Make Money Playing Video Poker
Video poker is a single-player video game that functions much like a slot machine; most video poker machines play draw poker, where the player bets, a hand is dealt, and the player can discard and replace cards. Payout is dependent on the hand resulting after the draw and the player's initial bet.
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- When you play low-stakes poker, you will not face many competent opponents, so you have an easy way making those wished winnings. But playing low-stakes poker won’t make you rich. And even when playing a lot, you will barely spike through the $2.000 a month. It is all about repetition in the beginning.
- If you want to make real money playing video poker, the first thing you need to do is review the paytable. The paytable allows players to know the expected return before they are dealt a single card.
by Steve Bourie Learn more about the author read more »
Anyone who’s played video poker for any length of time has probably heard stories of professional players who can consistently beat the casinos. But, is itreally true? Are there actually players out there who can do that? Well, yes there are and I was fortunate enough to track down one professional video poker player who agreed to an interview togive me some insight into his lifestyle and how it came about.
My inital meeting with Johnny Chung (not his real name) was at a restaurant in a 'locals' casino in Las Vegas in November 1998. I ransome general video poker questions past him and it was quickly obvious that he was an extremely knowledgeable player. He lives not far from Las Vegas with his wife and two daughters and reliessolely on his gambling winnings to make his living.
Keep in mind that I didn’t ask to see his bank accounts to verify his income but I did check with other knowledgeable players and I am very confident that his story is true. Two monthsafter our first meeting I conducted the following interview by telephone from my home in Florida.
How did you originally get involved in gambling?
Chung: The first time I came to Las Vegas was to play blackjack during the early ‘70s. I would come on the weekends and I was strictly a card counter back then.
Were you successful at it?
Chung: Not as much as I could have been, if I had really concentrated on it.
So, you were just doing this for fun and trying to make a little extra money?
Chung: Yes, and I only played single deck. I didn’t try to count multiple decks. Then, when the video poker machines started coming out in the early ‘80s, I thought it was a lot easier to makemoney off those than it was from the blackjack games. I started studying them and I began playing them on weekends too.
Did you stop playing blackjack then?
Chung: Pretty much so. It was too hard and the main hassle was that they always shuffled up on you or they kicked you out. I didn’t like that.
Did you ever try to disguise yourself at the blackjack tables?
Chung: No. It seemed to be too much trouble for me and the return didn’t seem to be enough.
When those first machines came out, was it generally known that there were some machines that you could make money from?
Chung: Not really. You kind of had to hand-calculate the returns and I just made estimates. That was really before they had computers and the software that could analyze the games.
What kind of machines were you playing back then?
Chung: Jacks or better progressives.
8/5 (8 coins for a full house/5 coins for a flush) progressives?
Chung: 8/5 and 9/6 progressives.
Were you just playing if the jackpot was above a certain amount that made it a positive expectation machine?
Chung: Yes.
So, you discovered that if you only played progressive machines when the jackpot was above a certain amount, you had a theoretical advantage?
Chung: Yes. Actually, it was Stanford Wong who first started publishing books about the progressives and what levels the jackpots had to be at in order to win.
That was Professional Video Poker? His book that’s still out now?
Chung: Yes, I think it’s been revised since then, but originally he was the first one who published anything about it. Then in the late ‘80s some other books started coming out along withcomputer software that really let you analyze every game, so you could see exactly what the payback was and also what the strategy was for every game.
But you still weren’t trying to make a living fromvideo poker at this point?
Chung: No, up until 1994, I was just playing on weekends and I would drive there from my home in California.
What happened in 1994?
Chung: Basically, the aerospace industry fell apart and my company laid off everybody.
Then you had the option of going out and finding another job?
Chung: Well, I saw it coming and I knew I was just going to play video poker full time as soon as I was laid off.
When the big change came, what happened? Did you pack up and move to Las Vegas?
Chung: Yes. The whole family: my wife and two daughters. When I first moved here I lived right next to the Santa Fe Hotel in North Las Vegas. We only moved out here to our new home about a yearago.
