Like Blackjack, cards are chosen from a finite number of decks. So you can use the same chart to log cards dealt. Knowing cards already dealt gives you insight of cards left to be dealt. Be sure to read how many decks the machine you choose uses in order to make accurate decisions.
The hands you play in a game of poker in a table game isn’t necessarily the same hands you want to play on a machine. To maximize your profits, you should go after the more powerful hands much more often, even if it means missing out on a few small hands. In the long-run these sacrifices will pay for themselves.
Video Poker shares some strategy with slot machines as well. For one, you always want to play the maximum coins on each hand. When you finally do hit the jackpot it will payoff. Winning the jackpot with only half the max bet is surely to disappoint. If you are playing at a dollar machine and can’t afford to play the max, drop down to a quarter machine and max it out. On a dollar machine 75 cents isn’t the same thing as 75 cents on a quarter machine.
Also, like slots, Video Poker is completely random. Cards and replacement cards are assigned numbers. While the machine is idle it cycles through these numbers several thousand per second, when you hit deal or draw it stops on a number and deals accordingly. This dispels the myth that a machine can become ‘due’ to hit a jackpot or that just before hitting a big hand it will tighten up. Any hand is just as likely as any other to win.
If one is available, always use a slot club card. The benefits have potential to make the difference between winning and not.
Before sitting down at a machine you should look at the pay tables to determine the most generous. Don’t skimp on the research.