Someone Pops the Fifth Royal Card to My Royal; Is 4/5ths Jackpot Mine?

I know on a slot machine that the person that presses the button wins any jackpot and not the person whose money is in the machine. However, in video poker, let's say you're dealt and hold four cards to the royal and call over someone to draw the final card. Since four of the five cards are yours, if the other person draws the royal, would you get 4/5 of the jackpot?

We put this question to the Gaming Control Board and here's the response, verbatim.

"The outcome of the scenario described below may vary, based upon facts specific to the situation. I therefore cannot offer a definitive answer. That said, any dispute regarding the payment of gambling winnings in Nevada can be reported to the GCB Enforcement Division for investigation into the specific circumstances of the matter in question. Should you have any other questions, please let us know."

All right! We'll be sure to let the GCB know the next time we want the definitive ruling on a casino procedural question. Thank you.

So we're left to wing it. But the consensus of the people we polled is that the player who hit the Draw button and popped the fifth card to your royal will be awarded the jackpot and tax-reporting paperwork. That's well established in the annals of casino play and we've addressed this issue in several QoDs, complete with examples of fistfights, relationship dissolution, family feuds, and lawsuits, all based on the button-pusher getting the money, as the question states.

We hasten to add that this is when there's a dispute over the payout and the casino is forced to rule in favor of one player over another. We suspect that in the vast number of cases, surveillance isn't called to review tape of who pressed the jackpot button; the player sitting at the machine with the money in and the one who hits the button are simpatico partners of one type or another. Still, it's worth keeping in mind when you're dealt four to the royal and you invite someone else to try for the fifth.

As for winning four-fifths of the jackpot, hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha! Good one!

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Comments

Randall Ward Sep-29-2025

nope

if I had friends I wouldn't spend so much time pushing buttons

Adumb Sep-29-2025

My take - player 1

The person to get paid is the person who made the bet, just like a slot machine - the person who pushes the button and waged the money. In this scenario it would be the first person who pushed the button as that is when the money was taken out. The 2nd half of this scenario would be a 2nd person coming in to finish the play. The Cash and tax paperwork goes to player 1 who made the wager.

SCOTT Sep-29-2025

Sneak up

So if I noticed a stranger get dealt 4 to the royal, I could sneak up from behind after they hold the 4, hit the draw button and claim any royal?

Stewart Ethier Sep-29-2025

Probabilities

The chance of being dealt 4 to a royal is 936/2598960, or about 1 chance in 2777.  The chance of completing that royal is 1/47.  So the player who pressed the "deal" button contributed significantly more to their joint success than the player who pressed the "draw" button.

Ken Orgera Sep-29-2025

at the Palms

I was asked to hit the button on a d bonus jackpot by another player,  didnot win!  But I didnot feel I had any property rights to the jackpot!

Raymond Sep-29-2025

Pete Rose

IIRC when Pete Rose went to federal prison for tax evasion, it was for not claiming his share of a Big Six winner at one of our local horse tracks.  The feds said that since he put up part of the bet, he was responsible for that same percentage of the winnings.  Of course, Pete being Pete, he got caught because he bragged about it.

The point being that unless you had an agreement otherwise, if it's your money that was bet, it's your winnings.

Walter Dirzulaitis Oct-01-2025

Walter

I was sitting next to my friend Greg when he was dealt a four card royal flush on a 50c poker machine. Knowing full well the 46-1 odds of hitting the jackpot, plus the added possibility of a straight or flush, I offered him $50 to sell me the hand. Hilariously, my friend said, “If I take that, part of the deal would be you have to wait until I leave the casino before you press the draw button”.

Question of the Day - 29 September 2025

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