Video Poker: Deuces Wild Machines
February 28, 2011
When getting into the wild, action filled types of video poker – an increasingly popular online gambling option – nothing beats deuces wild machines for sheer pandemonium; with four wild cards instead of one, the odds of making the big hands go up substantially, but in return, the payouts for the smaller hands decreases, and the minimum hand that qualifies as a winning hand in deuces wild is three of a kind; a big jump from jacks or better.
Your return on deuces wild is usually dictated by the frequency in which you hit quads in the game; it pays at 5:1, but actually accounts for about 32 percent of your total return in the game, over time. Payouts may differ on various gambling sites, so he’re we’re referring to the standard version you’d find at major casinos. Strategy in the game is a little more straightforward than other video poker games; usually, the amount of deuces in your hand dictate what you’ll be doing.
If you’re dealt three deuces, for example, you’ll be pitching the other two cards every time to go for quad deuces except for two instances; if you’re dealt a wild royal (pays 25:1) or if you’re dealt five a kind that are tens or higher, as drawing to the wild royal is very slightly harder with quint tens or better than nines or worse.
With two deuces, you should be busting up pat straights and flushes with them to go for quad deuces, quads, and other high payout winners. Flushes and straights payout just 2:1, so while busting them up will yield a lot of 1:1 winners with just trips, you also stand a very good chance at improving to trip deuces, straight flushes, quads, or other high payoff hands that help nudge you towards profitability. These decisions are close; but not close enough to where picking one or the other will keep you profitable, there’s actually a 1% difference between busting the pat flush and holding it!
Video Poker: Jacks Or Better Guide
February 22, 2011
For first time video poker players, jacks or better looks like the quintessential safe pick as far as variants of video poker go; no wild cards, completely standard poker all the way. The first step in picking a jacks or better machine; play machines that pay 6:1 for a flush and 9 to 1 for a full house; these are called 6/9 machines, and offer the best payout for your wager, as opposed to 5/8 machines that reduce your profit by 1% from the extra money they save with the reduced payouts. These payouts, of course, may differ depending on what your casino VIP programs offer.
As far as the actual play of jacks or better is concerned, a few quick strategies for specific hands can go a long way in making video poker a break even or profitable endeavour. Playing this way requires bankroll guidelines similar to those you would use for craps bankroll management. Having pieces to the royal flush (a 4000:1 payoff on most games) can make breaking pat hands a profitable thing to do; for example, you would throw away a made flush with the KQJ10 suited to try for the royal/straight flush; even though you have a 6:1 winner made, you have a 1/47 chance of winning 4,000 times your bet, plus a multitude of cards that either make your flush again, make you a straight or single pair, or even complete the other end of your straight flush draw; break the flush and draw to the royal!
That’s how important drawing to a royal is in this game; if you have a 4 card flush draw, but three of your cards are royal components, you’re better off pitching two and drawing to the royal, even though your odds of making a flush go down significantly because of it. Although the name of the game may imply that winning a majority of the smaller pots is the key to breaking even, getting the royal and straight flushes is how you protect your investment and break even over the long run at jacks or better.
Common and Exotic BlackJack Variations
February 20, 2011
Blackjack doesn’t just come in simple, one type for all casino versions. Blackjack can have different variants in casinos, online gambling sites and home games that may make the game in your favor; or grossly against your favor, depending on some of the rules that are allowed, or the amount of decks involved in the shoe; the larger the deck, the more accurate the count will be, whereas single deck shoes completely eliminate the need (and advantage) that card counting provides. So, if you’re a card counter, dodging single deck tables would be to your benefit.
Watch for payout levels at certain tables, as well. You can find blackjack tables that payout different amounts for a blackjack, from 2:1 to even money, depending on the other variants that your table has going at the moment. A quick survey of blackjack gambling websites will reveal variants that can provide better values than the standard game. A 6:5 payout is always bad; the other variants will not be enough to deter the severely bad payout for blackjack.
Now, having said that, even money for blackjack may not always be a bad thing! It usually is reserved for single deck games, and they usually give out other bonuses and force the dealer to stay on soft 17 and allow doubling on any two cards and multiple splits, meaning you can push your edges in other areas of the game more than you would in standard 3:2 pay blackjack.
These types also are the ones to implement the five or six card monte style ways of winning that some blackjack variants disallow. Adding the ability to win with 15 after a five card hand makes difficult hands to play a sure winner, which is a nice pickup in equity as well.
The Benefits of Playing Poker Online
February 14, 2011
There are a lot of benefits to playing poker online. Not least the convenience. Online poker rooms are accessible to a huge range of people, including those who live in rural areas, are disabled, or simply don’t have the time or the money to go to traditional poker rooms.
With online poker rooms, you can play any kind of poker you fancy – online texas hold’em, Omah hi, stud poker, or anything else you can think of, any time you want. You can choose from No Limit, Fixed Limit, or Pot Limit games, and you can pick stakes ranging from freerolls to high-rolling cash games.
If you get the urge to play at four o’clock in the morning, there’ll be people for you to play with – you can just sit down in front of the computer (or even pull out your mobile phone), go online, and play.
Online poker games are great for newbies. The risk can be controlled (from free, to a fixed budget), and you can play without fear of people laughing at your mistakes. If you don’t know the rules, that’s fine – the computer tells you what plays you can make, and the computerized dealer is nothing but professional, so play moves along smoothly and you can learn as you go.
Experienced poker players will enjoy access to a huge range of tournaments with a wide variety of buy-ins. There are even free satellites that give people with a lot of skill but a low budget the chance to get in there with the pros by earning a spot at some of the more prestigious tournaments. Online poker opens doors for everyone.
Poker Bets: The Atom of the Game
February 5, 2011
Poker chips act as the protons and electrons, while the bet happens to be the building block of the game. Everything that is good or bad for the game of poker takes place in the form of bets, and if you are playing for some real money, you have to be more careful. If you are playing the game in order satisfy your ego, rather than simply winning some money, your priorities will be different. However, this will not suffice. You will have to be very good at betting, and every bet should be placed wisely.
All the ring game concepts of poker tend to revolve around the bets. Although the tournaments are different, surviving in this game and winning the tournament is based on the concepts that do not transfer to the ring games. You are actually not trying to win any of the pots here; rather, you are trying to master the bets and be an excellent poker player.
People playing such wise games tend to wager some money, make bets with proper calculations, and have favorable expectations too. This will surely involve having coincidental goals and winning pots. However, that is not the primary goal, and definitely not the sole focus. The idea should be to play well and get back the money.