Were you successful right away?
Chung: Yes, the first year I made about $80,000 and the next two years about the same. Last year was the best: about $135,000.
What’s the worst year you ever had?
Chung: Well, full time $80,000.
Did you ever have a year when you lost money?
Chung: No, never even had a month.
Is this a full-time a job for you? How much time do you put in?
Chung: 8 hours a day, 5 days a week.
So it’s like a regular job?
Chung: Well, I can vary that however I want, depending on the conditions. If I find an especially good machine I will play more.
Do you work on the weekends?
Chung: If there’s a special promotion that gets me an added return, I might.
How do you find out about these special promotions?
Chung: Newspaper ads, or friends of mine. We have a message beeper network where we leave messages for each other about what the best plays are and everything.
So there are other people who do this besides yourself?
Chung: Yes, I would say, in Nevada, maybe 25 people do this full-time for a living and maybe another couple hundred part-time.
Are there professional video poker players in other states?
Chung: Well, I haven’t seen anyone outside Nevada I would consider a full time professional.
Besides Las Vegas are there other places to play professionally? How about Reno?
Chung: If there are professionals who live there, I don’t know who they are. I’ve been up there and I don’t think there are enough machines there to sustain them full time.
So, as far as you know, the only people doing this are the ones around Las Vegas?
Chung: Yes, but there are also some who do it by traveling to a few other good spots around the country.
What is a typical day like for you? Where do you go to play?
Chung: Right now I have three places that I go to where the best machines are. I really don’t want to say what they are, but it’s the same game in three different places and I just split up theaction among the three places.
These are machines that return more than 100%?
Chung: Yes, 103.2%, plus cash back too.
That’s it? Those are the only machines you play?
Chung: Right. Generally, what I do now is play until I get a royal flush in one place then I go to one of the other two places because I don’t want to get too many royals at the same place.
You don’t spend all your time going to those three places every single day, do you?
Chung: Well, right now, yes. That’s the way conditions are now, but it’s not always that way.
But, if there’s a special promotion somewhere, would you go there instead?
Chung: Yes.
And you find out about those specials by either reading the newspaper or from your friends?
Chung: Yes, and sometimes the casino will also send you monthly newsletters that tell you about these specials.
When do you decide that it’s best to leave Las Vegas and go around the country to try other places?
Chung: Mainly when there is nothing in Nevada that’s over about 102%. That’s what I try to play as a minimum return - 102%. That will give me about $35 to $40 an hour.
On quarters or dollars?
Chung: On quarters.
Do you ever play $1 or $5 machines?
Chung: Not really, because fluctuations are a lot higher on those machines, plus you won’t find nearly as many games offering the higher payback percentages.
So you would prefer to play quarter machines?
Chung: Yes. Unless you find an exceptional play on a dollar machine, which is very unlikely. About the only thing I’ve played on dollars is Williams Blackjack.
If you found a quarter machine with a 102% payback, and you also found that same machine at the dollar level, would youstill prefer to play the quarter machine?
Chung: It depends what the game was and what kind of fluctuations you could expect in that game, but generally speaking that’s probably true. But, you also have the additional problem with thedollar machines that you get tax forms on the royal flushes and you have to report that to the IRS.
One thing I’ve always heard about professional video poker players is that they would rather play a $5 machine, than a quarter machine, assuming they had the same paytable, because theprofit per hour is much higher.
Chung: Yes. Except, it’s something you get frequent tax forms on and you have to wait about a half-hour hour for each one. Plus, you need a lot larger bankroll to play the higher machine.
Have your ever played $5 machines?
Chung: No, I’ve never played a $5 machine. You hardly ever find one that’s above 100% to begin with, and if it is, it usually doesn’t last for very long.
The machines you’re playing now are 103%, but if they take those machines out and the video poker inventory become bad, you would then decide to go somewhere else in thecountry?
