My Journey on Video Poker

[DAAnMAAn]

Decided to mix it up again tonight. Started with 10/6 DDB single line .25c. Was down $100 very quickly and felt kind of bored with it so cashed out and took the $300 left and played 5 play .25c DBP 9/7/5. Quickly lost the $300...
Now on tilt, put in my last $170 in my wallet and played 5 play 9/6 DDB .25c. Got two hands, one with two quad 3's no kicker then flopped quad 8's and cashed out $551. Took the $551 and played $1 BP single line for a bit going up and down, then was going down when I hit the 4 aces for $400 and cashed out a total of $596.25.
So to make a long story short, escaped up +$26.25. Was kind of fun mixing it up instead of camping on one machine all the time, minus the huge swings...although that was kind of fun too.
Cheers

[DAAnMAAn]

I've been getting some questions from people interested in playing vp as supplemental income like me and want to get started (maybe due to my recent positive variance the last two months)? At any rate, I'll be glad to share a few tips and remind those people that one cannot have wins without losses, and losses without wins. So cannot make the mistake to judge in one or a few sessions but over a multitude of sessions. You might start of like gangbusters just killing it, or might start by vp killing you, but you got to let both starts not rattle you too much. So let's just do this like a FAQ and any more questions feel free to fire:So how much money do I need (bankroll) to get started?It depends. A general rule of thumb is 3 to 5 royals for any single line game you decide to start with. The lower variant games like jacks or better, deuces wild, bonus poker, and so forth can be on the lower end...games like Double Double Bonus, Loose Deuce, Triple Double Bonus, triple play games, progressives with tighter pay tables, will require the upper end. If it seems like alot, it is, but it's to survive the inevitable swings that video poker has to offer, no matter what game one plays.Any elaboration on bankroll requirements?Yes. Say your playing $1 9/6 Jacks or Better, you don't need to bring with you to the session say, $12,000 dollars. That's not what I'm talking about. And you don't need to have $12k laying around your house, it can be a replenishing bankroll because if your doing this as supplemental bankroll, then your bankroll can be replenished by your main job and sooner or later will be $12k. An appropriate session bankroll is whatever money you need during the time you are playing to avoid busting.Do I need software and what software do you recommend?Software is a must, must, must. Nobody will have a clue how many errors they are making playing a game without it, it certainly changed my game around. And mistakes will lower your ER (expected return) of the game greately. Any software will do, video poker for winners, corrections on videopoker.com, zamzone (winpoker) on the phone, wolf, whatever. Just use one. Make sure you play as perfectly as possible before stepping inside the casino and investing your hard earned money.Any particular games I should focus on or start with?The game must be at 100% expected return or better for LONG term success. Short term anything can happen. 100% doesn't mean pay table alone, but the combination of points, comps, promos, mailers, etc all counts towards it. Many consider 99% or better playable. Sometimes depending on where you are at, it's not possible to play machines this high...if this is the case, I recommend saving up for video poker trips to machines that reach this. vpfree2.com is a good resource, not all inclusive. And if you must make trips, should think of playing higher denominations to get a chance to win enough to overcome expenses (realizing some are happy playing quarters on vacation and nothing wrong with that).When is it the right time to take a measurement of how I am doing?Some measure by a lifetime, some yearly, some monthly, some weekly, some daily, yadda yadda. One good measurement is royal flush cycles, A royal flush cycle is playing the amount of hands statistically speaking that would expect a royal to be hit. For Jacks or better, it's about 40,000 hands. If you play, say, 800 hands an hour, it would be 50 hours of play. Whatever method you choose, just remember the basic idea is the longer the measurement of success or failure, the more accurate that measurement is. I like the measure by the month, personal preference.I hear poker is more lucrative and has bigger edges than video poker. Why do you not play poker instead? Isn't video poker always in the casinos favor?As Clint Eastwood once said, a mans got to know his limitations. I seem to have a "knack" or "natural ability" for video poker. Don't always win, but always seemed to do pretty good at it. A nasty fact about poker is most pro poker players go broke at one time or another, owe money to others, and so forth. There is also a rake and tips that will also make it a tougher game to beat. And on top of that, not all tables have fish (bad players) and many times will take bad beats or get outplayed or whathaveyou, concerns one doesn't have on a video poker machine. You would never risk your entire session bankroll on a video poker hand, but you could do that, be correct in doing so, and lose it all, in one hand of poker.How safe is it to gamble in video poker?Would you believe it's safer than the stock market? The percentages are what they are,. If you are playing .25c single line full pay deuces wild paying 100.76%ER, and you play 800 hands an hour ($1,000 coin-in per hour), you are making $7.60 cents an hour. Could you imagine if a wealthy investor could come up with such a similiar opportunity with unlimited funds how rich they would be in little time? Unfortunately, we can only play so fast. Fortunately, full pay deuces is still around but only in quarter denominations (as far as we know), and the strategy is fairly simple. I've recently clocked myself at around 1400 hands an hour or $1,750 coin in per hour which comes out at about $13.30 an hour. Can scroll this thread forum to see my results in fpdw if your so inclined...to save you some time, it's been positive indeed.P.S. Those who say it's impossible to win at video poker are usually ignorant and have no clue because all they know is their drunk friends lose their money sitting down without a clue to play 9/6 DDB (oversimplification, but you get the point). Let them have their preconceived notions and keep losing, we need them to keep the good games in and the casinos happy, and us happy too).Do you stay with a lucky machine? What machine do you look for in the denomination?There is no lucky/unlucky machine. It's all random number generators spitting out 1s and 0s in the graphical representation of cards. Having said that, I look for machines that have good lighting, good unstuck buttons, can be played fast, and usually try to avoid distractions as much as possible.Do you not recommend drinking or smoking or eating while playing?I advocate moderation. I do drink a little, smoke a little if I can, even eat a little. Moderation is key.Do you advocate "pot shots" and when should they be taken?Pot shots should be taken seldom and only a portion of a big win if you so choose to. It has little risk for high reward, but unlikely to hit due to limited bankroll hence not as many spins to get the hit, i.e., requires some luck. However, without pot shots, I couldn't of received some of the incredible days I've had including one when I hit two royal flushes on $1 JOB inside of one hour for $8k. Keep in mind most of the time, it doesn't pan out. And you have to have the discipline to go back to your normal stakes before going broke. Sometimes easier said than done.So, I hope this helps those people out if they wish to get started as a video poker technician collection agent lolAny more ?, I"d be happy to try to answer.Cheers and hit lot's of quads!

