Unsuited AK, AQ, and AJ in 10/7 Double Bonus

In my early years of video poker (say 1994-2000) 10/7 Double Bonus was one of my main games. As I increased the stakes for which I played, I drifted away from this game. It’s still available in Las Vegas for low stakes, but casinos that offer it punish players who play it — by reducing or eliminating the slot club and other benefits.

Still, it’s a slightly positive game from the get go and it still has its adherents. Popular or not, the correct play on hands hasn’t changed since I played it regularly.

When people are practicing 10/7 Double Bonus on their computer, they get a hand such as A♣ Q♥ 9♠ 7♣ 6♦ or A♣ Qhearts 9♠ 6♥ 3♦ and the computer says to hold the A by itself. But when they get a hand such as A♣ Q♥ 7♣ 5♦ 3♠, the computer says to hold AQ. This puzzles people and I get maybe ten emails a year asking me to explain. To save myself work, now I’ll just send them to this article for the answer.

The first thing to look at in these hands is if there is anything else in the hand that is eligible to be held. For example, any 3-card straight flush, 4-card inside straight, or even 3-card flush with a high card is superior to either A or AK, AQ or AJ. Also, with a suited JT or QT along with the A, hold JT or QT. With a suited KT along with the A, hold the A by itself. Examples of some of these hands are as follows:

A♥ K♠ 4♥ 3♠ 2♥ hold A42

A♦ Q♠ 4♦ 3♠ 2♥ hold A432

A♣ J♥ T♥ 6♣ 3♣ hold JT

A♣ K♥ T♥ 6♣ 3♦ hold A

A♠ Q♥ 9♠ 5♦ 3♠ hold A93

A♥ J♠ 9♥ 8♣ 7♥ hold J987

A♦ Q♠ 7♠ 3♠ 2♥ hold Q73

So once we have eliminated these hands and we are just down to choosing between A and AK (or AQ or AJ), we usually just hold the A. To hold BOTH high cards, three separate things must happen:

a) There must be a flush penalty to the A, (i.e. there is exactly one card in the hand suited with the A — from 2 to T);

b) There must be a low straight penalty to the A, (i.e. there are either one or two separate cards lower than a 6 — 2, 3, 4 and/or 5). It is okay if the same card meets both conditions ‘a’ and ‘b’.

c) Any T in the hand must be unsuited with both of the high cards. This one is tricky because you have to look for a specific card NOT to be there.

If ALL THREE of these conditions are met, hold BOTH high cards. If fewer than all three are met, hold just the A. Let’s try some examples:

A♥ K♠ 9♥ 7♠ 6♣ — hold A because there is no low straight penalty;

A♦ Q♣ 9♥ 7♠ 5♣ — hold A because there is no flush penalty;

A♦ J♠ T♣ 7♦ 3♥ — hold A because there is an unsuited T penalty;

A♣ J♥ T♣ 8♠ 4♠ — hold AJ because the T is suited with one of the high cards (It doesn’t matter whether the T is suited with the A or the other high card).

How do you keep this all straight? Use a computer to practice. And how you practice depends on which computer program you have. I still sometimes practice with WinPoker, using the Hard Hand mode. I would set the computer to start with A♥ J♣ 7♣ and let the other two cards be chosen randomly. I would also set the computer to “auto hold”, and then just hit the button. Within a few dozen examples, you’ll begin to see when it is correct to hold the A, the AJ, JT, three cards to the flush or straight flush, and a 4-card inside straight. Once you’ve seen enough examples, you’ll find that it isn’t that difficult.

Using Video Poker for Winners, I set the computer to Advanced. A significant number of these hands deal with ace and another unsuited high card. After a while, it becomes second nature.

And if you don’t want to worry about all of this, just hold the A by itself on these hands. You will usually be correct, and when you are wrong it won’t be by much.

The rules in 9/7 Double Bonus are very similar — but not identical. See the Dancer/Daily Winner’s Guide for the differences.