Video Poker Forum

Posted: **Tue Nov 19, 2019 12:53 am**

https://www.videopoker.com/play_games/free/?game=59

I have seen many people playing this game in casino, and every time when the player hits the 4 aces with kicker jackpot I peak at screen when the player is waiting for the hand pay. Interestingly, most of the 4AWK winning hand has the kicker held when 3 aces have been dealt...

The correct strategy is holding 3 aces only. Intuitively, it's because 4 aces without the kicker pays 1600 instead of 800 even 4 aces with kicker pays 4000, which is different from playing TDB.

Here is one example for 7/5 SDB Triple Play - 99.0552% (betting 6 credits)

Code: Select all

+------------------------------+-------+---------------+----------+----------+
| Outcome                      | Price | Combination   | Freq     | Return   |
+------------------------------+-------+---------------+----------+----------+
| ROYAL FLUSH                  |  4000 |      41248288 | 40270.82 | 0.016712 |
| STRAIGHT FLUSH               |   600 |     197334028 |  8417.72 | 0.011993 |
| 4 ACES WITH ANY 2,3,4        |  4000 |     101046687 | 16438.96 | 0.040941 |
| 4 ACES W / ANY J,Q,K         |  3200 |     106062985 | 15661.47 | 0.034379 |
| 4 ACES                       |  1600 |     186455138 |  8908.86 | 0.030218 |
| 4 2s, 3s, 4s W / ACE,2,3,4   |  1600 |     247251535 |  6718.27 | 0.040071 |
| 4 Js, Qs, Ks W / ANY J,Q,K,A |  1600 |     352321710 |  4714.73 | 0.057100 |
| 4 2s, 3s, 4s                 |   800 |     666478814 |  2492.36 | 0.054007 |
| 4 5s THRU KINGS              |   400 |    2391067067 |   694.71 | 0.096878 |
| FULL HOUSE                   |    35 |   14857575612 |   111.80 | 0.052673 |
| FLUSH                        |    25 |   17398304014 |    95.47 | 0.044058 |
| STRAIGHT                     |    20 |   18009671420 |    92.23 | 0.036485 |
| 3 OF A KIND                  |    15 |  131016199427 |    12.68 | 0.199063 |
| TWO PAIR                     |     5 |  184243968621 |     9.02 | 0.093312 |
| JACKS OR BETTER              |     5 |  379316665518 |     4.38 | 0.192109 |
| NOTHING                      |     0 |  911970892236 |     1.82 | 0.000000 |
| total                        |     - | 1661102543100 |        - | 0.990552 |
+------------------------------+-------+---------------+----------+----------+

Hand: S-3 S-A H-A D-A S-K

Code: Select all

Holding         ER
[0, 1, 1, 1, 0] 124.37095282146161
[1, 1, 1, 1, 0] 101.06382978723404
[0, 1, 1, 1, 1] 84.04255319148936
[1, 1, 1, 1, 1] 15.0
[0, 1, 1, 0, 0] 5.79740980573543
[0, 1, 0, 1, 0] 5.79740980573543
[0, 0, 1, 1, 0] 5.79740980573543
[1, 1, 1, 0, 0] 5.564292321924144
[1, 1, 0, 1, 0] 5.564292321924144
[1, 0, 1, 1, 0] 5.564292321924144
[0, 1, 1, 0, 1] 5.564292321924144
[0, 1, 0, 1, 1] 5.564292321924144
[0, 0, 1, 1, 1] 5.564292321924144
[1, 1, 1, 0, 1] 5.212765957446808
[1, 1, 0, 1, 1] 5.212765957446808
[1, 0, 1, 1, 1] 5.212765957446808
[0, 0, 0, 0, 1] 2.09402068791523
[0, 1, 0, 0, 1] 2.0681467776749924
[1, 1, 0, 0, 1] 1.9888991674375578
[0, 0, 1, 0, 1] 1.639222941720629
[0, 0, 0, 1, 1] 1.639222941720629
[1, 0, 0, 0, 1] 1.6271970397779834
[0, 0, 0, 0, 0] 1.4741818286124806
[1, 0, 0, 0, 0] 1.3655986320186135
[0, 0, 1, 0, 0] 1.1640176043506294
[0, 0, 0, 1, 0] 1.1640176043506294
[1, 1, 0, 0, 0] 1.11840888066605
[0, 1, 0, 0, 0] 1.098786196843551
[1, 0, 1, 0, 1] 0.9481961147086031
[1, 0, 0, 1, 1] 0.9481961147086031
[1, 0, 1, 0, 0] 0.8991674375578168
[1, 0, 0, 1, 0] 0.8991674375578168

Posted: **Tue Nov 19, 2019 5:11 am**

Interesting catch. Although I've never studied this game, playing the TDB version I certainly would have thought that you should hold the kicker.

