Hit 4 deuces 5 times

[Harvest]

At Sunset Station, I put a five dollar bill into an Optimum Play machine and was dealt a heart Royal, then I changed to 50 cents and hit 4A's /wak for another grand, cashed out at $2,100.00. Total invested = 5 bucks. A rarity I know, but still, a golden VP event frozen in time always for me.

[yadnus]

Playing max coins is taught because without it you give up the Royal bonus (about 2%).  However, on a negative expectation game, the more you play the more you lose. Most of the time it is a better bet long term to play single coin on these negative games.   The Cheap Video Poker Strategy reduces your cost to play without limiting potential jackpot payouts.  It's not for everybody because some players just get a kick out of winning a jackpot without considering how much it costs them to play long term. 
 
That said, there are certain situations where I will play standard max coins on a negative machine.  One is if the casino is giving me something so valuable that I think it's worth the cost.  An example of this is the Beau Rivage in Biloxi.  They fly us for free, feed us and comp three nights room.  This hotel is wonderful and that's worth the cost to us.  The other is if I'm significantly ahead for the day. I have no problem playing max coins with the casino's money and I have had some of my best wins that way. 

[yadnus]

Florida Phil, on your website you say never to play 234 coins, why is this a bad bet?

[Tedlark]

At Sunset Station, I put a five dollar bill into an Optimum Play machine and was dealt a heart Royal, then I changed to 50 cents and hit 4A's /wak for another grand, cashed out at $2,100.00. Total invested = 5 bucks. A rarity I know, but still, a golden VP event frozen in time always for me.
   Great story Harvest. Its those moments that sometimes keep us playing.

[FloridaPhil]

The reason I don't play 2, 3 or 4 coins is that you are putting more money at risk without the benefit of the royal flush bonus.  It's much better to jump between 1 coin and max coins if you are going to increase your bet as you play.   You have more chances at hitting a max coin royal jackpot paying the full 4,000 coins.

[onemoretry]

I have no problem playing max coins with the casino's money and I have had some of my best wins that way. 
I have a problem with this terminology. If you are fortunate enough to be ahead at some particular time, you are not playing with "the casino's money". You are playing with your own money. How you obtained it is irrelevant.

[Vman96]

I have a problem with this terminology. If you are fortunate enough to be ahead at some particular time, you are not playing with "the casino's money". You are playing with your own money. How you obtained it is irrelevant.

Why exactly? Because phrasing it this way may lead players to play more just because they are winning? It's a phrase I've seen written on forums enough where I just glossed over it without much thought.

[FloridaPhil]

It doesn't matter how you phrase it, it's the same scenario. If I walk into the casino at 7 AM with $250 in my pocket and by 10 AM I have $350, I now have $100 of the casinos money.  I can choose to walk out with a $100 profit or put it at risk at a higher denomination and possibly walk out with more. If I lose, I played that session for free.
 
My overall goal in a day of video poker play is to walk out even.  I don't worry about anything else.  If you use the casino's money (or your profit however you want to phrase it) to play at higher denominations, big jackpots happen without any extra help.  If you play this way, you will have a lot more money at the end of the year.  On the other hand, if you sit at a negative expectation video poker machine all day playing same denomination max coins waiting for a big win, you will fall into the casino's trap and never get ahead.  Been there done that... 

[TIMSPEED]

At Sunset Station, I put a five dollar bill into an Optimum Play machine and was dealt a heart Royal, then I changed to 50 cents and hit 4A's /wak for another grand, cashed out at $2,100.00. Total invested = 5 bucks. A rarity I know, but still, a golden VP event frozen in time always for me.
The closest I've done to that, was strangely enough, ALSO at the Sunset Station.
Kris (wife) and I went over there, I put a $10 bill into a $1 8/5 Bonus Poker machine. I played one hand..nothing...Kris played one hand, held a pair of aces and caught the other two for a $400 payout. LOL
$10 in, $400 out. Good start to the trip!

[chuckboy41]

I have never been fortunate enough to hit a jackpot on poker, but I have on Power Keno!!