HOW MANY HANDS PER CREDIT?

[hilljerry2269]

I have looked all over and do not find any refernce to this ?
If I put in 100 credits in a 9/6 JOB game, at 1 credit played per deal, how many deals should I get ,on average, before going broke?
I find simulators for "x" deals, but not "x" credits.
Thanks for your help!
Jerry

[shadowman]

JOB returns 99.54% when betting maximum credits every hand. The return drops to 98.37% when betting less than maximum credits.  What this means is you would get 98.37 deals on average since you specified betting only a single credit per hand.
 
But to find the number of hands you want to determine what number is multiplied by 1.63% (the loss rate) will get you 100 credits.
 
x*1.63% = 100
x*.0163 = 100
x = 100/.0163
x =6135 hands.
 
 

[hilljerry2269]

Thanks Shadow
I have been going broke in 300 to 400 hands so the varience must be very high?
I use the points credited to my account for calculating the hands. I get 1 point for each dollar in so it is not hard to do.
Either bad luck or a strange set of machines.
Jerry

[shadowman]

The variance of all VP games is high and JOB, although one of the lowest, is still up there compared to games like blackjack. The RF accounts for 2% of the payback and SFs another .5%. So, even if you're hitting the other stuff you may see long periods of time with another 2.5% lost.
In addition, all these numbers assume you're using perfect play strategy which could be another factor. Nobody plays perfectly.
 
I've had my fair share of ups and downs playing JOB too so you are not alone.
 

[Shiny]

In my favorite casinos I get rewarded with a Full House within a few hands of play.  Others that supposedly have the the best cashback or best benefits usually aren't good to me.  That FH makes a big difference to me in terms of long play sessions.
 
I know that all these machines work off a 52 card deck etc. but maybe some of these casinos program the machines to hit you good early.  I don't know.

[cddenver]

I know that all these machines work off a 52 card deck etc. but maybe some of these casinos program the machines to hit you good early.  I don't know.
 
When I first started playing VP many years ago that was one of the things that I wondered about.   For some years now I've kept track of when during sessions I hit my quads/SF's/RF's and can say that the average amount of play it takes at the start of a session to get that first nice hit is essentially the same as the average play between nice hits at any point in a session.  The same thing goes for average point value - that first hit of a session isn't any bigger than the average point value of any other nice hit at any point during a session.  In both cases (amount of play and point value) that's what you'd expect from a machine operating randomly.  So, count me in as a believer in machine randomness.   
 
I realize that your post was about early FH's and not big-hitters.  I don't track info on anything less than quads, but I believe the same thinking would apply.  Over time, you'd see the average play for that first FH of a session being no more or less than that for any FH during a session.
 

[vidopoker]

i think the best early jackpot i hit was 2 1/2 years ago at the orleans. i hit a royal flush in the first 5 minutes at the machine.
if it was always that easy.....

[shadowman]

One thing to keep in mind is that the casinos do not have any easy way to "program the machines". This is one of those myths that has been around forever. The machines are programmed by the manufacturers and, these days, the chips are sealed to prevent changes. Other security measures, including checksums, are often imployed as well.
 
These methods make it extremely unlikely that a casinos would bother to do anything but change paytables to modify the return of the games. We all experience variations in random play that seem to be non-random. If you play enough those variations disappear eventually.
 

[damule]

     I agree with shadowman and cddenver 100%. When I started progressing gradually to video poker about 5 years ago from blackjack I had some of the same apprehensions as do many newer players. I would never ever get a RF and would hardly ever pull quads, especially deuces on deuces wild. I was pretty sure video poker was just the casinos' way at luring statistical, mathmatical types to 1-arm bandits.
     Then about 3 years ago a strange thing happened to me: I got dealt quad deuces on a 3-play 25-cent deuces wild machine for $750. I sat there for at least 15 minutes staring in disbelief what had just happened. A few months later I was playing blackjack and the pit boss, who knows I like video poker as well told me of a bank of machines that he has never seen the progressive RF so high.
     It's 3:30am and I leave the blackjack table and go to play this DDB, $1 single line game with a $4800 RF jackpot. There's nobody at this bank of 6-8 machines and I put $500 in one. Before 50 deals pass I get dealt A-10-J-9-Q of clubs. With no hesitation I hold all but the 9c (my mind is already telling me this is it) and sure enough, BANG, out pops the King of clubs, music starts blaring from the machine and the "call attendent" message is flashing on the screen. My first RF on something other than a 100-play penny machine for $40. From this moment on I became a believer.
     Over the past few years I've played so much video poker that I easily became a Harrah's Daimond player. And this year I'm closing in on Harrah's total rewards seven stars card for the first time, that's the equivalent of $1,000,000 through their machines usually at $15-25 per deal on 3-5-10 play machines. I also play alot at Palms and Stations. I have gotten dozens of jackpots over $1200, along with W-2's unfortunately, over the past couple years.
     The whole point I'm making here is that if someone plays enough, and obviously I certainly do, you will see that the payback percentages are the true indicator of what these machines will do over the long haul. My advise to anyone is look for the best percentage pay schedules, play with as near perfect strategy as you can, hope for runs of good luck, and always have fun. Never ever wager more than you can afford to lose!!!
    

[shadowman]

  
     The whole point I'm making here is that if someone plays enough, and obviously I certainly do, you will see that the payback percentages are the true indicator of what these machines will do over the long haul. My advise to anyone is look for the best percentage pay schedules, play with as near perfect strategy as you can, hope for runs of good luck, and always have fun. Never ever wager more than you can afford to lose!!!
    
 
Good VP advice. Well stated.