Chung: Yes, I would.
But do you know ahead of time when you are going to these places that there is good video poker there?
Chung: Yes, I pretty much know ahead of time before I go.
And how do you find that out?
Chung: I know a couple of people back there that keep me posted on what’s happening. Right now Bettendorf, Iowa and Kansas City, Missouri are the only places that have enough to make it worthtraveling to. One has blackjack machines and the other has video poker. You could probably make about $40 to $50 an hour, but you could do the same thing here, so there’s no reason to travelright now.
How often do you leave Las Vegas to travel around the country?
Chung: Well, last year I did it a lot because there was very little in Las Vegas, but now there’s quite a bit, so I probably won’t be going anywhere for a while.
Is there a certain kind of machine that opened up in Las Vegas that made it better?
Chung: Well, yes. There are certain types of games now.
You don’t want to mention the game?
Chung: There are two games actually. I can mention one because everybody knows about it. It isn’t the one I’m playing, but it’s the one I would play if something happens to the other one. It’sthe quadruple deal Odyssey machine.
There are three or four places here that have them with full-pay jokers. It’s a 101% game and 101% on that is the same as playing about 103% on a regular machine because you can get three timesas many hands.
You don’t like full-pay deuces on those machines?
Chung: Well the joker’s a higher pay back. It’s 101% and the deuces is 100.7%.
How much time did you spend outside of Las Vegas last year?
Chung: Last year was virtually 11 months out of 12.
It was that bad?
Chung: Yes.
What do you play when you go to these other places?
Chung: In Kansas City I played All American video poker. That was a 103% game. Then in Illinois and Iowa I played $1 Williams blackjack.
Are those machines still around?
Chung: There are a few of the Williams blackjack games still around, but on the All American video poker they changed the payoffs, so they’re only 100.7% now instead of 103%.
What was the big advantage on those Williams blackjack machines? They allowed early surrender?
Chung: Yes, it was a single-deck game with early surrender and doubling only allowed on 10 or 11. That makes it a 100.35% game (against perfect basic strategy), plus the cash back.
Could you double after a split?
Chung: No. In fact, you couldn’t re-split. Dealer stood on soft 17. And if you got six cards it was an automatic winner. The early surrender was the big difference. You could surrender on yourfirst two cards against a 10 or an ace. So, even if the dealer had a blackjack, you still got half your bet back.
That’s the game they used to have in Atlantic City when they first opened the casinos?
Chung: Yes. It’s about a break even game at six decks. With single deck it’s about a .35% edge for the player, plus many of those casinos had a lot of cash back along with it too.
So you did well on those machines?
Chung: Yes, I made about $50,000 on those by themselves.
Don’t the casinos find out that these machines are beatable?
Chung: Well, eventually, just by the amount of money they lose. I guess if the company that makes the game tells them the payback is less than 100% they believe them for a long time, even ifthey’re losing money on them. Finally, they have to come to the conclusion, after they lose a couple of hundred thousand dollars, that the company was wrong.
Don’t you think that most people don’t pay properly and they can’t achieve those paybacks and the casinos probably still make money on those machines?
Chung: With the quarter machines you might be right and that’s why a lot of the quarter ones are still there. But the dollar ones attract the pro’s.
When you go out to play do you think you’re going to win money every day? You must have bad days.
Chung: Last year there were 262 winning days and 58 losing days.
So you keep a log every day?
Chung: Yes.
What’s the worst losing streak you have ever had?
Chung: About $3,500.
That’s in quarters?
Chung: That’s in dollars too. But, remember it’s only blackjack I play in dollars and there are a lot less fluctuations in blackjack because you don’t have to wait for any rare hands to win.
How long did it take you to lose $3,500?
Chung: Oh, probably 3, 4 or 5 days. If you lose that much it’s usually over a period of time. Any longer than that and it’s going to come back up.
That doesn’t seem like that much money to lose in 4 or 5 days.
