Video Poker table

Hold the Ace. The hand contains no pairs, straights, or flushes. Holding the Ac keeps the best kicker for a potential pair of jacks or better on the draw. Discarding 4d, 5d, Kc, and 3c gives the best expected value by maximizing the chance of making a paying hand.

Hold the Jack of spades for a guaranteed Jacks or Better payout (5 credits). The other cards (Tc, 7h, 6h, 9c) offer no immediate pair and poor draw prospects for straights or flushes. Discarding four cards to chase unlikely high-value hands is suboptimal; the sure payout of 1 credit per credit bet is the best expected value play here.

Holding only the King (high card) gives the best expected value. The hand contains no pairs, straights, or flush draws. Keeping the K and discarding 5-3-4-9 offers the chance to draw four cards and make a paying hand (pair of kings or better), which is superior to any other hold pattern in this unpromising situation.

Four-flush to the ace-high flush (As, 8s, 3s, 6s) with draw to two more spades. Discarding Tc and 8s gives the best expected value. The four-flush is a premium holding in video poker, and the ace-high flush pays 30 credits (6 per credit), making this hold pattern optimal.

Hold Js and Ac (pair of aces). Discarding 3c, 6s, and 8d gives the best expected value by pursuing either trips, a full house, or at minimum keeping a premium pair that pays 1 credit.

Hold the Ace. This hand has no made pair, flush, or straight. The Ace is the only high card that can contribute to a paying hand (ace-high straight, royal flush with a T, or pair of aces). Discarding the other four cards gives the best expected value for a replacement draw.

Hold the Ace and Queen. Both are high cards that can form a pair of jacks or better (paying 1 credit). Discarding the low cards (4, 5, 2) maximizes the probability of drawing to a high pair, while keeping two premium cards gives the best expected value among all hold patterns for this weak initial hand.

The dealt hand is 5h-Td-6d-2h-Qs with no made hand. The Queen is the only card that could contribute to a paying hand (jacks or better). Holding only the Queen and discarding the other four cards maximizes expected value, as we draw to four new cards that could make a pair of queens, trips, or better. This is better than drawing to any other combination or holding the whole hand.

Hold the K and J (both high cards worth a pair of jacks or better at 5 credits if matched). Discarding 2, 3, 7 gives three chances to improve to a higher paying hand or retain the high pair.

Hold Q♠ and J♥ for a high pair (jacks or better). While we have scattered low cards, keeping a guaranteed 5-credit payout while drawing three new cards offers solid expected value over chasing four to a straight or other low-probability draws.

Hold only the Jack (Jacks or Better). This gives a guaranteed payout of 5 credits. Discarding the other four cards (7d, 3s, 6c, 2c) allows a draw to potentially improve to a pair of jacks, or to straights, flushes, or better hands. Holding just the jack maximizes expected value given the poor quality of the other cards and the positive EV of the draw.

Hold the pair of Aces (Ad, As). This guarantees at least a pair of jacks or better (5 credits). Discarding 5d, 2c, 7c gives three fresh cards from the 47-card draw deck, with a solid chance to improve to three of a kind, a full house, or better while keeping the minimum guaranteed payout.

Hold the pair of fives. While this is below the J+ threshold, the pair itself is not a paying hand in Jacks or Better. However, holding the pair gives us four potential draws to improve to three of a kind (15 credits) or full house (45 credits), with solid expected value. Discarding to draw three cards at high odds is worse strategy than building from an existing pair foundation.

Hold only the Ace of spades. The Ace is the only card with immediate value (can contribute to a pair of Jacks or better, or complete a royal flush with 10-Q-K-J of spades). Discarding 6-K-8-5 gives the best expected value by maximizing draw opportunities for strong hands like a pair of Aces, broadway cards, or suited connectors.

Hold the pair of 9s, which guarantees at least 5 credits on the draw and offers the best expected value. Discarding the three unpaired low cards (2h, 3d, 5d) maximizes the chance to improve to three of a kind, full house, or four of a kind.

Hold the Jack of hearts. We have four hearts (4h, 6h, Jh, 2h) which gives us a draw to a flush (9 outs remaining after the draw). The Jack also provides a kicker for pair potential. Holding only the J maximizes expected value by giving us the best chance at a flush (30 credits) while keeping the Jack as a backup for a pair (5 credits).

Hold the pair of 3s and pair of 4s (two pair currently). This gives us 10 credits immediately. Discarding the Ten and Four of hearts gives two chances to improve to a full house (45 credits) or better. The two pair floor ensures we don't bust the hand, maximizing expected value.

Holding K-J-A-Q gives four to a royal flush (any 10 completes it for 4000 credits). This is stronger than holding the pair of high cards or any three-card combination. Discarding the 2c maximizes the probability of hitting the royal or a high-value straight.

Holding Ts-Ks-Ac gives three cards to a flush (spades) plus an ace kicker. This setup has strong potential: four spades to a flush (drawing one), or hitting trips/pair with the ace. Discarding 7s and 2h maximizes expected value against the draw.

