If you have a low pair, keep it rather than a single high card. What is a straight flush in video poker? It’s five cards in sequence that are also of the same suit. If you have a single pair of jacks or higher, keep them unless you’re one card away from a royal or straight flush. An inside straight hits half as often as an open ended straight, making it not worth the odds. For example: 6, 7, 9, 10, needs an 8 to win. An inside straight draw has only one card that will complete it. An open ended straight needs a single card on either end to be completed, such as 6, 7, 8, 9, where a 5 or 10 would both make a straight.Īvoid inside straight draws unless it includes at least three high cards (jack or higher). For three of a kind, throw away the two other cards to potentially get four of a kind.ĭraw for open ended straights. With two pair, discard the fifth card in hopes of a full house. Two pair and three of a kind are solid starting hands. It’s a calculated risk with potential big upside. The great thing about this move is you still have several opportunities of winning, either by hitting a straight, a flush, a straight flush or a pair of jacks or higher.

For example, if you have K, Q, J, 10, 4 - all in hearts - you should discard the 4 in hopes of a big win with a royal flush. Straights and flushes are also great hands and should only be broken up in one specific instance: if you’re four cards to a royal flush. They include: royal flushes, straight flushes, four of a kind, and full houses. These are hands that pay well and are extremely difficult to improve. There are some hands you shouldn’t touch when you’re dealt. You don’t have control over what cards you are dealt, however, you do have control over the cards you discard and keep. The easiest way to increase your odds is through some basic strategy.

Pair of Jacks (or higher - commonly known as “Jacks or better”).

Here are the types of hands, ranked best to worst, in video poker: Which hands are winners, and how well they pay out depends on the game variation. Hands have the same values as a typical five card draw poker game. If you play multiple hands at once, each hand will have its own deck, meaning you can’t count cards based on other hands. Video poker uses a typical fifty-two card deck. You’re simply trying to make the best hand possible and being paid accordingly. In video poker, there are no dealer hands or opponents to beat. A player doesn’t need to discard any cards or can discard and replace all five cards. The cards they choose not to keep are discarded, then randomly replaced. They then can choose to keep as few or as many of those cards as they’d like. Video poker uses the same hands and mechanics as five card draw poker.

How to win playing video poker machines