Chung: Well, all I can say is that I‘m a lot more conservative when I play than most of the pros and by playing video blackjack I’ve had a lot fewer bad days than I would have with video pokeralone.
Do you put a limit on your losses? Say if you lose $1,000 you stop for the day?
Chung: No, I just play for as many hours as I want to play.
So, when you start your eight hour day, if it’s 9 o’clock in the morning, you decide you’re going to play video poker and you’re not going to stop until 5 o’clock no matter whathappens?
Chung: Yes. There’s no sense in stopping. I try to play my game so the expected win is about $300 a day. Total money times percentage makes about $300.
But you don’t stop when you hit the $300? You keep playing?
Chung: Yes, for 8 hours or so. I try and look for a game that would have an expected return of at least $300 for eight hours of play.
So, if it’s a 103% game and you’re putting . . .
Chung: Eight hours and 1,000 hands would be 8,000 hands x $1.25 a hand. So, it’s $10,000 x 3% which is $300.
So, if you started playing at 9 a.m. and at 10:30 you hit a royal you wouldn’t stop? You just say it’s part of your overall win and keep going?
Chung: Yes, and I’ve hit seven in one day.
Seven in one day? That’s pretty good!
Chung: Yes, that was unusual. I’ve had quite a few where I’ve hit three in a day but seven was unusual.
What’s the longest you’ve gone when you haven’t hit a royal?
Chung: Well, not counting all the time I was playing the blackjack machines, probably about two weeks.
How many hands do you play an hour?
Chung: On one machine about 1,000; two machines about 1,400.
1,000 hands an hour? That’s pretty fast!
Chung: Yes. You have to hit the keys immediately. You can’t have any time to think about what you’re going to do. It has to be automatic.
Does your wife have any problems with your gambling for a living?
Chung: No, actually she plays with me sometimes.
Does she want to become a professional?
Chung: No, she just plays for fun, but she’s been making money on it too.
How old are your kids?
Chung: One is 20 and the other is 17.
Do either of them have an inclination to gamble?
Chung: I’m sure the older one wants to try it when she’s old enough.
Do you think she might want to become a professional player?
Chung: Of all the pros I know it’s almost exclusively men and I’d say only one or two are women. But, I know she has enough of a mathematical inclination, so she might.
As noted previously, this interview was originally done by telephone in January 1999. I followed up with Chung again in late August and he was back in the Midwest. He said he had left inApril to play $1 blackjack machines but he 'found something much better.'
Of course, he wouldn't say exactly what it was, but he did say 'it involved a programming error on certain video poker machines and it was very, very profitable.' Chung was spending all ofhis time traveling throughout the country searching for these particular machines (he found them at 25 different casinos) and he only returned home for about three days each month.
I lost track of him after that last conversation but I later read some stories about a malfunction with certain video poker machines at casinos in the midwest and,evidently, the casinos had lost millions of dollars to customers who were able to 'milk' these particular machines. Was he one of those people? I don't know for sure, but I'd be willing tobet on it!
Casinos don’t offer you many opportunities to beat them. Most of the opportunities that are available involve techniques like card counting or hole carding, which can get you kicked out of gambling venues. Video poker is an exception to the norm, because this is a beatable game that the casino readily offers. Using optimal strategy on the right variations can lead to long-term profits.
Some gamblers have actually managed to become professional video poker players. It’s worth noting, though, that pros were far more common two decades ago. The professional video poker scene today presents a much grimmer prospect due to the lack of quality opportunities. But is it possible to still make the same kind of profits that were available two decades ago?
I’m going to compare the modern and past video poker eras to determine whether it’s still possible to win as big as in the past. But first, I’m going to discuss the basics on how you make money through this game.
Video poker is one of the best casino games with regard to your chances of winning. Multiple variations offer return to player (RTP) worth over 99%. Jacks or Better is one common variation that gives you an excellent shot to win. The “full-pay” version delivers 99.54% RTP.
