recognise opportunities when they arise. The goal is to squeeze the house edge to get the last advantageous drop out of it.

Once you've read this guide, we suggest that you practise putting these video poker strategies to good use. As your confidence grows, you'll be in a better position than many other players. Nevertheless, don’t be lazy and rest on your laurels. Set aside time to continue learning and improving.

Video Poker Game Choices

All video poker games are based upon 5-card draw, which means that five cards are drawn from a 52-card deck. You then have the option to exchange all or any of your starting hand for new cards. Once this exchange of cards has taken place, you'll be paid out if you have a hand that ranks high enough to show on the pay table. There are many different versions of video poker games. Some of them utilise a joker and others make use of wildcards. Whatever the version, the one factor that differentiates one game from another is the all-important pay table.

Beware the House Edge

This is because the pay table has a direct influence over the house edge. As you're probably aware, the money the casino keeps as a profit is the house edge. It's usually expressed as a percentage. So, a video poker machine with a house edge of 2% keeps 2% of all the money fed into the machine over the long term. If you were playing this machine and had made $10,000 worth of bets, then the casino is going to keep $200. Take note, the method by which you make these bets, whether it's $10,000 x $1 bets or 100 x $100 bets, is totally irrelevant. All that matters is the house edge and the total amount wagered.

Don't assume that the house edge is a fixed number for the short term. Small periods of play will produce very different percentage ranges. The longer you play and the more you bet, then, over time the results will begin to fall in line with the true house edge. It's important to understand that it's impossible to overcome the house edge completely. What you can do, is try to influence it in order to keep it as low as possible. If you're playing video poker, the first step is to find the best pay table and utilise a good video poker strategy.

Your ideal video poker machine will have the lowest possible house edge, coupled with the best pay table. In order to find this, you'll have to study the form of every video poker machine you come across. There are no shortcuts to this. You need to learn all the variations that exist in the base games of video poker. In truth, the only way you can move towards a professional level player is by understanding each and every one of them.

By far the most common variations of video poker that you’ll come across are Jacks or Better and Deuces Wild. Both of these games can theoretically have very low house edges, depending on the paytable in use. Furthermore, each utilises a 52-card deck and function on the basic 5-card draw structure.

The Jacks or Better Pay Table

Below is a typical Jacks or Better pay table. However, before betting on a game, you should take the time to examine its pay table carefully as it may not be exactly the same.

There's no point I'm playing a video poker machine unless you were going to bet the maximum of 5 coins. This is one of the methods to keep the house edge as low as possible. Keep in mind that if you were to hit a natural royal flush, then by using 5 coins, you would receive a tasty bonus payout amount.

Video Poker Strategy Explained

Every hand you play in video poker can influence the house edge. In fact, we would go as far as to say that the single best way to keep the house low is contained within each of your starting cards. It’s essential that you always make the best possible plays. Now you're probably going to ask, how will you know what the best possible plays are? In truth, the answer is very difficult to know off the top of your head. However, living in the computer age, there are programs that can crunch the numbers for the best odds. If you're feeling big-brained, you could make use of computers and advanced mathematical concepts to determine the best play. However, we’ve taken the painless route by using a strategy chart.

Jacks or Better Video Poker Strategy Card

Here’s an example of a video poker strategy chart for Jacks or Better. To use the chart, simply start at the top and read down. As soon as you come to a line that includes your hand, then that's the one to use. You should ignore all the places listed below this. The table below shows the most basic video poker strategy to get you started.

Keep Things Simple

If you're looking to get started as soon as possible on your video poker journey, we've devised a simple strategy chart for you. Just follow the steps laid out above and you can begin playing with the certainty of a low house edge. If you look at the strategy chart above for Jacks or Better, then you should always begin by wagering 5 coins. This will help unlock a bonus should you land a royal flush. Our table is a 9/6 pay table, which is extremely common.

To sum up, you need to find the right machine, offering the right game and the right pay table. Only bet 5 coins, and always make use of proper strategy. That’s all you have to do. Using this method, you’ll be playing video poker with a guaranteed low-house edge. If you want to go forward, then you should study the best strategies for Deuces Wild. The strategy chart looks very different to the one for Jacks or Better, but it is just as easy to understand.

Do Your Research

Providing you choose the right variation of video poker, you’ll discover that it's an easy game to play. Here at Plaza Royal Casino, we offer many video poker games that when played with proper strategy have a very low house edge. Why not practice playing in demo mode and then once you are feeling confident, you can start to play for real money.