Four hearts (Kh, 6h, 3h, Qh) with a flush draw. Discarding the 4c gives us 47 cards remaining with 9 hearts (excluding the 4 we're holding), for an expected value significantly higher than keeping the Queen-Jack pair. The flush (30 credits) is more valuable than jacks or better (5 credits), making this aggressive discard optimal.

Holding Ad and Js keeps two high cards (ace and jack). Discarding 9d, Tc, Qh gives the best chance to draw towards a straight (A-2-3-4-5 or J-Q-K-A combos) or improve to a high pair. The queen is redundant with the jack, and the 9-10 are weak unpaired cards that don't contribute to premium hands.

Hold the Ace and 2d (diamonds). This keeps two diamonds for a potential flush draw while retaining the Ace as a high card backup. Discarding 4s, 8d, and 5h gives the best expected value with three new cards to complete a flush or other winning hand.

Hold the King (jacks or better) as a guaranteed 5-credit payout. Discarding 2h, 5s, 7c, Th gives the best expected value, as none of the other cards contribute to a strong draw (no flush possibility, no straight possibility) and the single high card provides solid floor value.

Hold Ad, Qd, Js for three diamonds with two high cards (Q, J). Discarding 2d and 3d gives the best chance to hit a flush (9 outs) or improve to a straight/pair while maintaining flexibility for any hitting draws.

Hold only the King of clubs. This hand has no made hand (8-7-6 is not a straight, and the flush draw is weak). The King (jacks or better) guarantees a 5-credit return, and discarding the other four cards gives the best chance to improve via draws to a flush, straight, or higher pair.

Hold the pair of 8s (8d and 8c). This gives us three of a kind if we hit another 8, two pair if we hit a 7, or keep the pair for a guaranteed 15 credits (3 per credit). Discarding Ts, 2h, 7d maximizes expected value over the draw.

Hold the Jack of diamonds for a guaranteed jacks or better payout (5 credits). Discarding the 6c, 2d, Kc, and 9h gives four chances to draw into a pair, straight, or better, with a high expected value from the redraw.

Holding the Ace and one 4 gives the best chance to improve. The Ace can help make a straight (A-2-3-4-5 with the 4) or pair with high cards. Discarding the 5, 4h, and 9 maximizes draw potential for a paying hand.

Holding only the 7h (pair of sevens) gives the best expected value. While the hand contains 6-7-8 which could draw to a straight, the pair of sevens is already a paying hand and offers better EV than discarding both sevens to chase the straight draw.

Hold the pair of 2s (only paying hand currently). Discarding 3c, Tc, and 7s gives three chances to improve to trips, full house, or better. The 2s guarantee we don't bust; this maximizes expected value.

Hold the pair of Kings (Kc, Kd) for a guaranteed Jacks or Better payout (5 credits). Discarding 7d, 4s, and 2s gives the best chance to improve to two pair, three of a kind, full house, or four of a kind while retaining the certain 5-credit win.

Holding the Qd (jacks or better) is the only card with immediate value. The remaining cards (7c, Tc, 5h, 3c) offer no quality draws (no four-flush, no four-straight potential), so discarding all four maximizes the chance of improving via the draw while guaranteeing at least a 5-credit payout if no better hand materializes.

Holding only the Jack (Js) gives the best expected value. The other four cards (4h, 8c, Td, 5d) are low unpaired cards with no flush or straight potential. Discarding them maximizes the chance of drawing to a paying hand (pair of jacks or better, or high-value combinations) on the draw.

Holding only the Ace gives the best expected value. We have a pair of 2s (which doesn't pay), and the Ace is the highest card that can contribute to premium hands. Discarding four cards for a chance at a pair of Aces (jacks or better pays 5 credits) or higher is stronger than keeping the low pair or any other combination.

Three spades (9s, 8s, 3s) with two unpaired cards. Holding the three-flush gives the best expected value by pursuing a flush (30 credits) or straight flush (250 credits) while discarding the unpaired Kh and Qd which contribute nothing to high-value hands.

No high card pair (no J, Q, K, or A), no flush draw, no straight draw. Discarding all five cards gives the best expected value by allowing access to all possible winning hands on the redraw.

Hold the pair of Jacks and the pair of Deuces. This gives us two pair immediately (worth 10 credits), and keeps the possibility of drawing to a full house or four of a kind, which are the most valuable remaining outcomes. Discarding the 4s and 2d maximizes expected value.

Hold Qh only. The hand has four hearts (Th, 7h, Qh, 3h) but they're not all connected for a straight flush. Discarding Ks, Th, 7h, and 3h gives the best chance to draw a flush (need one more heart) or improve to a paying hand. Holding just the Qh keeps a high card while maximizing draw potential.

Holding Kd, Ad, Ks gives a pair of kings with an ace kicker (paying 5 credits guaranteed). Discarding Tc and 5s aims to draw toward a full house (improving the pair to three-of-a-kind or catching another ace) while eliminating low cards. This is the highest-EV play with strong guaranteed value on the final hand.

Hold Jack-high and the flush draw (T♠5♠). The two spades give 9 outs to a flush (30 credits), while keeping Jh maintains a pair backup (5 credits minimum). This maximizes expected value on the final hand of the session.