What is Jacks or Better?
Jacks or Better is the base version of video poker, in which the lowest paying hand is a pair of jacks or higher and the full-pay version returns about 99.54% with optimal play.
Paytables are described by the payouts for a full house and a flush. The full-pay 9/6 version pays 9 for a full house and 6 for a flush per coin bet. With mathematically optimal decisions on every hand and maximum coins played, its return is about 99.54%. An 8/5 version returns roughly 97.3% and a 7/5 version less again.
The maximum-coin rule matters because the royal flush pays 800 per coin with five coins, compared with 250 per coin with fewer. That bonus is part of the stated return.
Optimal strategy is not always intuitive. A low pair, for example, is usually held over four cards to an open-ended straight. Mistakes reduce the return below the published figure. Strategy charts for 9/6 Jacks or Better are widely published, and simplified versions give up only a small fraction of a percentage point.
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