I'd like to address this in my weekly blog. Do you wish to be called "Hophoofer" in the write-up? I generally like to give credit when I get inspiration for my columns --- although some people don't want their name in print --- understandably. But since Hophoofer is already a pseudonym, I suspect you wouldn't mind.

Posted: **Tue Nov 19, 2019 8:12 am**

BobDancer wrote: ↑
Tue Nov 19, 2019 5:11 am
Interesting catch. Although I've never studied this game, playing the TDB version I certainly would have thought that you should hold the kicker.

I'd like to address this in my weekly blog. Do you wish to be called "Hophoofer" in the write-up? I generally like to give credit when I get inspiration for my columns --- although some people don't want their name in print --- understandably. But since Hophoofer is already a pseudonym, I suspect you wouldn't mind.

Thanks Bob. I don’t mind at all.

I will run analysis for DDB and TDB tonight. I am not sure if the strategy is correct for all games where 4AWK pays 4000. The reason I did for SDB is mainly because the casinos I have visited don’t have TDB triple play game for some reason.

Posted: **Tue Nov 19, 2019 10:08 am**

I knew this was the correct hold all along. In your blog you may refer to me as "El Maestro."

Posted: **Tue Nov 19, 2019 1:30 pm**

MotorCity has it in TDB. 5 cent and 10 cent are 9/5. 25 cent through $2 is 9/6.

Posted: **Wed Nov 20, 2019 12:11 am**

9/6 DDB Triple Play - 0.991113 (betting 6 credits). Not holding kicker is better play.

Code: Select all

+----------------------------+-------+---------------+----------+----------+
| Outcome                    | Price | Combination   | Freq     | Return   |
+----------------------------+-------+---------------+----------+----------+
| ROYAL FLUSH                |  4000 |      40558595 | 40955.62 | 0.016424 |
| STRAIGHT FLUSH             |   700 |     214904795 |  7729.48 | 0.015229 |
| 4 ACES WITH ANY 2,3,4      |  4000 |     102864663 | 16148.43 | 0.041654 |
| 4 2s, 3s, 4s W / ACE,2,3,4 |  1600 |     244343015 |  6798.24 | 0.039578 |
| 4 ACES                     |  1600 |     290024359 |  5727.46 | 0.046977 |
| 4 2s, 3s, 4s               |   800 |     657620212 |  2525.93 | 0.053259 |
| 4 5s THRU KINGS            |   500 |    2712407148 |   612.41 | 0.137295 |
| FULL HOUSE                 |    45 |   17563772001 |    94.58 | 0.080013 |
| FLUSH                      |    30 |   19086509060 |    87.03 | 0.057966 |
| STRAIGHT                   |    20 |   18511165638 |    89.74 | 0.037479 |
| 3 OF A KIND                |    15 |  126145422856 |    13.17 | 0.191554 |
| TWO PAIR                   |     5 |  205721585262 |     8.07 | 0.104131 |
| JACKS OR BETTER            |     5 |  352530622266 |     4.71 | 0.178442 |
| NOTHING                    |     0 |  917280743230 |     1.81 | 0.000000 |
| total                      |     - | 1661102543100 |        - | 0.991113 |
+----------------------------+-------+---------------+----------+----------+

S-3 S-A H-A D-A S-K

Code: Select all

Holding         ER
[0, 1, 1, 1, 0] 108.70027752081405
[1, 1, 1, 1, 0] 101.70212765957447
[0, 1, 1, 1, 1] 50.638297872340424
[1, 1, 1, 1, 1] 15.0
[0, 1, 1, 0, 0] 5.864014801110083
[0, 1, 0, 1, 0] 5.864014801110083
[0, 0, 1, 1, 0] 5.864014801110083
[1, 1, 1, 0, 0] 5.619796484736355
[1, 1, 0, 1, 0] 5.619796484736355
[1, 0, 1, 1, 0] 5.619796484736355
[0, 1, 1, 0, 1] 5.619796484736355
[0, 1, 0, 1, 1] 5.619796484736355
[0, 0, 1, 1, 1] 5.619796484736355
[1, 1, 1, 0, 1] 5.212765957446808
[1, 1, 0, 1, 1] 5.212765957446808
[1, 0, 1, 1, 1] 5.212765957446808
[1, 1, 0, 0, 1] 2.1970397779833486
[0, 0, 0, 0, 1] 2.0730804810360777
[0, 1, 0, 0, 1] 2.038852913968548
[1, 0, 0, 0, 1] 1.6814677767499229
[0, 0, 1, 0, 1] 1.5732346592661117
[0, 0, 0, 1, 1] 1.5732346592661117
[0, 0, 0, 0, 0] 1.5125927432577175
[1, 0, 0, 0, 0] 1.394528074454069
[0, 0, 1, 0, 0] 1.1717825806632467
[0, 0, 0, 1, 0] 1.1717825806632467
[1, 1, 0, 0, 0] 1.1631205673758864
[0, 1, 0, 0, 0] 1.0980573543015726
[1, 0, 1, 0, 1] 0.9481961147086031
[1, 0, 0, 1, 1] 0.9481961147086031
[1, 0, 1, 0, 0] 0.9010175763182239
[1, 0, 0, 1, 0] 0.9010175763182239