[FloridaPhil]

Excellent post.   The only thing I would add is to emphasize the fact that this strategy assumes you have positive games available to you and you have the skill and determination to stick to it.   Most players don't have either.  If you don't know what a positive game is, stop playing until you find out.I never argued with the idea that a professional could make money playing video poker, especially if you are selling video poker related products to supplement your play and/or counting comps and raffle wins as profit.  What always concerned me was the fact that most players either don't have these opportunities available to them or they don't have the skill to take advantage of them.    Playing VP computer perfect for months at a time is a lot harder than most players think.   This is compounded by the fact that positive opportunities are normally found at higher denominations.  If you chose to ignore these facts, you will lose and the bigger you bet the more you will lose.  

[FAA]

without pot shots, I couldn't receive incredible days including one of two royal flushes on $1 JOB inside of one hour for $8k. Most of the time, it doesn't pan out.
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Now with both you and FP actively advising PS, I must do eight to twelve pot shot spins a day! Beats the hell out of giving back at least $60 in an hour of quarter JOB. Defn of insanity. You can give it back slow or give it back fast and cash in huge maybe once a year. Fortune favors the bold.

[Minnesota3]

Excellent advice! I envy the availability of some full pay games in Las Vegas and other areas. The best game in Minnesota that I have found is only 9/6/5 Double Aces and Faces at 97.97% optimal strategy.

[FloridaPhil]

[quote=FAA]Now with both you and FP actively advising PS, I must do eight to twelve pot shot spins a day![/quote]If you keep them to no more than 10% of your session bankroll, you'll be OK.  By moving to dollars when I'm double ahead, I believe I'm timing them to the rhythm of the game.  This is most likely total garbage, but it does seem to work with Deuces Wild.  I don't think it matters when you do it, as long as you have a consistent plan. The whole idea of this strategy is to keep those rare high denomination jackpots adding them directly to your bankroll.  If you play them, you fall right back into the negative game trap the casino has set for you.I'm not trying to convince anyone to play one way or the other.  Frankly, I don't care how anyone plays with their own money.  If you're happy with your strategy, keep doing what you're doing.   The main reason I like my strategy is it gives me a chance at bigger jackpots than I normally could afford to play and when I hit one my bankroll grows.  I'm sure this is why Olds likes his strategy as well.

[DAAnMAAn]

Some good points. I believe one can say the glass is half full and the other say it's half empty and both be correct. In other words, reasonable people can disagree and that's ok.
I guess you can say I'm an "open minded" player who thinks there is more than one route to get up the mountain. And some may disagree with that! Lol they may say that there can only be one truth. I just don't believe that to be true (pun intended).
Yes, there are some crappy vp games out there. Unfortunately, people choose to play them thereby justifying their continued existence. For these people, cs or alternate strategies may be the way to go. I can only adjust to what is available to me in Vegas which are apparently looser pay tables. Others will have to adjust to their particular situation.
    At any rate, onward and upward. May be able to put in one or two more sessions before October goes, do a month in review, and on to November. Cheers

[FloridaPhil]

From what I have seen, Vegas is unique with positive VP games readily available and generous comps to boot.  Under those conditions there is no need to reinvent the wheel.   If all you have are negative games, you must get creative or accept losing as the cost to play.   I am not claiming any strategy is guaranteed to make you a winner playing negative VP games.    I will tell you that flat betting a negative VP game with perfect play will get you exactly what the odds predict...losses.  In order to have any chance of beating a negative VP game long term you must put yourself in a position to benefit from good luck, have good luck happen and have the discipline to hang onto your windfalls.  Sounds tough and it is.

[DAAnMAAn]

Back to .25c fpdw tonight. Played approximately one hour. Hit one quad deuce about 2/3rds in the session. Cashed out +$100. Had an annoying drunk sit to my left for about 5 minutes as he dumped his $20 in the machine and left. Not much to add except happy Halloween to u all for tomorrow. Hope your monsters are of a 4 of a kind variety.
Cheers

[FAA]

I could review these 45 pages or ninety sessions. But as you near the hundred session marker on this thread, what percentage of sessions netted quad deuces? It must surpass my JOB session percentage! You really do make this such an attractive game.