Almost daily, I see a post on social media of a straight flush in video poker. It often comes with the comment that it should pay more than it does.
When looking at video poker games in the Bonus Poker family, the straight flush payout seems disconnected to the win on more frequent four of a kind hands. However, this is a bit deceiving.
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Jacks or Better is the base game for most video poker variants
Jacks or Better is the base for all Bonus Poker games. This is the pay table per coin for full pay Jacks or Better. It assumes that five coins are wagered.
- Royal flush: 800
- Straight flush: 50
- Four of a kind: 25
- Full house: 9
- Flush: 6
- Straight: 4
- Three of a kind: 3
- Two pair: 2
- Pair of jacks or better: 1
You will make a straight flush about once every 9,150 hands at Jacks or Better, on average. This adds 0.54% to the total payout of the game, which returns 99.54% with perfect play and five coins wagered.
The next closest hand’s contribution to the total return is a royal flush, which is 1.98%. All other hands add at least 5.9% to the total return of Jacks or Better, showing that even in a game where a straight flush pays twice as much as four of a kind, it still is not a close match with its frequency.
Straight flush payouts stand out when playing Bonus Poker games
The 99% version of Double Double Bonus Poker is listed below. It is the payout per coin, assuming five are wagered. A straight flush has the same probability in Double Double Bonus Poker as Jacks or Better.
- Royal flush: 800
- Straight flush: 50
- Four aces with 2, 3 or 4 kicker: 400
- Four twos, threes or fours with ace, 2, 3 or 4 kicker: 160
- Four aces: 160
- Four twos, threes or fours: 80
- Four fives through kings: 50
- Full house: 9
- Flush: 6
- Straight: 4
- Three of a kind: 3
- Two pair: 1
- Pair of jacks or better: 1
Note that the four of a kind payouts are at least double that of Jacks or Better. The payout for four aces with a kicker is 16 times higher than quads at Jacks or Better. This is offset by two pair paying the same as a pair of jacks. All other hands besides quads and two pair pay the same between the two games.
The straight flush payout remains 0.54% of the entire game’s return, just like at Jacks or Better. The royal flush is the next closest with a 1.96% addition to the return of Double Double Bonus Poker. The special quad payouts with a kicker are in the 2.25% range. It still leaves straight flushes as an outlier.
This is the same across all similar Bonus Poker games. It is clear that a straight flush pays a disproportionately smaller payout than any other hand, especially considering how rare it is.
The lack of straight flush frequency means that it does not affect returns much. If you prefer straight flushes to have a more appropriate payout, you should consider playing Joker Poker. A straight flush adds 2.87% to the total payout. It pays 50 per coin, just like Jacks or Better and Bonus Poker games. However, the wild card makes a straight flush occur nearly six times more often.
A straight flush does pay more in some video poker games
There are some rare video poker games that add substantial returns to payouts. These include Straight Flush Bonus, Flush Fever and Straight Flush Deluxe. The Straight Flush Bonus game is on some bar software packages distributed by IGT for Game Kings. Straight Flush Deluxe is only available at online casinos. Flush Fever is typically a video lottery game.
Triple Bonus Plus is the top game available at many Las Vegas locals casinos. It returns 99.8% with perfect play. When you see a machine at a Boyd Gaming or Stations Casino property that says “up to 99.8%” on the top glass, this is that game. It pays 100 on a straight flush. This is a high variance game with bigger payouts for special quads with a kicker. However, it is lower in variance than Triple Double Bonus.
It is tough to make a straight flush pay properly without affecting many full pay games
While the low payout for a straight flush is an outlier compared to other hands, doubling it to 100 per coin would put a 9/6 Jacks or Better game over 100% payback. It would do the same on full pay Triple Double Bonus, Bonus Poker Deluxe, White Hot Aces, and Double Bonus Plus. I figure that the reason a straight flush stays so low in most video poker games is to keep the payout uniform, even if it annoys players about once about every 9,150 hands.