A full-pay video poker machine is the top pay table for a given variation. The 9/6 pay table is the best in Jacks or Better, with a full house delivering nine coins and a flush paying six. The only problem is that Jacks or Better and games with similar payback don’t give you a long-term advantage. This leaves you needing to find variations that feature over 100% RTP.
The three main variants that offer positive expected value (+EV) include Deuces Wild, Double Bonus, and Double Double Bonus.
Here’s the highest-possible payback for each of these games:
- Full-pay Deuces Wild = 100.76% RTP
- 10/7/5 Double Bonus = 100.17%
- 10/6 Double Double Bonus = 100.07%
Double Bonus and Double Double Bonus barely give you a chance to earn +EV. Deuces Wild is your best bet among these games due to the fact that it can give you a 0.76% edge.
The next step is to actually find these machines. Your best tool for doing so is a website called vpFREE2.com, which allows you to look up various casino destinations to see what kinds of video poker games are available. Doing so reveals that Nevada is the only state with full-pay versions of Deuces Wild, Double Bonus, and Double Double Bonus. Getting more specific, the vast majority of these games are found in Las Vegas.
The only problem is that free online trainers don’t cover full-pay Deuces Wild. But you can purchase programs like Video Poker for Winners and WinPoker (on Amazon) to practice your skills. Once you have a strong grasp of strategy, you should start improving your play rate. Playing more hands in a shorter time frame maximizes your profits.
Video poker isn’t like blackjack card counting, where there are many tales of legendary feats. Instead, professional video poker is a lowkey affair. This means that there’s not much info on how video poker pros operated decades ago. One of the few resources is an interview that American Casino Guide’s Steve Bourie did with a pro back in 1998. The pro went by the alias “Johnny Chung” for the interview. This player revealed a number of interesting details about the life of a professional video poker player.
Here are some of the best takeaways from what it was like being a skilled player in the late 1990s.
Pros Could Win over $100,000
Pouring quarters into a machine may not seem like it would’ve offered impressive returns. But Chung made a very good salary from being a full-time video poker player. “The first year I made about $80,000 and the next two years about the same,” he told Bourie. “Last year was the best: about $135,000.”
Video poker is typically known as a volatile game. What’s interesting, though, is that Chung said he never had a losing month — let alone a losing year. Another good thing about Chung’s job is that he only had to put in a normal 40-hour schedule each week. He could also vary his hours as he saw fit.
Few Video Poker Pros Back Then
Being a video poker pro has never been easy, even when there were more-lucrative opportunities two decades ago. Chung estimated that there were only 25 people playing video poker full-time and “maybe another couple hundred” part-time players.
He also said that he’d never heard of anybody outside of Las Vegas being a full-time professional. When the subject of being a pro in Reno was brought up, he said that there probably weren’t “enough machines there to sustain them full time.”
Some Machines Offered Incredible Payback
High payback is the major reason why Chung and a few dozen other players made such good money with video poker. Select machines offered 103.2% RTP, plus cashback.
Chung could find these games in three Vegas casinos, which is where he spent the bulk of his time playing. He was able to make “$35 to $40 an hour” playing these games with quarter bets.
A Fast Play Rate Was Still Necessary
Earlier I mentioned how it’s important to play at a fast rate when you have an edge. Chung was especially adept at playing quickly, logging around 1,000 hands per hour on a single machine and 1,400 on two machines.
“You have to hit the keys immediately,” he told Bourie. “You can’t have any time to think about what you’re going to do. It has to be automatic.”
Quarter Games Were the Best for Bankroll Management
Vegas used to feature $1 and $5 machines that offered over 100% payback. These games seem like they would’ve been the best route for making profits. But Chung stuck with quarter machines for two reasons.
He said that $1 ($5 max bet) and $5 ($25 max bet) games feature too much volatility in terms of bankroll management. “Plus you won’t find nearly as many games offering the higher payback percentages,” he added. Chung also noted that earning a royal flush on a $1 or $5 machine subjects you to filling out more tax forms and reporting more to the IRS. “[A big payout] is something you get frequent tax forms on and you have to wait about a half-hour for each one,” he said.
