The ABC of Video Poker
Many visitors to casinos only show up on holidays and vacations. These players are usually inexperienced at playing the games since they don’t play them often. If you are planning a holiday visit to play video poker at your favorite casino, it will help to learn more about the game first. Here are some rules to help beginning video poker players learn the game quickly so that they can improve their odds of winning during their vacation.
A – Admit Your Lack of Knowledge
If you don’t play often, don’t be afraid to admit that you don’t know everything about the game. Once you acknowledge that you need to learn more, you can find all kinds of information to help you. There is plenty of information online. You can also purchase books, videos and even software programs to help you learn. If you are shopping for gambling books in Vegas, the store employees may even be able to answer some of your questions for you.
B – Budget Your Bankroll
Your bankroll amount should be obtained by determining how much you can afford to lose, divided by the number of days you will be gambling. Stick with the bankroll amount to avoid losing more than you can afford.
C – Carry Cash
Don’t use credit cards to pay for your gambling. It will be too easy to be tempted to exceed your budget. Bring the amount of cash you plan on spending with you to the casino. If there is a slot club at the casino, join it.
D – Decide on the Denomination
Keep in mind that most machines pay out better on the 5-credit bets, so you will be betting five credits at a time. So if you are playing a quarter machine, that is $1.25 per play. You need a bankroll large enough for at least 80 bets in order to be able to ride out the streaks. So, if you are playing the quarter machines, you should have a $100 bankroll. If you can’t afford that, try the nickel or penny machines.
E – Ease into it
Try sticking to one version of video poker until you understand it well. Jacks or Better is usually the easiest game to start with. You might also want to start with the smaller denomination machines.
F – Full-pay Machines
You want to play full-pay machines. Look for payouts of at least 4000 on the royal flush, 250 straight flush, 125 four-of-a-kind, 45 full house, 30 flush, 20 straight, 15 three-of-a-kind, 10 for two pairs and 5 for a jacks or better pair. These payouts are based on playing five credits.
G – Go for it!
Play the full five coins at a time every time. This allows you to earn the highest amount possible if you happen to get the royal flush. You’ll kick yourself if you hit the royal on a 1 to 4-credit play and don’t qualify for the bonus.
H – Here’s What You Can Expect
If you play every day for approximately four hours, you will probably average about 1000 hands per day. If you play reasonably well, you should end up with about 70% of your bankroll left at the end of the day. Your odds of hitting the best hands each day are 1 in 40 for a royal flush and 1 in 10 for a straight flush. Hitting either of these will usually earn you a free trip to Las Vegas.
You should be able to get complimentary drinks or maybe even a buffet if you are playing the dollar slots. You might also receive a bonus gift through the slot club to offset your losses. These gifts are offered to help you enjoy yourself and encourage you to return frequenty.


