Most gamers here at Jackpot Capital know that 9-6 Jacks or Better video poker has three slightly different strategies. You might refer to these strategies as beginner, advanced, and expert.
Every time we have talked about video poker, we have stayed with the beginner strategy. Here we would like to give experienced video poker players the chance to learn the expert way to play this game.
Now, here at Jackpot Capital, we offer many variations of video poker. Jacks or Better is still the most popular variation, so we will concentrate on that version.
What is the First Thing a Video Poker Player Should Do?
You should get a strategy card for the variation of video poker you are going to play. In order to earn the super high return to player rate, which in 9-6 Jacks or Better video poker, is about 99.5%, you need to be able to find your dealt hand on the chart quickly and make the right decision.
Making the right decision is not always easy, as we will see.
How Should a Video Poker Player Read the Chart?
This is another aspect of expert play in video poker. Most people try to read the chart from top to bottom. Some realize that most dealt hands are at the bottom of the chart, so they start to read from bottom to top.
An expert reads both from top to bottom and also from bottom to top.
The bottom of the chart has the many hands that are very weak and need to be replaced. The top of the chart has dealt hands that you keep in all cases.
Which Dealt Hands Should I Keep?
These are the hands you should keep. There are two exceptions so hang on.
- Royal Flush
- Straight flush
- Four of a kind
- Full house
- Flush
- Straight
The exception happens when you are dealt either a flush or a straight and four to a Royal Flush. This hand has at least three high cards that can win if paired. The hand has the possibility of getting a simple straight or flush. So, if you are dealt a flush or straight and also four to a Royal, you go for the Royal.
This also applies if you have four to a Royal and a winning pair. You should discard the unsuited high card and go for the Royal.
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Reading the Chart from Bottom to Top is Not as Easy as You Might Think
The very last line is absolutely no play. You discard all five cards and hope for the best. But directly above the no value hand is three to a straight flush.
This is the second weakest hand in video poker, and a lot of players think otherwise. You hold three to a straight flush if you DON’T have any of the hands that are better than three to a straight flush.
First of all, it is a lot harder to get a straight or a flush, not to mention the straight flush, when you need runner-runner to get it. This can happen, but it is very rare indeed, and your chances of getting a winning hand are improved if you see any hand that is better and is on the chart above three to a straight flush.
Four such hands are a single ace, king, queen, or jack. These are certainly weak hands, but you do have some chance of pairing the high card or getting two pair or three of a kind. It is ironic that the single ace is the weakest of these four weak hands. This is because, if you are going to get lucky and get a straight, getting a straight from ace down is harder than getting a straight starting with any other high card.
For the same reason, a single king is weaker than a single queen, which is weaker than a single jack.
Let’s Go Back to the Top of the Chart
We see that the next good hand that we should keep is four to a straight flush. You should break apart a winning pair to go for the straight flush. Even if you don’t get the straight flush, you might get a flush, a straight, or a winning pair.
A High Pair is a Relatively Strong Hand
This surprises a lot of video poker players. A high pair and two pair rank quite high on the chart. In terms of the high pair, this means that in most hands, you will keep your high pair, hoping to turn it into a better hand, but accepting the win in any case.
The only time you break apart a winning pair is when you have four to a very strong hand.
This might be the most common winning hand in video poker.
What about a Low Pair?
A low pair is an intermediate hand. You will discard the low pair if you have four unsuited high cards, four to a flush, or three to a Royal Flush. Here we are in the area of grabbing at straws, but the statistics do show that a low pair is a lot better than a lot of other hands.
A low pair can become three of a kind or two pair. It will never be a big winner. But it still is better than a whole slew of hands. These include four to a flush or four to a straight or suited high cards, or several unsuited high cards.
At this point in the tutorial, our message to you is to get a good strategy card for the level of strategy you want to play. The difference between expert strategy and beginner strategy is less than one percent. That means that you will still have a very good return to player rate with beginner strategy, and you will use that gaming time to get used to reading the chart.
The beginner chart is a lot easier to read than the advanced chart.
Video Poker and Blackjack Have the Highest Return to Player Rate
Both games have a return to player rate of about 99.5% when you play correctly. Most gamers prefer playing the slots but, if you want to conserve your bankroll, playing blackjack and video poker gives you more return for the buck.
Jackpot Capital Has Games for All Gamers
We have about 400 games. These naturally include slots, blackjack, and video poker. We also carry European Roulette, which you will not likely find at an American land-based casino because the house edge in European Roulette is half that in American Roulette. We carry all three variations of Caribbean Poker. We also carry casual games that players love to play, even for just a few minutes.
Slots are still the number one game here at Jackpot Capital, but Banana Jones is not far behind!
We run excellent promotions that increase gamers’ bankroll and we publish several articles every month that increase gamers’ understanding of the benefits of online casino gaming
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