Promotions Were Still Important
Double and triple point promotions are very helpful with regard to earning more video poker profits. After all, these promos help increase the amount of cashback you receive. Promotions are especially crucial today given that the payback is lower than when Chung played. But even back then, promos still helped a pro’s bottom line.
The only catch is that players couldn’t simply follow casino social media accounts to find out about the latest offers. They instead relied on each other. “We have a message beeper network where we leave messages for each other about what the best plays are and everything,” said Chung.
Traveling Was Sometimes Important
Chung hadn’t heard of any full-time video poker professionals in other states. But he himself made trips to other states when they offered better opportunities.
“Right now [1998] Bettendorf, Iowa and Kansas City, Missouri are the only places that have enough to make it worth traveling to. […] You could probably make about $40 to $50 an hour, but you could do the same thing here, so there’s no reason to travel right now.” Chung found himself traveling outside of Vegas quite a bit in 1997 to take advantage of high-paying machines. However, he didn’t need to travel in 1998 when Sin City casinos got more games with high RTP.
Casinos Didn’t Do Much about Advantage Players
Earlier I mentioned how casinos kick out many advantage gamblers. But video poker has always been an exception due to how casinos don’t place limits on +EV games.
Chung said one reason why casinos are willing to offer games with over 100% payback is because the average player still loses. But he said that gambling establishments eventually catch on when pros start taking advantage of the high-paying dollar games.
The Reality of Being a Video Poker Pro Today
Video poker sounds like it was a lucrative activity back in the late 1990s. Johnny Chung professed to making between $80,000 and $135,000 per year through 40 hours per week.
But what’s the scene like today? Can you make anywhere near what was possible two decades ago? Truthfully, no, and you can read about the reasons why below.
The Top Video Poker Games Don’t Pay Enough Today
Chung’s favorite games were those that paid 103.2% RTP. This gives you a tremendous advantage over the house and can lead to serious profits, even when the coin denomination is only a quarter.
Here’s how much you’d stand to earn with this variation:
- Here’s how much you can expect to make with these games per hour:
- RTP is 103.2%, giving you a 3.2% edge.
- You’re making $1.25 max bets (five quarters).
- You play 1,000 hands per hour.
- 1,000 x 1.25 = $1,250 bet per hour
- 1,250 x 0.032 = 40
- You make $40 per hour.
The biggest problem with trying to be a video poker pro today is that you won’t find any games that offer 103% payback. Deuces Wild is the best available game according to vpFREE2.
Here’s how much you’d stand to earn with this variation:
- RTP is 100.76%, giving you a 0.76% edge.
- You’re making $1.25 max bets (five quarters).
- You play 1,000 hands per hour.
- 1,000 x 1.25 = $1,250 bet per hour
- 1,250 x 0.0076 (edge) = 9.5
- You make $9.50 per hour.
Your earnings are about four times less on Deuces Wild versus the games that Chung had access to. Even when factoring in cashback, which I’ll discuss later, full-pay Deuces Wild doesn’t give you a chance to earn a good living.
You’ll make the same at McDonald’s or Burger King than you would playing Deuces Wild full time. The only way that you can overcome the small wages is by playing well over 40 hours per week, which would be better invested in a regular job.
Not Enough High Paying Video Poker Machines
Even if you’re willing to try and make a living on Deuces Wild games, you also have to consider that there are fewer of these machines available. Many players who want to make video poker profits are fully aware of Deuces Wild and look for these games whenever possible.
Video poker strategy is more prevalent these days than it was two decades ago. This allows any amateur to practice Deuces Wild and jump on these games to earn profits. I’m not saying that it’s impossible to find empty full-pay Deuces Wild machines around Vegas. But doing so is more difficult than it was in the past.
Video Poker Comps Aren’t as Good
Casinos used to be more generous with their comps, even when it came to high-paying video poker machines. You could look forward to anywhere from a 0.1% to 0.3% comp rate through video poker.
