Jacks or Better, produced by RTG, is a game with a slight twist on the traditional game of five card poker. Played with a standard 52 card deck, it remains the most popular format of video poker in online casinos, and can be found at any good online casino.
Each player is dealt five cards to begin with. The aim of the game is to create the best possible hand by choosing to “hold” the cards you already have, or to exchange them for more random cards to change your odds of winning. This can be done with individual cards, for example, you could choose to hold two, and exchange three.
How to bet
In Jacks or better, you choose to bet between one and five “coins” per hand. These coins can be bought in denominations of 5¢, 25¢, 50¢, $1 and $5. The returns on these bets varies considerably depending on the amount bet, as well as the hand which you end up with, but the guidelines can be found below.
Jacks or Better:
The most basic hand, Jacks or Better is simply one pair of cards that are either jacks or higher (Queens, Kings or Aces). This will tend to return your stake to you.
Two Pair:
Two pairs, unlike Jacks or Better, can be two pairs of any cards, regardless of value. In RTGs Jacks or Better, this will return double your stake.
3 of a kind:
Three of a kind, as the name suggests, is simply three of the same numbered card within your five card hand. With odds of 7.4%, holding this hand will result in a tripling of your stake.
Straight:
A straight is having five cards in numerical order, regardless of suit. Achieving this will offer a return of 4x your stake.
Flush:
A flush is five cards of the same suit, but they do not have to be in numerical order. If you find yourself sitting on a flush, your return will be 5x your stake. If you were to bet max (€5), it would return you €4000, the highest return on the game.
Full House:
Combining two of the above hands, a full house is a pair and a three of a kind in the same hand. Achieving this is unlikely, and it will return 8x the bet which you stake.
4 of a kind:
Even more unlikely, a four of a kind is holding 4 of the same cards (in different suits) in your hand of 5. With RTG’s game, this hand will reward you with 25x your original stake.
Straight Flush:
A straight flush is five cards of the same suit, in sequential numerical order. It is one of the hardest hands to achieve in any form of poker, and will return up to 50x your original stake in Jacks or Better.
Royal Flush:
The Royal Flush is the most difficult hand to achieve in poker, and the potential reward for achieving this in Jacks or Better is a return of up to 250x your original stake.
Where can I play
Jacks or Better by RTG is available to trial on a wide range of online casinos, check out the list below, or browse SA’s top online casinos.