Video poker seems to spawn a flavor of the month. It’s getting difficult to keep up with all the new and improved variations. You can now play up to 100 simultaneous hands online and in the casinos, and you’ll find many variations with catchy names such as Aces and Faces, Loose Deuces and Triple Double Bonus. Among the most popular variations, you’ll find the following video variations widely available:

    * Deuces Wild
    * Jokers Wild
    * All American
    * Tens or Better

If you want to play other video poker variations, there are only two things besides practice and patience that you need to do to master any variation:

   1. Learn to read the payout table. It clearly lays out which hands pay the best.
   2. Modify your playing strategy to build more high-payout winning hands, based on the payout table.

The payout table for each variation below is representative, but is not guaranteed to be the best for that variation. When shopping for the best payout table for any video poker game, always compare the payouts for a full house and a flush.

Deuces Wild
Deuces Wild is an all or nothing game, the wildest of the single-hand games. Discarding the entire hand is a major strategy in Deuces Wild. You want to throw out any card that doesn’t contribute to a winning hand to make room for those wild deuces. If three of a kind only pays even money, what’s the point in holding that single Ace? There isn’t any point in it. It’s all that conditioning from playing Jacks or Better that holds players back from ruthlessly discarding useless cards in Deuces Wild. In Jacks or Better, players rarely throw out complete hands. Experienced Deuces Wild players discard complete hands close to 20% of the time.

Stand with a natural royal flush, 4 deuces, a royal flush with a deuce, and 5 of a kind. In addition:

    * Hold all your 2s.
    * Hold 4-card royal flushes.
    * Hold 4-card straight flushes.
    * Hold 3-card royal flushes.
    * Hold 4-card flushes.
    * Hold 4-card inside straights.
    * Hold 2-card Jack or Queen straight flushes.
    * Discard 2-card royal flushes.
    * If you are dealt 2 pairs, hold one or the other, but not both.
    * When in doubt (if it’s not a 2), throw it out.


Statistically, one in every 5000 hands produces four deuces, making it eight times easier to get 4 deuces than to get a royal flush in Jacks or Better.

Jokers Wild
The first attitude adjustment to make when playing Jokers Wild is toward the jack and queen. Unless you’re close to building a royal flush or a straight, they’re useless as singletons. In addition:

    * Unless you are holding the joker, hold three cards to a royal flush over a pair of kings or aces.
    * If you’re dealt three sequential cards to a straight flush, discard smaller pairs. If the three cards are          not  sequential, discard and hold the smaller pair. You might get 3 of a kind.
    * If you’re dealt a junk hand and a joker, discard everything except the joker.


All American
All American video poker is very close to Jacks or Better, except that the payout is 100.72%. It uses the standard 52-card deck, and there are no wild cards. A pair of Jacks is the lowest winning hand. The difference is in the payout. Both the full house and the flush pay out 8 coins per deposited coin, which elevates the status of the flush. The straight flush pays 200 coins per deposited coin?four times as much as it does in Jacks or Better 9/6.

Tens or Better
Tens or Better video poker is similar to Jacks or Better, except that it pays even money for a pair of 10s or better. Full house and flush payouts are significantly reduced. You’ll have more winning hands in Tens or Better, but the house is betting against your ability to play flawlessly.

If you’re a Jacks or Better player, you’ll have to train yourself. In addition:

    * Hold four-card royal flushes
    * Hold three-card towards a royal flushes
    * Hold any four-card flushes
    * Hold any high singleton
    * Hold any two suited or unsuited high cards
    * If you get four high cards keep any three suited; get rid of the unsuited- other wise keep all of them
    * Hold any two unsuited high cards


Variations are fun, and they break the monotony. The house edge can disappear and even swing to your favor. In the end, the best game for you is the one you can consistently play the best. Improve your game and your discipline, and the money will follow.