Video Poker Tips

General Tips
The idea of playing any gambling game is to maximize the opportunity of winning. The following tips will assist the player in winning greater amounts.

Different machines playing even the same game offer different payouts. For example the 9-6 Jacks or Better machines offer greater payouts the 8-5 Jacks or Better machines. Hence the first thing a player must do is to locate a game that gives the best payout ratios. The payout ratios can be understood by studying the payout table and it is essential that players fully comprehend payout tables.

Another issue video poker players is whether to bet maximum coins or not. The advantage of betting maximum coins is that players are eligible for jackpot payouts should they hit a royal flush. The disadvantage of betting maximum coins is that the bankroll gets depleted faster. If a player wants higher returns and is prepared to take more risks then he should wager maximum coins and aim for the jackpots. If the player is a conservative gambler then he should not bet maximum coins.

As far as possible play on single deck machines. Machines that use more than one deck have higher house edges and therefore lower payout ratios and hence should be avoided.

The denomination of the machine chosen should be commensurate with the player’s bankroll. Players with small bankrolls should play on low denomination machines in order to make their bankrolls last longer.
The strategy in video poker depends on deciding which cards to hold after the initial deal. This strategy varies from game to game. However, whatever the game, cards that contribute to a winning combination should never be discarded. Strategies for some common variants are given below.

Jacks or Better
The player needs to hold at least a pair of jacks in order to win. The following cards should be kept on hold.
 Royal flushes of four cards or more
 Three cards that can contribute to royal flushes
 Flushes of four cards or more
 Two high cards

Deuces Wild
As the game name Deuce Wild suggests the deuces are wild cards and the player needs to hold at least three of a kind in order to win. The following cards should be kept on hold.
 The deuces
 Royal flushes of three cards or more
 Straight flushes of four cards or more
 Flushes of four cards or more
 Two card jack or queen straight flushes

Jokers Wild

Jokers Wild is played with a 54-card deck containing two jokers. The player needs to hold at least a pair of kings in order to win. Specific tips for jokers wild are as follows:
 Three cards that can contribute to royal flushes are preferable to a pair of kings or aces.
 Three sequential cards of the same suit are preferable to smaller pairs.
 Smaller pairs are preferable to three cards of the same suit that are not in sequence
 Only the joker should be put on hold in a