There are several versions of Video Poker which inherently return more than 100%
to expert players, who have learned the optimum way to read the hands and discard
the right cards. Full-pay Deuces Wild at 100.6% and full-pay Joker Wild (pay Aces
and Kings) at 100.4% are examples of such games with fixed pay schedules.
There are many other games which return so close to 100% that for all practical
purposes, the players have many opportunities to walk away winning. Full-pay
Jacks-or-Better, Reversible Royals and Sequential Royals are typical of these.
Their fixed schedules can return 99.3-99.6% to expert players.
Another large segment of Video Poker games, not so liberal in their posted
pay schedule, attract players by offering a large Jackpot for some special hand,
usually a Royal Flush or some particular Four-of-a-Kind hand. The average payback
of these machines, based on the fixed paytable is relatively low, 97.5-98.3%
being typical.
The jackpot is allocated a portion of the action, generally about one-half
percent, so that it progressively increases during the intervals between hits.
All the money in the jackpot above the minimum "reset" level is contributed
by the players, not the house, so players who join the game when the jackpot
is swollen are in fact playing at a higher expected payback because earlier
contestants were not so lucky. The house is merely distributing, not contributing
in this process.
To take maximum advantage of such progressives, players will want to come
in when the jackpot is large enough to make the game expectation 100% or more.
In most cases, progressives do not attain 100% payback so some patience is in
order.
This table identifies Quarter Machines at 100% payback:
Type of game Jackpot on Size of Jackpot
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Jacks or Better
Full Pay (9/6) Royal Flush $1,200
5-coin play
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Jacks or Better
Full Pay (9/6) Sequential Royal $24,500
5-coin play One Way
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Jacks or Better
Reduced (8/5) Royal Flush $2,350
5-coin play
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Jacks or Better
Reduced (8/5) Sequential Royal $80,000
5-coin play Both Ways L-R or R-L
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Jacks or Better
Reduced (8/5) Sequential Royal $160,000
5-coin play One Way
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Deuces Wild
Reduced (10/4)* Natural Royal $3,900
5-coin play
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Crazy 8's Four Eights or $500(8's) & $3,000 (RF)
(8/5; K's up) Royal Flush $600(8's) $ $2,000 (RF)
5-coin play $700(8's) & $1,000 (RF)
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* 10-13 on Straight. Flush and 4 on Quads
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Some words of caution are very much needed by progressives players. The fact
that the machine is at/above 100% payback does not guarantee that anyone will
hit the jackpot in any specified period of time. Nor does it improve your chances
of being a winner if you don't hit that big jackpot, because the non-jackpot
payback is still at the tight level dictated by the pay-table. Finally, we have
selected quarter games for illustration; dollar progressives can give players
another problems to contend with---finding a seat as well as finding the Royal.
