9-6 machines, soft 17s,
and one hard rule, under the harvest moon
15 September 2003
By Mark Pilarski
Thanks to your column, I pay close attention to
the video poker payout schedule. It took some
looking, but I found full pay (9-6) machines
most of the time. In my searching, I found many
9-6 machines that paid the same for two pairs as
for one pair (one credit). Is this a new payout
scheme or did I just not notice it before? Hal
M.
Unfortunately, Hal, your question is scant of
some vital information, most notably, the rest
of the pay-table story.
When you find a full-pay Jacks or Better game
machine that pays 9 coins for a full house, and
6 for a flush, you'll know you're in the fast
lane with a return rate of approximately 99.5%,
making it an excellent wager.
Keen video poker players understand the
difference between full-pay and partial-pay
machines. The full-payers shell out the maximum
for each winning hand; the partials don't.
In your example, Hal, a standard Jacks or Better
full-pay machine returns 9-for-1 on a Full
House, and 6-for-1 for a Flush. But keep
reading. If the machine pays only 8-for-1 on a
Full House, it would be considered a partial-pay
machine. Obviously, we both know which is the
better play. But there's a slight aroma of
equation-warpage behind your question, Hal. The
full-versus-partial equation changes when the
machine only pays 1-for-1 for two pairs.
Odds-on, you were probably playing on some
hybrid Bonus Poker machine, where the payoff
bonus for Four-of-a-Kind is reduced to 1-for-1.
If the paytable looked anything like this, Royal
flush 250-for-1; Straight Flush 50-for-1; four
Aces 80-for-1; four 2s, 3s or 4s 40-for-1; four
5s through Kings 25-for-1; Full House 9-for-1;
Flush 6-for-1; Straight 4-for-1; Three-of-a-Kind
3-for-1; two Pair 1-for-1; pair of Jacks or
Better 1-for-1, - TAKE A DEEP BREATH - you could
be giving the house an extra 5-plus percent on
your play. Reducing the return on two-Pair hands
penalizes the player too far, even with the
increased payoffs on Four-of-a Kinds. But again,
Hal, without knowing the complete paytable, I
cannot give you an unequivocal answer.
Meanwhile, keep looking for those Full Pay 9/6
machines where you are paid 2-for-1 for two
Pair, and scoff at any machine whose paytable
remotely resembles the one sketched out above.
Dear Mark,
Some casino dealers hit their soft 17s, other
don't. My brother says that it's better to play
on a game where the dealer hits a soft 17. Is he
right? Ben R.
Bzzzt! Wrong, Ben!
When the dealer hits a soft 17, you are giving
the house an additional two-tenths of one
percent advantage. Watch my hands: with a soft
17, the dealer's hand improves with any one of
Ace, 2, 3 or 4, or stays the same with a 10,
Jack, Queen or King. Therefore, eight of every
13 cards either improve the dealer's hand, or
keep it the same. Got it? And if any of the
other five cards is drawn, the dealer still has
a chance to escalate his hand-value with another
draw.
Dear Mark,
What is the house advantage, if any, if I use a
never-bust system against the dealer? I
generally play on shoe games that either have
six or eight decks. Hank R.
Big no-no, Hank. I do not recommend ever using
the never-bust strategy, which gives the casino
a 5% advantage. By using strict basic strategy,
which recommends hitting plenty of stiff hands,
you cut the house edge to a half of one percent
on the six- or eight-deck games. Use it (basic
strategy), or lose it (contents of your wallet)
with the never-bust system.
Gambling quote of the week: "The lowest pool
hustler in the business is four times more
respectable than some of those humbugs in
Washington." - Minnesota Fats
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