Best Online Casino Tips: How to Hit a Straight in Jacks or Better Video Poker

Jacks or Better video poker is a great game for poker purists.  It is draw poker at its finest for solo players who prefer the quick game play and simplicity of playing against a remote machine.

At the best online casino - and we mean Springbok Casino of course - you can exploit the favourable odds and awesome return to player of RTG Jacks or Better video poker in either the single or multihand mode.

Best Play Equates to Best Real Money Returns   

If you want to get the most out of your video poker sessions, you must have a clear idea of the best possible play according to the cards you are dealt.  That means you should know which cards to hold in order to maximise the probability of hitting a paying poker hand.

In this article we focus on how to hit a straight in Jacks or Better video poker - you know that five card hand consisting of consecutive cards of any suit, such as 5-6-7-8-9 or 10-J-Q-K-A.  At the best online casino South Africa, the payout for a straight is 4:1.

Before we get into the video poker strategies you can implement at Springbok Casino, let’s look at the terminology behind straight draws.

Types of Straight Draws in Jacks or Better Video Poker 

Firstly, a one card straight draw means you are dealt four cards to a straight.  You can obviously have two card or even three card straight draws but for our initial purposes we will hone in on a one card draw.

There are essentially two types of straight draws in poker:

• Outside draws like 4-5-6-7 where either 3 or 8 can complete the straight
• Inside draws like 4-6-7-8 where only 5 can achieve the straight 

As there are eight possible cards that can complete an outside draw - 3 or 8 in each suit - compared to only four cards in the inside draw - 5 in each suit – outside draws are more valuable than inside draws.

Best online casino tip: When you are dealt four cards to a straight and the fifth card is an unmatching low card like 2, 9 or 10, we recommend you go for the straight and discard the low card - notwithstanding whether it’s an inside or outside draw. 

High Card or the Straight?

That may be the best play strategy for a low card but what happens if the fifth card is a high card like J-Q-K or A?  Do you hold the high card and go for a pair that pays 1:1 - or any of the other high paying hands for that matter like a flush, full house or four of a kind?

This time the strategy you employ differs according to the type of draw you are dealt. 

If you are holding an outside draw - such as 6-7-8-9-K - then your best tactic is to discard the high card and go for the straight.  If, however, you have an inside draw to a straight - 5-6-8-9-K - your best play is to hold the high card and discard the rest.

Best online casino tip: With the high card you have the entire Jacks or Better paytable at your command - right up to a royal flush that pays 4,000 x the bet on a five coin wager!

Multiple High Cards versus the Straight Draw

Now, if you are dealt two high cards and at least one of them is part of a straight draw do the tactics change? In the case of an inside draw like 7-9-10-J-A it is best practice to hold the high cards and discard the rest.

Conversely, when you are holding 8-9-10-J-A - which we know is an outside draw - your strategy should be to hold 8-9-10-J and drop the remaining high card which in this instance happens to be the ace.

Best online casino tip: The best play is to go for a straight on an outside draw - with or without high cards - and to hold the high card or cards on an inside draw.

How About Low Pairs? 

We have looked at how to deal with low cards and high cards in the straight draw but how about matching low cards?  Do you hold a low pair and hope for two pair, three of a kind, full house or four of a kind?

The quick answer is; always hold a low pair rather than a four card straight provided there are no high cards in the equation.  The same rule applies to inside straight draws even when there are high cards in the mix.

Best online casino tip: Always draw to an outside straight with high cards instead of a low pair - as in the case of 9-9-10-J-Q.

Straight Draw versus Flush 

The picture changes somewhat when you stack a straight draw up against a flush draw.  As you probably know by now Springbok Casino pays 4:1 for a straight and 5:1 for a flush in Jacks or Better video poker.

That means you can win more money if you hit a flush - and a flush is five cards of a matching suit.  The increased value of the payout is your guideline when it comes to choosing between a straight or flush.

If, for example, you are dealt 6 of hearts, 7 of hearts, 8 of clubs, 10 of hearts and J of hearts what do you do? You hold the hearts and discard the 8 of clubs.

Best online casino tip: Always go for a flush over a straight.

Register an Account at Springbok - the Best Online Casino in Cyberspace 

Now that you know exactly how to chase a straight in Jacks or Better video poker you can apply your tactics right there at Springbok Casino.

At the best online casino in South Africa you will find that all our video poker games are available in the fun mode.  That means you can perfect your Jacks or Better strategy in a no risk environment. Then it is simply a matter of upgrading to the real money mode where you can play for ZAR! 

Best online casino tip: Sign up at Springbok Casino and join the legions of smart players who know exactly how and where to capitalise on the awesome odds of Jacks or Better video poker!