Posted: **Wed Nov 20, 2019 12:48 am**

9/6 TDB Triple Play - 0.985618 (betting 6 credits).

(Note: Straight Flush pays 250 here not 600 or 700)

Code: Select all

+----------------------------+-------+---------------+----------+----------+
| Outcome                    | Price | Combination   | Freq     | Return   |
+----------------------------+-------+---------------+----------+----------+
| ROYAL FLUSH                |  4000 |      39289844 | 42278.17 | 0.015999 |
| 4 ACES WITH ANY 2,3,4      |  4000 |     102891251 | 16144.25 | 0.041897 |
| 4 2s, 3s, 4s W / ACE,2,3,4 |  4000 |     291799209 |  5692.62 | 0.118820 |
| 4 ACES                     |  1600 |     289739685 |  5733.09 | 0.047192 |
| 4 2s, 3s, 4s               |   800 |     544945015 |  3048.20 | 0.044380 |
| 4 5s THRU KINGS            |   500 |    2708909700 |   613.20 | 0.137882 |
| STRAIGHT FLUSH             |   250 |     176467688 |  9413.07 | 0.004491 |
| FULL HOUSE                 |    45 |   17608520028 |    94.34 | 0.080664 |
| FLUSH                      |    30 |   17912754323 |    92.73 | 0.054705 |
| STRAIGHT                   |    20 |   20858095912 |    79.64 | 0.042467 |
| 3 OF A KIND                |    10 |  126462886017 |    13.14 | 0.128738 |
| TWO PAIR                   |     5 |  205641535887 |     8.08 | 0.104671 |
| JACKS OR BETTER            |     5 |  349894814928 |     4.75 | 0.178095 |
| NOTHING                    |     0 |  918569893613 |     1.81 | 0.000000 |
| total                      |     - | 1661102543100 |        - | 0.985618 |
+----------------------------+-------+---------------+----------+----------+

Now, it comes the interesting discovery...

Since 4 Aces without kicker pays 1600, not holding kicker is the better play actually for 3 Aces dealt.

Hand: S-3 S-A H-A D-A S-K

Code: Select all

Holding         ER
[0, 1, 1, 1, 0] 104.21831637372803
[1, 1, 1, 1, 0] 97.12765957446808
[0, 1, 1, 1, 1] 46.06382978723404
[1, 1, 1, 1, 1] 10.0
[0, 1, 1, 0, 0] 5.565217391304348
[0, 1, 0, 1, 0] 5.565217391304348
[0, 0, 1, 1, 0] 5.565217391304348
[1, 1, 1, 0, 0] 5.420906567992599
[1, 1, 0, 1, 0] 5.420906567992599
[1, 0, 1, 1, 0] 5.420906567992599
[0, 1, 1, 0, 1] 5.420906567992599
[0, 1, 0, 1, 1] 5.420906567992599
[0, 0, 1, 1, 1] 5.420906567992599
[1, 1, 1, 0, 1] 5.1063829787234045
[1, 1, 0, 1, 1] 5.1063829787234045
[1, 0, 1, 1, 1] 5.1063829787234045
[1, 1, 0, 0, 1] 2.169287696577243
[0, 1, 0, 0, 1] 1.9864323157570152
[0, 0, 0, 0, 1] 1.9502985451181565
[1, 0, 0, 0, 1] 1.5932778291705212
[0, 0, 1, 0, 1] 1.520814061054579
[0, 0, 0, 1, 1] 1.520814061054579
[1, 0, 0, 0, 0] 1.4172343228772462
[0, 0, 0, 0, 0] 1.4131559338409154
[1, 1, 0, 0, 0] 1.230958988590811
[0, 0, 1, 0, 0] 1.1466655453704482
[0, 0, 0, 1, 0] 1.1466655453704482
[0, 1, 0, 0, 0] 1.0754632355002383
[1, 0, 1, 0, 0] 0.9966080789392537
[1, 0, 0, 1, 0] 0.9966080789392537
[1, 0, 1, 0, 1] 0.9204440333024977
[1, 0, 0, 1, 1] 0.9204440333024977

However, when dealt with 3 small cards like 3 deuces, holding kicker is better play because 4 deuces without kicker, for instance, pays 800 only.

