How To Play Video Poker Online In Michigan

Video poker is a casino card game and one of the most popular table games in the world. The game is based on one of poker’s simplest varieties, the five-card draw poker. Players will be dealt a five-card poker at the beginning of the play, then allowed to hold on to the cards they want and discard the ones they don’t want, receiving new cards as a replacement. There are multiple ways to win in Poker with the Royal Flush being the highest winning hand.

Yes. Video Poker Online is legal in Michigan. In December 2019, a bill legalizing video poker was passed by the Michigan House and Senate and signed into law. In early 2021, PokerStars Michigan and BetMGM Michigan became the first two online poker rooms to enter the Michigan market.

Video poker has many variants, however, they are all based on the five-card poker. To win at the game, you would have to make the best five-card poker hand.

Below is a step-by-step guide to playing video poker

• Select the poker game you want to play in the game area.
• Choose from the bet limits or hit the “Play Max Credits” button.
• Click on the “deal” button to receive your initial five-card poker hand.
• You can choose to hold or cancel the cards if you want to discard the cards you don’t think
• you need (up to five cards can be discarded).
• Click Draw and your hand will be paid according to the paytable.

Poker Hand Ranking

Now that you know how to play, let’s take a look at the Poker Hand Rankings. There are several five-card poker hands that can be formed to trigger a payout. Note that, not all poker hands will be paid out in Video Poker. It depends on the variation and/or the casino. For example, a pair of jacks or better poker hand will be paid out in a Video Poker Jacks or Better game, however, such hand combination doesn’t exist in Deuces Wild Video Poker.

Here, are the payout hands in poker from weakest to strongest:

• Pair of jacks or better
• Two pair
• Three of a Kind
• Straight
• Flush
• Full House
• Four of a kind
• Straight Flush
• Royal Flush

Video Poker Features

Video poker comes with lots of features. Some of them include:

Bet max button: This a button that automatically inputs the maximum credits accepted on the video poker machine. For instance, a video poker machine accepts a maximum of 5 bets, clicking the bet max button will instantly wager on all 5 credits. 

Coin Denomination Button: This button helps to indicate how much each coin you insert is worth.

Hold button: This is a button that indicates to the dealer that a player wishes to keep a card. 

Deal button: After placing your desired bet, click the deal button to start the game. Once clicked, cards would be dealt.

How to understand the paytable

All payouts in video poker are based on five-card poker hands. Below is the paytable ranked from weakest to strongest;

Pair of jacks or better: Two jacks, aces, kings, or queens
Two pair: Two poker cards of one rank, two poker cards of another rank; for example; ace of hearts, ace of spades, 7 of diamonds, 7 of clubs.
Three of a Kind: Three poker cards of the same rank; for example, 6 of diamonds, 6 of clubs, 6 of hearts
Straight: Five consecutive cards of mixed suits; for example; 2 of diamonds, 3 of hearts, 4 of diamonds, 5 of clubs, 6 of spades.
Flush: Five poker cards of the same suit; for example ace, 10, 7, 4, and 3 of diamonds.
Full House: Three poker cards of a rank, two cards of another rank for example 2 of diamonds, 2 of spades, 2 of hearts, 3 of hearts, 3 of spades
Four of a kind: Four poker cards of the same rank; for example, ace of diamonds, ace of spades, ace of hearts, ace of clubs.
Straight Flush: Five poker consecutive cards of the same suit; for example, 2-3-4-5-6, all of clubs.
Royal Flush: Ace, king, queen, jack, 10 all of the same suit.

Jacks or Better – This is the classic variant of video poker and the most popular. It is also the simplest form of poker where your chances of winning with an optimal strategy are significantly high. 

Tens or Better – This video poker variant is based on Jacks or Better. The major difference here is the paytable. Players would need to get at least a pair of Tens to collect a win. Even better, the odds in this variant favor the player. There are 4 more cards that could form a winning combo.

Aces and Faces – Still based on Jacks or Better, Aces and Faces features several modifications in the paytable. However, the game’s lowest winning hand is still a pair of Jacks.

Deuces Wild – This is a very popular standalone variant of video poker though it is a bit more complex than other forms. The game is played with a deck of 52 cards, however, all twos in the deck are referred to as Deuces and they act as wild cards. Just like slots, they can be used to replace any other card to help complete a winning combination.

Pick’em Poker – This is one of the simplest versions of video poker. It is very easy to play that even beginners won’t have a problem collecting wins.

Texas Hold’em Poker – This is another variant of video poker that stands on its own. It is also very easy to learn and while there are a few differences, the goal still remains the same; players would have to compete to try and make the best hand according to the paytable.

Michigan online casinos give players the option to try out their favorite variant or variants of video poker for free before choosing to invest in real money play.

Play for free

Unlike slots, playing video poker would require a strategy and the best way to deliver an optimal strategy is by practicing. You can play video poker for free at any available Michigan online casino to put your strategy to the test before playing for real money.

Play for real money

The thrills of winning a Royal Flush is best experienced when you stake real money on a video poker game. To play for real money, you would have to create an account with any casino of choice, make a deposit, and head to the game area to pick your preferred poker game.

Now that you’ve tried the game for free and ready to play for real money, let us give you some tips and strategies.

Video Poker Tips & Strategies

Learn the Rules of Video Poker

While it might sound pretty basic, learning and understanding the rules of the game would save you a lot of money. There are many variants of video poker, so you would have to learn all the perks to give you a nice edge over the house.

Look for the Best Odds

Video poker games offer different RTPs and House Edges. For example, your chances of winning are higher in the Deuces Wild or Joker poker variants than the Jacks or Better variant due to the RTP and house edge.  

Start with the Easy Variants

Jacks or Better poker game is extremely popular because it easy to play and offers low variance gameplay. This means you’re more likely to land consistent payouts even though they would be small. This should give you a bit of experience and help you develop better strategies for the most complex variants.

Video poker games have one of the highest RTPs among casino games. The actual RTP would depend on the casino but here is what to expect:

• Jacks or Better, being a simple and popular variant, delivers an RTP of 99.46%.
• Deuces Wild offers more value and bigger payouts with an RTP of 100.71%.
• Joker Poker features a joker that acts as a wild card and it offers an RTP of 100.64%.

Video poker games are available for play on mobile devices including smartphones and tablets. You can play on mobile via your mobile browser or by downloading the casino app.

If you’re playing online on mobile, you will have to be in Michigan to access the casino. Michigan casino operators like PokerStars Michigan and BetMGM Michigan make use of geolocators that will turn off your access to the site if you are not within the state.

For most new poker players, differentiating between video poker and online poker can be confusing. While most players would mix both games, they are actually very different.

Online poker is played on poker platforms where you can sign up, choose a cash game or tournament and play against other players. In this type of poker, you will be playing against real people.

Video Poker, on the other hand, is a stand-alone poker machine where you get to play poker by yourself. Video poker is played against the machine or house rather than other players though the game remains the same.

In both versions, you would have to make a high hand in order to win. However, video poker is a single-player game with less competition to worry about.

• Payback Percentage: The average percentage return on wagers.
• Random Number Generator: This is a software that generates a random number on each deal of cards to ensure fair play.
• House Edge: The advantage that the casino has on all wagers made by players.
• Optimal Strategy: When a player makes the best decisions on which cards to hold or cancel based on certain factors, this is called optimal strategy.
• Rank: The value of a card.