Here’s a look at how many profits you could expect to earn back in Chung’s prime years when factoring in the cashback rate:
- You make $40 per hour (covered in previous example).
- You bet $1,250 per hour.
- Comp rate is 0.2%.
- 1,250 x 0.002 = $2.50 in comps
- 40 + 2.5 = 42.5
- You earn $42.50 total per hour.
The problem today is that casinos have slashed their comps across the board. They’re especially leery about giving out rewards to those who take advantage of +EV video poker. Casinos can use rewards cards to track when gamblers only play on certain machines that offer over 100% payback. They then reduce these players’ cashback rate to a point where they’re earning next to nothing in terms of rewards.
Even when this isn’t the case, the 0.1% cashback rate doesn’t do much to supplement your income. Here’s how many comps you could expect to earn per hour combined with Deuces Wild winnings:
- You make $9.50 per hour (covered in previous example).
- You’re betting $1,250 per hour.
- Comp rate is 0.1%.
- 1,250 x 0.001 = $1.25 in comps
- 9.5 + 1.25 = 10.75
- You earn $10.75 total per hour.
More Competition for Quality Machines During Promotions
Land-based casinos run promotions around the holidays to bring in more gamblers. These promos can consist of double or triple rewards points, which is perfect if you’re a serious player. But you also have to consider that you’re not the only one who’s looking to take advantage of these deals. Other serious players will be aware of how much they can earn on full-pay Deuces Wild machines with double and triple points.
Here’s an example:
- You make $9.50 per hour.
- You’re betting $1,250 per hour.
- Normal comp rate is 0.1%.
- Triple points increase the rate to 0.3%.
- 1,250 x 0.003 = $3.75 in comps
- 9.5 + 3.75 = 13.25
- You earn $13.25 total per hour.
You can see that your hourly winnings only go up by a few dollars in this case. This will make you question if it’s worth showing up to the casino early to get a good game for slightly higher winnings.
Video poker was once a good way for professional gamblers to make money. However, it’s obvious that this isn’t the case today. You only stand to earn $10.50 an hour with perfect conditions, including optimal strategy and a really fast play rate. But is there a chance that video poker can ever become lucrative again? No, the days when Chung made big profits are long gone and not coming back. Most Vegas casinos these days focus on using a variety of means to attract players. Fine dining, nightclubs, shopping, and shows are more important to casino resorts than ever before.
How To Make Money Playing Video Poker
Another problem with casinos diversifying their revenue streams is that they don’t give out as many comps. Ideally, you’re looking at a 0.1% cashback rate combined with full-pay Deuces Wild. Even if you play 1,000 hands per hour, you’re only going to add a little over a dollar to your hourly winnings. The lower cashback rate and the absence of high-paying video poker machines means that becoming a professional player is no longer feasible.
The world of advantage gambling moves quickly. Successful gamblers often move on when they find out that a certain game or technique no longer brings them significant profits. The same is true of video poker, where I doubt that there’s a single player making a good living from the game today. Players with aspirations of being a professional gambler are either counting cards, hole carding, shuffle tracking, or playing a skill-based game like poker or daily fantasy sports.
Even Chung quickly transitioned from video poker when he spotted better opportunities. Bourie contacted him again in 1999, and found that he’d moved out to the Midwest to play $1 blackjack machines. Chung also told Bourie that he’d “found something much better” in the form of a specific video poker machine with a “programming error.” He was traveling across the Midwest to take advantage of these games wherever possible. It was later revealed that Midwestern casinos lost millions of dollars to players who capitalized on these flaws.
In any case, advantage gamblers look for the biggest edge possible that can be realistically exploited. They don’t, however, spend 80 hours per week grinding out a living on a game that pays $10.50 an hour at best. Professional video poker may have once been a very lucrative pursuit. Today, though, it’s just a good way to make a few bucks from your gambling hobby.