What are the odds of being dealt a four-card royal?

My wife and I have played video poker since 1985. When they changed from coin in/coin out it seems like they don't hit like they used to. Every visit now seems like I get dealt four to the royal over and over and it never hits.

What are the odds of being dealt four to the royal?

I have been discussing this with the General Manager of Pinnacle Entertainment and I am telling him that video poker seems just like slots now. Always one off from the big jackpot.

Thanks for your time.

Mark

Dear Mark,

There are 940 ways to be dealt a four-card royal. There are four suits. There are five ways to choose the missing card. There are 47 cards remaining in the deck that do not complete the royal. (4 x 5 x 47 = 940)

There are 2,598,960 ways to be dealt a five-card hand, so your chances are 940 in 2,598,960 or roughly 1 in 2,765 to be dealt a four-card royal.

Your chances of drawing to a four-card royal depends on your strategy.

Now, if the machines are Class III, changing from coins to tickets shouldn't affect your chances of hitting any particular hand. The machines are still dealing from a fair deck. If the machines are Class II, then they are just slot machines.

Best of luck in and out of the casinos,
John

Send your slot and video poker questions to John Robison, Slot Expert, at slotexpert@comcast.net. Because of the volume of mail I receive, I regret that I can't reply to every question.