Video Poker VP once in a while...

Lately on my Vegas trips I'll play VP just to take a break from the craps tables.

I like playing VP, especially DDB.

I understand that when you hit deal, 5 cards are displayed and 5 cards are held in back-up. You hold some or all and the back-ups replace those you discard.

Question: Is it advantageous when you play fast? I mean, the 5 card back-up will not change. So why is it that people are pounding the buttons like there is no tomorrow?

The veteran players are really, really, fast. Impressive. The only thing I could think of for playing fast is when a bunch of players are at a progressive bank of machines. I guess they are racing to see who wins the progressive?

What about the regular machines on the floor or bartops. Why are the players pushing the buttons at warp speed?

I like to take my time. Am I missing something?

 

It depends on what you are playing for. If you are an advantage player (ie you only play games that are over 100% payout either thru the game or comp rake back) then it makes sense to play as many hands that you can given each hand is a +ev trial. Basically you are expecting to make a profit over the long run. If you aren't playing as an advantage player than there is reallly no reason to play faster....you will just lose money faster.

 

Why fast? They like it. They want to get on with it. Not everybody... some play so slow that you have to check to see if they are alive.

I play faster than slower in hope of getting that really GREAT hand.

 

I don't think there is an advantage to playing fast. I play really fast and I have to try and force myself to slow down, lol. That I am not in a race. But if you know how to play and use the correct strategy then once the cards are dealt there is very little thought involved and you find ourself just playing faster than someone who has to really stop and think about it each hand.

 

VP is the "crack" game of the casino.:evillaugh
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That's why !

 

The faster you play, the faster you'll hit the next big hand. Everyone likes to get rewards faster even if it ends up costing you more money. That's how all those free games on Facebook and iPhone make money.

 

Any game where you are the underdog you should play as slowly as possible.

(Speed = Zero = minimimum losses )

 

Not exactly. At least under Nevada regulations the deck is constantly shuffling. When you hit deal the 5 cards at the top are dealt, then the remaining 47 continue to shuffle until you hit draw when whatever number of cards you requested are dealt off the top. There are no 5 back-up cards that are held after the initial deal. Obviously this doesn't change anything in terms of your play, but it is irritating when you draw to 4-to-a-royal and miss it to think if you hit draw a split second before or after you may have gotten your card.

Not advantageous at all. Even though technically there are no 5 back-up cards and whatever you draw will change based on when you hit the button, its not like that matters because you have no idea of the cards order anyway.

Like WWW said, technically you should play slow as possible since the odds are against you, you might as well increase playing time. But that's not how most people think, otherwise they wouldn't gamble. Everyone hopes to win, so they play fast to try and hit that winning hand asap. On VP it can also be boring to play slower than is natural for you. Since its not like anything else is going on unlike a live game.

Even then in a live game a lot of people like playing fast. They'll play heads up with the dealer. Or get antsy when a table is slowing down. When you're hoping you'll win you're trying to get those winning hands quickly.

 

In the old days, it was 5 up, 5 down. But kickinchicken is right, now it's a continuous shuffle on the remaining cards.

As far as playing fast...I've had invites to a few VP tourneys and have never been able to finish my credits in the allotted time, unlike most people around me and I don't play slow. Maybe they're all practicing for tournaments with real money.:evillaugh

 

My motto when playing VP (almost always at bartops) is "Drink Fast. Play Slow." But I am not an AP, and am playing more for fun and hoping for a couple nice hits to allow me to walk away up.

 

People play fast because they can play fast: they know which are the correct plays to make, which cards to hold, etc

It is like if you sit down at a slot machine: you can push the "SPIN" button every second, every 5 seconds, every 20 seconds... you can play as fast or as slow as you want and its the same with VP except if you don't know which are the correct plays (basic strategy) then playing faster isn't a good plan.

 

Oh wow.... all this time I really thought that 5 cards were dealt and 5 cards were held in reserve. I didn't know that the remaining 47 cards are still shuffling until I ask for them!

This kinda bums me out. I prefer the latter way. My convoluted (sp?) mind is telling me that in the time I took to make my decision a 4oak or straight flush or royal sped by me! It almost feels like the randomness of a slot machine with the RNG.

Can any of you veteran players out there assure me this is not the case? Maybe with the 47 cards constantly shuffling it actually makes my chances better at getting a good hand.

And yes, I admit it's true. The more I play the faster I make my card decisions. I guess when you get used to playing the correct strategy you tend to get faster and faster. I just thought there was another reason, lol!

 

No, because thats just how it works.

But mentally it goes both ways because if the next cards to come were "bad" then the fact that they are continually shuffling means you have a chance that good cards will come too.

 

My DH has the opposite philosophy. If he has a good hand - 3 Aces, 4 of a Royal, etc - he will purposely wait a long time (minute or two) before drawing. He thinks his odds are better that way. Sometimes it works. Probably random - just as good a chance that it can work drawing fast or slow.

 

As much as I love VP it's not exactly the most exciting game when running through a sequence of mediocre deals so playing faster at least gets each one out of the way quicker. When the machine deals a nice one I too cut the speed for that particular hand - no technical reason, I just prefer to savour the occasional good deal that little bit more than the unremarkable ones.

Furry