Author: horse-racing-free-tips

The video poker machine is one of the most popular gambling machines in existence today. Part poker, and part video game, it’s the perfect combination to make it a modern day gambling sensation. Although today’s video poker machines are the epitome of our current high tech in gambling, they have existed in simpler form for about two hundred years.

Video poker is of course based on the card game of poker. The video poker machine of today is the result of the game of poker being manifested into different types of games at varying levels of technology through the generations. The game of poker has been played in America since the early 1880s, with the game being referred to as ‘Poker’ in 1834 by a man name Jonathan Green.

The earliest recorded ancestors of the video poker machine were coin operated machines which used poker cards. These machines came into the scene in the late 1800s, and were manufactured by a company by the name of Sittman and Pitt of Brooklyn. The poker card machines were placed in liquor stores and cigar shops, and shortly worked their way across the U.S.

These machines worked by the player putting a coin into the poker machine and pulling a handle, which spun five drums that held the poker cards. The player would wait for it to stop, while hoping for a winning hand. A winning hand was paid out in cigars or drinks. Sadly, and unbeknownst to the players, the Ten of Spades and the Jack of Hearts were left out of the deck to reduce the chances of winning.

In 1901, Charles Fey made the next big improvement to the poker machine by adding the first ‘draw’ feature to the already wildly popular machine. Fey’s addition to the poker machine allowed the player to actually use their poker skills in the game, as opposed to being left to the mercy of blind luck.

Charles Fey’s improvement allowed the player to hold certain drums still after the first spin, while pulling the handle to spin the remaining drums. This in effect was the first ‘hold’ and ‘draw’ combination.

Over the following years, people’s interest in poker card machines diminished, with only an occasional hiccup of interest every now and again. It wasn’t until the late 1970s that the poker machine was reborn into the video poker machine, thus rekindling the love of video poker.

The first of these machines appeared along side of the personal computer. It was this technology which made the video poker machine a reality. With its solid state circuitry, and its television like monitor, this clunky machine would give rise to the poker machines of today. These machines have made their homes in bars, casinos and even online.

That beautiful Royal Flush!
Straight Flush
Four of a Kind
Full House
Flush
Straight
Three of a kind
Two pair
One pair of jacks or better

Let’s begin your basic Video Poker Education.

The two techniques that are mandatory to becoming an educated and prepared video poker player are:

1) how to read a pay schedule with additional education to know the difference between short/partial pay and full-pay versions, plus

2) strategies for all the VP types/games.

Pay Schedules:

In a grouping of video poker machines, known as banks or carousels, all of which may look exactly the same, casinos will often ‘mix-in’ several VP machines with inferior pay programs (short/partial pay). Often, in a bank of regular non-progressive, non-bonus VP machines, only 1 or 2 may be the Jacks or better 9/6 (nine coins for a full house, and 6 coins for a flush), while the rest are 8/5, 7/5, or even worse, 6/5.

This means that one player, on the 9/6 machine, will be winning more for the same hands than the other players.

If you bet 5 coins, all winning hands are paid out multiplied by a factor of five, except for the royal flush. This is a bonus amount designed as an incentive to play five coins. All those players who play less than maximum coins are setting up the best payoffs for those who do.

Below is the average overall payback percentage for ten of the best VP versions.

These percentages are maintained with maximum coins per hand, ‘full-pay’ schedule play and perfect strategy.

1) 10/4 Loose Deuces–4 Deuces pays 2500=100.97%
2) 9/5 Deuces Wild=100.76%
3) 7/5 Jokers Wild–5 of a kind pays 1000, Quad pays 100=100.64%.
4) 9/6 Double Double Jackpot Poker–2 pair pays 1=100.35%
5) 10/7 Double Bonus–2 pair pays 1=100.17%
6) Pick ‘Em Poker–pair of 9’s+ min. payout=99.95%
7) 11/7 Triple Bonus Poker–Kings+ min.payout=99.94%
8) 9/6 Jacks+–2 pair pays 2= 99.54%
9) 8/5 Bonus Jacks+–2 pair pays 2, Four Aces pays 400=99.17%
10) 9/6 Double Double Bonus–4 Aces with 2, 3 or 4 pays 2000=98.98%

The first two numbers reflect the payouts for a full house and flush as per one coin payout.
Therefore, a 10/7 Bonus VP version #5, would pay 10 coins for a full house and 7 coins for a flush for a one coin bet.

The exception being for Deuces Wild versions–#1 and #2, which reflect the payouts for a straight flush and 4 of a kind as per one coin payout. The minimum payout for Deuces games is 3-of-a-kind.

#4 ‘Jackpot’ version is also known as Aces and Faces where the higher payouts are reserved for Aces, Kings, Queens and Jacks. In addition, because Bonus VP versions offer higher payouts for four aces and four 2’s, 3’s and 4’s, the pair and two pair payouts are often the same–1 coin. VP versions that pay 2 for 2 pair are #8 and #9 Jacks+ and Bonus Jacks+ in the guide above.

It bears repeating that these percentages are maintained with maximum coins, full-pay schedules and perfect strategy in play. The actual payout of any video poker machine is determined not only by its schedule but also by how you select discards. Since playing errors can reduce the payout, just sitting down in front of a full pay machine won’t help you unless you learn the correct strategies.

Until we meet again to continue your VP education, may all your VP choices turn out to be ‘royalty’.