Video Poker is sometimes referred to as the “crack cocaine of slots.” It is more addictive than regular slots and it is one of the few casino games where a skilled player can have a slight edge.
Slot machines and video slot machines require no more skill than being able to insert bills into the bill acceptor and pushing a button. Video slot wins are due to luck; being at the right machine at the right time.
Video poker requires a combination of player skill in addition to luck which is one reason it’s very popular with seniors.
Video poker is a thinking game that provides the same mental exercise when playing five cents in a penny video poker machine or $5 in a dollar machine. While it’s not a valid excuse for gambling, it’s as good an excuse as any.
By looking at the pay table for each video poker game it is possible to determine the machine’s payback percentage, another difference between video poker and video slots.
A regular game of video poker is simple to play. First choose the denomination you wish to play, put money in the machine, and bet from one to maximum credits.
By changing your dollars into credits the reality of the money you are winning or losing can become blurred so don’t lose focus on the real money value of the credits you have in a machine.
On some machines, pressing Credit next to the credits shown will change the credits into the cash value of the credits in the machine.
Press the Deal button and five cards will be dealt; you must decide which cards you should keep and which cards to discard. Press the Hold/ Cancel button under the card(s) you want to hold. If the button doesn’t work, touch the screen and “Hold” should appear above the card(s).
If you change your mind, press the Hold button again or touch the card and the Hold above or under the card should go away. Unlike regular poker, you can discard all the cards if you wish.
If you have a winning hand with the cards that are dealt, hold all of them unless keeping just some of them might produce a much larger payout than the one you already have.
Hold some or all of your cards then press the Deal/Draw button and the cards you haven’t held will be discarded and new cards will replace them. If the hand is a winner, the appropriate credits will be added to your current credits according to the pay scale on the machine.
I was playing a quarter poker machine when the man next to me was dealt a flush. Ordinarily a flush would be a good hand to keep but these were the cards he had: Ace/Hearts Jack/Hearts 10/Hearts 3/Hearts Queen/Hearts.
Four of the five cards were the ones needed for a royal flush. He could either hold all the cards and get 25 credits for the flush or discard the 3/Hearts and hope that he would be dealt the K/Hearts for 4,000 credits.
I really wanted to buy this man’s hand from him when it was apparent he was going to keep all of the cards but I kept silent. He kept the flush.
If you find yourself with this type of hand, hold the four cards of the royal! I have said this numerous times to players: If you never go for the royal flush, you’ll never get it.
Excerpt from Casino Gambling Guide for Little Old Ladies. © Copyright Pat Gaudette.
Gambling should always be fun regardless of your age. When it isn’t fun, don’t!
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