Comparing Strategies in Deuces Wild

There are many, many Deuces Wild pay schedules found around the country. Unlike games such as Double Double Bonus where all pay schedules are played approximately the same way, in Deuces Wild there are some great differences in strategy necessitated by the pay schedule changes.

These strategy changes are systematic — meaning once you know the code, you can get pretty close to a correct strategy just by knowing the pay schedule. Today we’re going to be looking at four different variations of Deuces Wild to see how the strategies change in some pretty basic hands. These will NOT be obscure hands; rather they will be fairly common. In each case, there will be at least two different ways to play the hand, and sometimes three.

The games I chose are fairly common in Las Vegas, but are not equally available in the same denominations and playing conditions. You won’t find Full Pay Deuces Wild for more than quarters and you will get severely restricted when you play the game. You can find the other games for higher denominations — but the games themselves return less. There’s a trade-off involving stakes played, availability of a game in a particular casino, desire to play multi-line games, and slot club benefits, all of which can affect your decision on which variation to play. That is a discussion for another day. Today we’re looking only at how to play certain types of hands. I use a W (which stands for “wild”) to indicate a deuce. Also, when all cards are suited, I indicate this by using bold italics.

Hand 1: K♥ K♠ 8♠ 5♠ 3♠

Hand 2: Q♣ Q♦ 5♠ 5♥ 7♣

Hand 3: K♦ Q♦ J♦ T♣ 9♥

Hand 4: A♥ 3♥ 4♥ 6♣ 7♦

Hand 5: W 8♣ 9♣ T♣ 3♣

Hand 6: W W A♦ 5♦ 7♦

First let me give you the answers, and then the explanations:

In Hand 1, whether you hold the pair or the 4-card flush depends on how much you receive for a flush. When the flush pays 2-for-1, holding the pair is the better choice. When the flush pays 3-for-1, holding the 4-card flush is preferred.

In Hand 2, whether you hold one pair or two depends on how much you get for a full house. When the full house returns 4-for-1, you should hold two pair. When the full house returns 3-for-1, you should hold only a single pair, but which pair? If all 5-of-a-kinds return the same, it doesn’t matter which pair you hold. But in DBDW, the order of priority is AA > 33-55 > 66-KK.

In Hand 3, whether we prefer a 3-card royal flush or a straight depends on how much we receive for the straight. When the straight returns 2-for-1, we hold all five cards. When the straight returns 1-for-1, we hold the 3-card royal.

In Hand 4, ace-low 3-card straight flushes (i.e., A34, A35, A45) are held in games where flushes return 3-for-1, but not in games where flushes return 2-for-1. Four-card inside straights are held when straights pay 2-for-1 but not when they pay 1-for-1. In games (like NSU) where both the ace-low 3-card straight flushes AND 4-card inside straights are eligible to be held, which one is preferred “depends.” On what that decision depends is a discussion for another time.

In Hand 5, “perfect” one-deuce 4-card straight flushes (i.e. W 567 – W 9TJ) are superior to 5-card flushes when flushes return 2-for-1. When flushes return 3-for-1, hold all five cards.

In Hand 6, generally speaking we hold two deuce 4-card straight flushes with one inside (i.e. WW 45, WW 56, and WW 57 – WW 9J) when flushes return 3-for 1 and straights pay 2-for-1. When straights pay 1-for-1 AND there’s a bonus for five aces AND there’s a bonus for four deuces with an ace (as in both DBDW and BDW), we hold the ace kicker with two deuces.

The rules of thumb listed here apply to most Deuces Wild variations — and they are not that hard to learn. Once these rules are learned, mastering the specifics of a particular variety of Deuces Wild becomes much less difficult. Even with these rules of thumb, other pay schedule categories (especially how much you get for the straight flush) can change how we play a particular hand.