How
to Play Video Poker
Video Poker is what you get if you cross Stud Poker with a slot
machine and throw in a few wild cards. It's fast, almost like
playing Stud, and you've got a huge range of options. You can
choose Jacks or Better, Deuces Wild, All American, Joker Poker
or a number of other variations. Each game has its own personality
and rewards a particular kind of play.
Also, the machines let you play anything from 1 through 5 coins,
with the payoffs improving at the high end of the scale. So
if you know your Poker hands and take the time to learn your
game, Video Poker can be fast, fun, and rewarding.
Old Poker salts should keep in mind that each game has its own
strategy. All American, for example, pays better than the others
on straights and flushes, so that will effect your approach
to card selection. When I first started playing Video Poker,
I thought it would be a lonely hearts version of the real thing.
Not so. The games do indeed have their own individual winning
strategies, and taking the time to learn your game means better
payoffs.
Objective
As with all forms of Poker. the player aims to get the best
hand possible. The payoffs are marked right on the face of the
Video Poker machine so it's a fast lesson in what the hand ranks
are. All Video Poker variations rank hands the same, though
a given variation may add an extra rank or two.
Betting
As you would expect from a slots version of Poker, betting is
pretty straightforward in Video Poker. On any given machine
you can typically choose $0.25, $0.50, $1, or $5 games. And
the bets are 1x, 2x, 3x, 4x, or 5x (Max Bet) whichever game
you're playing. So if you're playing a $1 game, you can place
bets of $1, $2, $3, $4, or $5.
Payoff
The first thing to note is that the game face shows you the
payoff for each betting level. Invariably playing Max Bet pays
off better, overall, than any of the lower multiples. Smart
players pick the betting level they are comfortable with and
choose their game accordingly.
In other words, if you're comfortable with a $5 bet, then pick
a $1 machine and play at Max Bet for $5. If $25 bets are more
your speed, pick a $5 game because Max Bet (5x) puts you at
the $25 level. In either case, you're getting the best payoff
odds you can for that game. This is similar to Slots strategy.
Also of key importance is the fact that the payoff ratios vary
from game to game. Where Jacks or Better may pay 25:1 for Four
Of A Kind, All American typically pays 30:1 and Joker Poker
only pays 20:1. These ratios do not necessarily reflect the
true odds, so again, knowing your game helps you play smarter.
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