Video Poker Question on video poker strategy

So I've had some pretty good luck in Vegas over a 5 or 6 year span but the last 2 years has been...eh.

I play video poker pretty much exclusively and I always play BP and use a basic strategy. Since we have a trip upcoming in Jan I've been doing some research and have learned stuff I never knew and kind of feel stupid (or lucky) having had the luck I've had and not knowing such basic info as E/V.

So now I'm wondering, do I stick to BP which I guess is 8/5 but use a JOB strategy or do I head over to a JOB game and stick with that.

How much do my odds decrease if at all using JOB strategy at a BP machine? It's kind of hard to walk away from 800 bucks for AAAA for example just to increase a payout by ?%.

 

I like DDB and if I can find 9/6 I am only giving up a half percent return vs 9/6 JOB. I just find JOB to be too boring especially when I get a good 4oak and only get 125 credits.

My favorite casino is MSS but they only have 9/5 DDB, so I'm giving away a little over 1.5% for the excitement of a good 4oak. I have found myself playing at Cal more since they have 9/6 at the dollar level at all bars.

If I had never played DDB then I wouldn't know the difference and JOB would be exciting, but too late to close the door, the horse is out of the barn!:evillaugh

 

Yeah, what I am reading, you're sounding like you want to become a Double Double Bonus convert. Bonus only pays 400 for quad Aces, not 800.

If you are switching between Bonus Poker and Jacks or Better, strategy differences aren't much of a big deal unless you want to be anal.

But between DDB and Bonus/JoB is a different story. In DDB, whenever you have Aces, you ditch any other pair. So that means if you have 2 pair with Aces, keep just the Aces. Full House with Aces, keep trip Aces. Otherwise, keep all paired cards. A single Ace becomes better than Ace + offsuit high card. Also in DDB, a inside straight draw w/o high cards is better than garbage. Also 2 offsuit high cards with an inside straight draw is better than the two offsuit high cards. Those are the biggest changes. Also keep in mind that DDB has double the variance of Bonus Poker, so that will increase the needed bankroll.

Personally I try to play the highest variant that I am somewhat familiar with. On the strip, the best option seems to be Bonus poker a lot. Offstrip, it's more often JoB or Deuces Wild, or sometimes Double Bonus. It's rarely Double Double Bonus.

 

Thanks! For the record, I meant to say 400 for the aces not 800.

 

Yeah in that case, I wouldn't worry about the strategy change really. If you learned bonus just stick with that strategy. Also bonus is the higher paying game anyway unless the sum of the full house and flush payouts on JoB are at least two units higher. This often only happens when 9/6 JoB is available.

So 9/6 (sum=15) JoB (99.54%) > 8/5 (sum=13) bonus (99.17%). In this case I'd play JoB, but you're only giving up 0.37% if you don't.

But 6/5 bonus (96.87%) > 7/5 JoB (96.15%). Bonus is the clear choice when its paytable is only one unit lower.

If you're at a place that offers 9/6 JoB, but not 8/5 bonus, then I really recommend playing JoB b/c then your giving up 1.53% minimum by playing bonus at that point.

 

Can I ask some of you DDB experts a strategy question? I was at a local casino recently and hit the AAAA w/kicker for a $660 progressive (Nice!) My question is whether I technically played the hand with correct basic strategy.

I was dealt 4_AAA (can't remember what the blank was). I held the 4 and caught the final A. Was that the correct basic strategy? Or would correct basic strategy be to just hold AAA?

 

AAA only as step one is hitting the quad. The kicker is just icing on the cake. Fortunately it worked out for you

 

God Bless you
Signed,
Gary Loveman

 

There is a Harrah's in Florida? LOL

And actually holding AAA4 is correct here if there is a $660 payout on the line unless 4 Aces was worth more than $230. If the Aces always pay $200 (I dunno what all progressive meters it has), and if Aces w/kicker is $575 or more, then you should hold the kicker.

For standard DDB though ($500 payout), holding AAA + kicker is incorrect. Since it's correct for a $660, or even a $575 payout, it's obviously correct in Triple Double Bonus ($1000 payout).

So you'd actually be getting the Christmas card from Loveman this year, Tim! :evillaugh

 

Thanks for the info. I thought that the correct play was to hold the AAA and discard the 4, but the higher payout on the progressives made me play a little more aggressively. I guess in this scenario it worked out and was the correct strategy because of the higher payout.

I gave half those winnings back chasing a big payday at the LIR table though!