Bonus Poker Vs Jacks Or Better
- Jacks or Better is the least volatile out of all video poker variants, meaning the wins are modest and steady. Conservative video poker players enjoy this variant over the flashier and more volatile machines, such as Double Double Bonus Poker, because the risk is low and the payouts are fairly consistent.
- 'Bonus Poker' by IGT) is a better game than 99.54% 9/6 Jacks. In 9/6 Jacks, for instance, 'QJ8', 'KQ9' and 'KJ9' are preferred to AKQJ. These are all 3-card straight flushes with two high cards and two gaps. In 8/5 Jacks (whether the quads return 25 or 35), 'QJ8' is preferred to AKQJ, but 'KQ9' and 'KJ9' are not.
Jacks Or Better Online Poker
Earlier, I mentioned that Jacks or Better is void of the bonus payouts seen in many other video poker variants. This is a definite plus for anybody who wants to avoid a complicated pay table with4-5 bonus payouts.
One advantage of playing Bonus Poker Deluxe, however, is the strategy is just as simple as Jacks or Better. There is no requirement to distinguish between four aces and four 2s, 3s or 4s or to distinguish between four aces and four 5s through Kings. All four of a kind hands are equal, just as they are in Jacks. The main difference between both the games is that when you play the basic Jacks or Better the highest prize for 5 coins is $4000. It's the same here. The payoff for a Full House has changed to 8/40 and for a Flush it is 5/25. This makes this an 8/5 machines, but it can without question be a 9/6 or a 7/5 machine.
Below you can see a pay table for 9 / 6 Jacks or Better, which only includes basic poker hands:
| Hand | 1 coin | 2 coins | 3 coins | 4 coins | 5 coins |
| Royal flush | 250 | 500 | 750 | 1,000 | 4,000 |
| Straight flush | 50 | 100 | 300 | 400 | 500 |
| 4 of a kind | 25 | 50 | 75 | 100 | 125 |
| Full house | 9 | 18 | 27 | 36 | 45 |
| Flush | 6 | 12 | 18 | 24 | 30 |
| Straight | 4 | 8 | 12 | 16 | 20 |
| 3 of a kind | 3 | 6 | 9 | 12 | 15 |
| 2 pairs | 2 | 4 | 6 | 8 | 10 |
| Jacks or better | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
As you can see, payouts start with a pair or Jacks or Better and progress from there.
You can also see the royal flush’s disproportionate payout increase from a 4 to 5-coin bet.
The 3,000-coin difference on royal flush payouts is why you want to play all 5 coins on every hand.
7- Other Games are Based on Jacks or Better
The pay table above is important because it forms the basis for many other video poker games.
Bonus Poker Vs Jacks Or Better
Of course, the difference in video poker variants comes from the pay tables. But if you fully understand the JoB pay schedule, then you’ll have an easier time adapting to other games.
Let’s look at the pay table from 9 / 6 Double Double Bonus for an example:
| Hand | 1 coin | 2 coins | 3 coins | 4 coins | 5 coins |
| Royal flush | 400 | 800 | 1,200 | 1,600 | 4,000 |
| Straight Flush | 50 | 100 | 150 | 200 | 250 |
| 4 aces + 2-4 | 400 | 800 | 1,200 | 1,600 | 2,000 |
| 4 2s-4s + A-4 | 160 | 320 | 480 | 640 | 800 |
| 4 aces | 160 | 320 | 480 | 640 | 800 |
| 4 2s-4s | 80 | 160 | 240 | 320 | 400 |
| 4 5s-Ks | 50 | 100 | 150 | 200 | 250 |
| Full house | 9 | 18 | 27 | 36 | 45 |
| Flush | 6 | 12 | 18 | 24 | 30 |
| Straight | 4 | 8 | 12 | 16 | 20 |
| 3 of a kind | 3 | 6 | 9 | 12 | 15 |
| 2 pairs | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| Jacks or better | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
If you’ve never played video poker before or seen a pay table, then Double Double Bonus’ payouts can look like an intimidating mess.
Is Jacks Or Better Beatable
But if you know JoB well, you only need to sort out the 5 bonus payouts for four-of-a-kind hands.
This brings us back to point #6, in that JoB has a simpler pay table than most video poker games.