Strategy Tips to Help You Win More at Video Poker

How strong is your video poker? If you want to win the maximum possible when playing video poker, you need to be playing perfect strategy. However, many players fail to play perfect strategy because they are making mistakes in select situations.

Today, we will cover some of those decisions and tell you the correct play to help you win more when playing video poker at Australian online casinos.

Hold the Paying Pair Over The Draw

A common mistake you’ll see video poker players make is dropping a paying pay to go after a straight or flush draw. While it is true that a straight or flush pays better than a paying pair, you’re throwing away money long-term by making this play.

The potential payoff for the straight or flush will not make up for the money you’re throwing away by breaking the paying pair. One exception is if you’re drawing to a straight flush. In that case, you are throwing away 5 credits to go after 250 credits. That move is worth the risk over the long-term.

Always Draw One to the Royal Flush in Video Poker

This tip may seem completely obvious, but there are times where players will take a safe play rather than make the obvious play. For example, you get the Ace, Queen, Jack, and 10 of spades and a king of hearts for a straight. Many people will take the 20 or 25 credit win rather than draw one for the 4,000 credit win.

Think about it. If a straight pays 20 credits, you are getting $5 for a straight when playing max credits on quarters. When you draw one and get lucky enough to hit the royal, you are going to get $1,000 on quarters. How many of you would gamble $5 for a shot to win $1,000?

Whenever you have four cards to a royal flush, draw to the royal. It doesn’t matter if you have to break a winning hand. You need to take the shot. Many times, you will miss. Sometimes, you will improve to a flush. Sometimes you will draw to a straight. Regardless, the payoff when you do hit is worth the times you miss.

Don’t Hold Another Card With a Paying Pair

Some people take a Five Card Draw Poker mentality when playing video poker. When playing 5 Card Draw, you will sometimes hold a high kicker with a big pair in hopes of making a larger two pair. For example, you have a pair of kings and an ace as one of your other cards. You’d hold the ace to try and get aces up.

This is a bad move in video poker. You’re trying to make the best hand you can. The best play is to hold the paying pair and draw three. This allows you three cards to catch three of a kind which pays 15 rather than trying to catch two pair, which pays 10.

Hold the Non-Paying Pair Over the Draw

If you receive a hand like 6-7-7-8-9, you would assume that you should toss the pair of sevens and go for the straight draw. Believe it or not, this is actually the bad play. You should almost always hold a non-paying pair rather than go for the draw.

Without going into the math of everything, the average coin return for holding the low pair is about one full credit higher than chasing after the straight or flush draw. That’s because you can hit three of a kind, two pair, or back into a bigger hand. The lower hands will hit more often than you will catch your straight or flush. The small edge may not seem like a lot, but makes a big difference over your long-term winnings.

Use a Video Poker Trainer to Help Tune Your Skills

We told you about the importance of using a video poker trainer in the past. However, it is important enough to mention again. Video poker trainers are programs that will let you play video poker and will instruct you whether you’re making the correct play or are making an error.

When you make a mistake, the program will tell you the mistake you’re making and the correct play to make. You’ll see the above situations presented often in the trainer, so after you encounter it numerous times, you will pre-program your style of play.

The best thing about a video poker trainer is that it can help you train yourself for more than just Jacks or Better video poker. Our earlier tips will work on most games, but you will have to adjust your strategy based on the video poker variant you wish to play. Investing in a video poker trainer will pay dividends by helping you learn the best way to play each game.