Hand S-3 S-2 H-2 D-2 S-K

Code: Select all

Holding         ER
[1, 1, 1, 1, 0] 97.12765957446808
[0, 1, 1, 1, 0] 78.3163737280296
[0, 1, 1, 1, 1] 29.04255319148936
[1, 1, 1, 1, 1] 10.0
[0, 0, 0, 0, 1] 2.120062792588232
[1, 1, 0, 0, 1] 2.012025901942646
[0, 1, 1, 0, 0] 1.753931544865865
[0, 1, 0, 1, 0] 1.753931544865865
[0, 0, 1, 1, 0] 1.753931544865865
[1, 0, 0, 0, 1] 1.6617329633055813
[0, 0, 0, 0, 0] 1.6310329159112584
[1, 1, 1, 0, 0] 1.5356151711378354
[1, 1, 0, 1, 0] 1.5356151711378354
[0, 1, 1, 0, 1] 1.5356151711378354
[0, 1, 0, 1, 1] 1.5356151711378354
[1, 0, 1, 1, 0] 1.5356151711378354
[0, 0, 1, 1, 1] 1.5356151711378354
[1, 0, 0, 0, 0] 1.5161887141535615
[0, 1, 0, 0, 1] 1.477027443724946
[0, 0, 1, 0, 1] 1.2550107924761025
[0, 0, 0, 1, 1] 1.2550107924761025
[1, 1, 0, 0, 0] 1.135368485969781
[0, 0, 1, 0, 0] 0.9138844504246909
[0, 0, 0, 1, 0] 0.9138844504246909
[1, 0, 1, 0, 0] 0.8886833179155104
[1, 0, 0, 1, 0] 0.8886833179155104
[0, 1, 0, 0, 0] 0.8637064446500154
[1, 1, 1, 0, 1] 0.851063829787234
[1, 1, 0, 1, 1] 0.851063829787234
[1, 0, 1, 1, 1] 0.851063829787234
[1, 0, 1, 0, 1] 0.7631822386679001
[1, 0, 0, 1, 1] 0.7631822386679001

For the same hand in 9/6 DDB, not holding kicker is better play.

Code: Select all

[0, 1, 1, 1, 0] 58.37650323774283
[1, 1, 1, 1, 0] 50.638297872340424
[0, 1, 1, 1, 1] 33.61702127659574
[1, 1, 1, 1, 1] 15.0

So I guess at least I have some preliminary conclusion. In Super Triple Play, you only hold kicker on TDB when 3 small cards are dealt, otherwise, don't hold kicker. (This may not be true if pay table changes.)

Posted: **Wed Nov 20, 2019 6:39 am**

One more thing about TDB 9/6. Since four small cards with kicker pays 4000, you may need to hold single small card like holding ace in the hands you would discard. The rule could be complicated and this require more study on the exceptions.

For instance, on 9/6
1. Hands like 22334, 22889, hold 2 pairs. This may not be true on 9/5 or 8/5 versions where you may need to hold the small pair;
2. Hands like D3 D4 C6 S8 HJ, hold high card J;
3. D3 D6 S2 S9 H8, discard all.
4. C5 D8 S6 H2 ST, hold H2

For the difference between 3 and 4, I guess the flush / straight penalty card may play a role. But I am not clear atm.

Posted: **Wed Nov 20, 2019 6:42 am**

There's also the jackpots version of this game where you bet 7 credits, not 6 and get the wheel spin when you make quads.

Posted: **Wed Nov 20, 2019 5:00 pm**

hophoofer wrote: ↑
Tue Nov 19, 2019 8:12 am

I will run analysis for DDB and TDB tonight. I am not sure if the strategy is correct for all games where 4AWK pays 4000. The reason I did for SDB is mainly because the casinos I have visited don’t have TDB triple play game for some reason.

Super Triple Play TDB only is available on new units that offer the game.

Video Poker Forum

Super Triple Play Poker - hold kicker?

Super Triple Play Poker - hold kicker?

Re: Super Triple Play Poker - hold kicker?

Re: Super Triple Play Poker - hold kicker?

Re: Super Triple Play Poker - hold kicker?

Re: Super Triple Play Poker - hold kicker?

Re: Super Triple Play Poker - hold kicker?

Re: Super Triple Play Poker - hold kicker?

Re: Super Triple Play Poker - hold kicker?

Re: Super Triple Play Poker - hold kicker?

Re: Super Triple Play Poker - hold kicker?