Rules Casinos offer a variety of video poker games. In each, you’re dealt 5 cards and are required to throw out up to 5 cards each round. You are then dealt the number of cards you got rid of. The goal is to keep the best cards, in order to get any of the following winning hands:

• Royal Flush – Ace, King, Queen, Jack and 10 of the same suit.
• Straight Flush – Five cards in sequence that all have the same suit
• Four of a Kind – Four cards with the same number
• Full House – Three of a kind and a pair
• Flush – Five cards that aren’t in sequence but are of the same suit
• Straight – Five cards in sequence that aren’t the same suit
• Three of a kind – Three cards of the same value
• Two Pair – Two pairs.
• Pair – Two cards with the same value.

There are many different kinds of video poker, each with its own set of rules and advantages. Jacks or Better
Jacks or Better is the most common type of video poker. Payouts begin at a pair of Jacks or any higher combination.

Tens or Better
This game is played just like Jacks or Better, except the lowest paying hand is a pair of tens.

Deuces Wild
In Deuces wild, all twos are wild, meaning that can substitute any card in the deck in order to make you hand better.

Jokers Wild
This game is played with a 52-card deck and a joker. The joker is the wild card this time, acting as a substitute for any card in the deck that can complete your hand. Generally, the joker will make an appearance every tenth hand to increase your chance of winning.

Strategy
There are many strategies that apply to all variations of video poker:

- Play one variation of video poker at a time so that you can get to know the game inside and out before moving on to another kind.

- Realize the value of holding a Jack. Holding a Jack instead of an Ace gives you more chances of making profitable hands.

- Do not draw an inside straight, where you need one card in the middle to fill a straight; rather, go for an open-ended straight, where you only need a card at the beginning or the end to make the hand.

- If you have a pair and a high card is presented, hold the pair. It increases your chances of getting three of a kind and prevents you from jeopardizing a good hand.

- Do not discard cards if they’re part of any paying hand unless your hand has a likely possibility of becoming a Royal Flush