Here at Jackpot Capital online casino, we think that most of the new gamers look to using their Jackpot Capital Casino signup bonus to play slots and other games that are easy to understand. However, there are two games at Jackpot Capital that have a higher return to player rate than slots. These games are blackjack and video poker. The return to player rate in these games is about 99.5%.
There is one very important proviso: you have to play correctly on every hand. Playing correctly means following the best strategy for every hand, even when it seems counterintuitive. Especially in video poker, there are some dealt hands for which the recommended action by statistical analysis seems counterintuitive.
In this article, we would like to go deep into the best strategy for video poker.
First, The Significance of Volatility in Slots
Before we dive deep into video poker, we would like to show how the return to player rate in slots is a bit misleading. The return to player rate in all of our slots here at Jackpot Capital is about 96-97%.
This makes our slots much better than slots at land-based casinos, where the casinos have the game provider calibrate the random number generator to produce a return to player rate of 90% or less.
However, some slots have high volatility, some have medium volatility, and some have low volatility
What is Volatility in Slots?
Volatility is the term we use to describe how the wins are distributed in slots. High volatility has relatively few winning spins, but the spins pay a relatively high amount of money. Low volatility is the exact opposite; more winning spins, but each win pays a bit less. Medium volatility is in the middle.
So, it is possible for two slots to have the same return to player rate, but the one with high volatility has fewer winning players. You need more luck to win if you are playing a slot with high volatility. If you do have a lucky session, you will profit quite handsomely from playing the high volatility slot.
There is no volatility in video poker. The game uses a simple deck of cards. There is no way for the game provider to alter the return to player rate or attach any kind of volatility to video poker. This means that all it takes to have a return of 99.5% is adherence to the statistically best action on every hand.
So, it would seem that gamers would love to play video poker, and a lot of gamers do love the game. But a significant number of gamers do not play video poker. We believe that following the best strategy on every hand is intimidating, so these players simply choose not to play video poker.
Now, we will go over the best strategy in video poker with the hope that it will encourage gamers to play this exciting and fun online casino game.
Most Dealt Hands in Video Poker are Low-end Hands
It is really quite hard to absorb the entire strategy chart for video poker all at once. So, we will divide the strategy chart into more manageable sections. It is necessary to divide the strategy chart into more manageable sections because we have seen strategy charts with no fewer than 36 possible strategies depending on the cards that have been dealt.
We will not cover all 36 possible actions here since the return to player rate in a simplified strategy is almost the same as in the more expansive strategy. The first section encompasses the vast majority of dealt hands.
Weak Hands Are Really Very Weak
These hands are decidedly not strong hands. This is the case in all forms of poker. In the famous Texas Hold’em, new players are told to fold at least 75% of all dealt hole cards before the flop; they just aren’t very strong.
The same statistics apply in video poker; here, you have the chance to better your hand and win. Most hands will have no pair, no opportunity for a straight, no opportunity for a flush, and no high card. In this case, you discard all five cards and try again.
Now, what if you have a low pair? The rule is to keep the low pair because the chances of getting three of a kind or two pairs are better than discarding all five cards and starting all over again. A lot of players look askance at a low pair, especially if they have a high card. But, statistically, your chances of winning, not good if you are dealt a low pair, are better if you keep the low pair instead of discarding and keeping the high card.
The High Card That You Can’t Ignore
So, what if you have a low pair and one high card?
The best strategy is to hold just the low pair. Players get enamored of high cards, but when you hold the low pair, you have about a 12% chance of getting three of a kind. The chance to get three of a kind is a lot lower when you hold the high card. It is also a mistake to discard the low pair and keep just the high card.
The Two High Cards That You Can’t Ignore
Advanced video poker strategy gets quite complicated when you are dealt two high cards. Strategy talks about whether the high cards are suited. It talks about which cards are suited. If the cards are connected or apart.
For our purposes, it is important to note that it is still a better strategy to keep a low pair instead of keeping two high cards. This is true even if the high cards are of the same suit.
If you only have two high cards, you will keep them. If one of the “high” cards is a ten, it is worth keeping only if it is suited with the high card. If it is not suited, you should discard it.
What is the Best Strategy if You Are Dealt an Almost Winning Hand?
Let’s take a step back and talk about winning hands that you are dealt. Keep a royal flush, a straight flush, four of a kind, three of a kind, two pair, and a full house. Gamers are tempted to keep a simple straight or a flush as well.
In almost all cases, you will keep these excellent hands. The exception is when you are dealt four cards to a royal flush. Since basic strategy also calls for you to bet the maximum on every hand in order to qualify for the big bonus payout for a royal flush, when you have four to a royal flush, you go for it.
Now, if you have four to a royal flush, you might also have a dealt straight or a dealt flush. You should break these hands to go for the royal flush.
Three Cards to a Royal Flush is Strong
As low as the odds are of getting the royal flush, you will keep three cards to a royal flush except when you have four cards to a straight flush or one of the winning dealt hands we mentioned above.
That means that three cards to a royal flush is better than a low pair. It is not as good as two pair, but it is better than the low pair. With three cards to a royal flush, you could get a straight flush, a simple flush, a simple straight, two pair, or a winning pair. There are a lot of cards that can help you win in this case, so you keep the three cards to a royal flush.
Make Jackpot Capital Your Go to Home for Video Poker and a Lot More
Video Poker is a fantastic game. Here is a great speech about video poker that we think you'll enjoy:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FiCFLfJgbPc
As great as video poker is, it is by far not the only game we offer here at Jackpot Capital. In fact, we offer over 400 games. We also offer great promotions, easy and safe banking, and our vast blog library with informative articles like this one. Gamers who join Jackpot Capital tell us that we are one of their favorite online casinos. We invite you to find out for yourself by…