I recently was reminded of a quote by George Bernard Shaw. “People are always blaming their circumstances for what they are. I don’t believe in circumstances. The people who get on in this world are the people who get up and look for the circumstances they want and if they can’t find them, make them.”
I like this quote.
Let’s apply it to video poker. I’ve received many emails from players complaining that video poker machines are tighter than they used to be. And these players are right–they ARE tighter.
If I were short-sighted enough to respond to these emails with, “You’re absolutely correct. Now go deal with it,” many people would consider me unsympathetic, condescending, and probably many other negative things. Perhaps I can use Shaw’s quote in the future. They can say these things about HIM if they like, but since he died in 1950, I don’t think he cares very much.
There’s no doubt that there are still many video poker money-making opportunities in existence. What’s required is to find these opportunities, develop the skills to take advantage of them, and then execute those skills. That’s it. A “simple” three-pronged attack.
First, finding the opportunities requires scouting and this can take many forms. While I’ll deal with various forms of scouting in an upcoming article, to me this includes physically looking for machines, talking to others who have already looked, and checking various sorts of publications (including online sites and bulletin boards) that list machine-types.
The second prong of taking advantage of video poker games involves learning how to play whatever game it is that you have found. Sometimes it’s a matter of learning to play a “standard” game that you haven’t studied before — or perhaps you have played the game before, but you are not quite up to speed on it at that time.
Obtaining a strategy for most standard video poker games is relatively easy. Many authors sell them. You can get strategies from a couple of different brands of computer software. Some online sites provide strategies for free. These different strategies are similar to each other, but each form has certain advantages over the others. You need to find the one that works best for you.
You then need to learn that strategy. If you already know one or more strategies well, it’s somewhat easier to add another strategy to your knowledge base than it is to learn the first one.
You can learn by yourself or have somebody teach you. In my opinion, it’s mandatory to use the computer as a practice tool if you’re going to learn to play well.
There are some games where readily available tools don’t give you all the answers — like Quick Quads, Ultimate X, and a variety of others. To play these well you MUST either create a strategy or use one created by somebody else. I am not a computer programmer, but I know programmers who, for $500 or so, will create a quality strategy for an unusual game. There have been times when getting to a game first was worth far more to me than that.
If I don’t have an accurate strategy, I don’t play. Period. Slot directors use the “par” of the game to determine how loose to make it. If it says 99.5% in their book, they don’t care if it is easy to learn or hard to learn—99.5% is 99.5%. If I’m guessing at a strategy, I’m not going to realize whatever profit is possible. And if I don’t, the house has an insurmountable edge.
When we say “strategy,” we usually mean how to play the hands, although the word can include when to play (such as during a multiple point day). It can also include knowing that I’m getting double drawing entries during certain hours. It can incorporate getting some sort of free something along the way. Playing during “vanilla” conditions is frequently not smart strategy. Playing during something “special” often is.
Strategy can also include scheduling. Perhaps I need to play a certain amount at two separate casinos and I need to arrange my time so I can do this. Sometimes it involves negotiating with others for scarce machines. If there are only two “good” machines in the entire casino, you need to find a way to get along with others well enough to get your time in.
The third prong to success is to execute the strategy. I need to be rested, sober, and to have recently reviewed the strategy before playing. I need to concentrate on what I’m doing — which usually means not talking to anybody else while I’m playing.
I need to eat and exercise sufficiently so that everything works properly. Sitting and playing for six hours while staying mentally focused is somewhat strenuous and taxing. You need to be in reasonable shape to do this.
Executing the strategy also includes balancing your personal life so that you can get done what you need to get done. We all have priorities. Whether gambling on Easter Sunday because the casino has increased offerings makes sense for you is something you need to decide. And often somebody else has a vote in this.