Video Poker Intermediate Strategy
Video Poker Intermediate Strategy
As you probably know by now, video poker is very much a game of strategy. Some players spend months, or even years, mastering the game, and they still have things to learn. This article is for people who know how to play video poker, and know at least some basic strategies. If this seems over your head, be sure to check out our article on basic strategies. Ideally you should read all you can about video poker strategies and try to gather as much information as possible.
Take a look at this chart. It lists, in order from best to worst, all possible hands in video poker. In order to implement this list one must consult the chart before discarding anything. When you are dealt a hand, take a look at what you have, and compare it closely to the list. Make sure you consider each possible combination, and see which one is highest on the list.
1. Four of a kind, straight flush, royal flush
2. 4 to a royal flush
3. Three of a kind, straight, flush, full house
4. 4 to a straight flush
5. Two pair
6. High pair
7. 3 to a royal flush
8. 4 to a flush
9. Low pair
10. 4 to an outside straight
11. 3 to a straight flush *
12. AKQJ unsuited
13. 2 suited high cards
14. 4 to an inside straight with 3 high cards
15. 3 to a straight flush **
16. KQJ unsuited
17. QJ unsuited
18. JT suited
19. KQ, KJ unsuited
20. QT suited
21. AK, AQ, AJ unsuited
22. KT suited
23. One high card
24. 3 to a straight flush ***
25. Discard everything
*An open-ended contribution to a straight flush. Must have more high cards than gaps.
**An open-ended straight flush, where the # of spaces is 1.
Alternatively, any 2-3-4 suited hand, or an ace-low.
***A straight flush with zero high-cards and 2 spaces or gaps.
Once you get the hang of it, implementing strategy becomes easy. Simply pay close attention to the above list each and every hand, and before you know it you will have it memorized! It can be a pain at first to remember, but an easy way to do this is to leave a browser window open to this page, so you can quickly switch to it after the draw. Alternatively, you could print out the chart and hang it somewhere near your computer so that you can look up at any time and see it.
Keep in mind that there should be a slightly different strategy for every variation of video poker. No, that doesn't mean you need to find a new strategy each time you try a new variation - that would be a waste of time. The best way to go about this is to take the strategy listed above and change it to your liking. Pay attention to anything in the strategy that you think could be improved. Technically the strategy above is ideal, meaning that it would theoretically have the highest return in the long run, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't adapt it for other variations. For instance, in games with wild cards, you would probably want to change the above strategy to account for the difference in payouts between "natural" hands and "unnatural" hands.
While this strategy is meant to be followed exactly, we understand that you are human, and it's not exactly fun to follow a strategy 100% of the time. So, if you're feeling adventurous, it's not the end of the world if you disregard the specific strategy for a few hands. If you see a hand that has some potential for a high-paying combination, don't be afraid to go for it, even if the list says there's a better choice. Yeah, you will most likely lose, but it's only a few bucks (or even less), and you will be getting a shot at a substantial amount of money. However, just because you can stray from the strategy every once in a while doesn't mean you should. Just keep it in moderation, and try not to follow all your "good feelings" about hands.
;void(0);)