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Reason #5 why the Wizard likes Bovada:
Intelligent Bonuses
Many online casinos offer huge signup bonuses, but there’s a catch. Buried in the fine print is that play on the most popular games doesn’t count towards earning the bonus. It’s common for play on blackjack, baccarat, roulette, craps, and video poker to be excluded. In many cases, only slots count.
And that’s if you can even find the terms and conditions. Many casinos put their 100% bonus in big flaming letters but make you hunt all over their site to find the rules.
Bovada allows play on all games to count towards the wagering requirement. It’s that simple. Just no opposite betting. All casinos ought to be as easy as Bovada about this. The bonus offer itself is simple too: on your first deposit, they’ll give you an extra 10%. If you deposit $100, you’ll wind up with $110 in chips or tokens.
Finally, in the unlikely event that Bovada feels you’ve been abusing their bonuses they won’t seize your winnings like most other casinos will. In the worst case scenario they will politely tell you that they will not be offering you any future bonuses, but you are welcome to keep playing and keep everything you have made already.
Standard deviation for multihand video poker
Last Update: Oct 24, 2007
This appendix shall answer the question on the standard deviation for n-play video poker for three types of full pay machines. In general the greater the number of plays the greater the standard deviation. In fact the relationship between number of hands and standard deviation is a linear one. The following table shows the breakdown in variance between the deal and the draw.
| Video Poker Variance on Deal and Draw | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Game | Variance on Deal | Variance on Draw | Total Variance |
| Full pay deuces wild | 3.140053 | 22.694565 | 25.834618 |
| 10/7 double bonus | 3.391375 | 24.864165 | 28.255539 |
| 9/6 jacks or better | 1.966391 | 17.548285 | 19.514676 |
| 8/5 Bonus poker | 2.120027 | 18.784055 | 20.904082 |
The formula for the variance per hand (on the draw) of n-play video poker is n*vardeal+vardraw. The following tables show the variance and standard deviation for all three games and 1, 3, 5, 10, 50, and 100 play. All numbers on a per individual hand basis.
Full Pay Deuces Wild
| Full Pay Deuces Wild | ||
|---|---|---|
| n | Variance | Standard Dev. |
| 1 | 25.834618 | 5.082777 |
| 3 | 32.114723 | 5.666985 |
| 5 | 38.394829 | 6.196356 |
| 10 | 54.095093 | 7.354937 |
| 50 | 179.697201 | 13.405118 |
| 100 | 336.699837 | 18.349382 |
10/7 Double Bonus
| 10/7 Double Bonus | ||
|---|---|---|
| n | Variance | Standard Dev. |
| 1 | 28.255539 | 5.315594 |
| 3 | 35.038288 | 5.919315 |
| 5 | 41.821037 | 6.466919 |
| 10 | 58.77791 | 7.666675 |
| 50 | 194.43289 | 13.943919 |
| 100 | 364.001616 | 19.078826 |
9/6 Jacks or Better
| 9/6 Jacks or Better | ||
| n | Variance | Standard Dev. |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 19.514676 | 4.417542 |
| 3 | 23.447459 | 4.842258 |
| 5 | 27.380241 | 5.232613 |
| 10 | 37.212196 | 6.100180 |
| 25 | 66.708000 | 8.167500 |
| 39 | 94.237534 | 9.707602 |
| 50 | 115.867841 | 10.764193 |
| 100 | 214.187396 | 14.635143 |
8/5 Bonus Poker
| 8/5 Bonus Poker | ||
| n | Variance | Standard Deviation |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 20.904082 | 4.572098 |
| 3 | 25.144136 | 5.014393 |
| 5 | 29.38419 | 5.420719 |
| 10 | 39.984325 | 6.323316 |
| 50 | 124.785405 | 11.170739 |
| 100 | 230.786755 | 15.191667 |
Let's look at an example. Consider the total standard deviation of 500 initial hands (5000 total hands) of 10-play jacks or better. This would be 50001/2*6.10018 = 431.3479.
Another way to look at this is at the variance and covariance between hands in n-play video poker as follows.
| Variance and Covariance Table | ||
|---|---|---|
| Game | Variance | Covariance |
| Full pay deuces wild | 25.834618 | 3.140053 |
| 10/7 double bonus | 28.255539 | 3.391375 |
| 9/6 jacks or better | 19.514676 | 1.966391 |
To find the total variance of n hands of n-play video poker use the following formula: n*variance+n*(n-1)*covariance. The variance per hand is variance+(n-1)*covariance. The standard deviation per hand is (variance+(n-1)*covariance)1/2.
Sample Problems
- What is the standard deviation of one hand of 1-play jacks or better on a $1 machine with max coins? (answer)
- What is the standard deviation of one hand of 1-play jacks or better on a 25 cent machine with max coins? (answer)
- What is the standard deviation of 10 hands of 1-play jacks or better on a 25 cent machine with max coins? (answer)
- What is the standard deviation of 1 initial hands of 10-play jacks or better on a 25 cent machine with max coins? (answer)
- What is the standard deviation of 100 initial hands of 50-play deuces wild on a $5 machine with max coins? (answer)
- What is the standard deviation of 50 initial hands of 100-play deuces wild on a $5 machine with max coins? (answer)
- What is the standard deviation of 1 initial hand of 8-play 10/7 double bonus on a $2 machine with max coins? (answer)
- What is the standard deviation of 2000 initial hands of 23-play double bonus on a $25 machine with max coins? (answer)
Spin Poker
The following table compares the standard deviation per hand on the draw in Spin Poker to multi-play video poker, in 9/6 Jacks or Better. For more information, see my section on Spin Poker.
| Standard Deviation | ||
| Lines/Plays | Spin Poker | Multi-Play |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | 4.64 | 4.63 |
| 3 | 4.82 | 4.84 |
| 4 | 5.4 | 5.04 |
| 5 | 5.90 | 5.23 |
| 6 | 6.25 | 5.42 |
| 7 | 6.55 | 5.60 |
| 8 | 6.89 | 5.77 |
| 9 | 7.28 | 5.94 |
Recommended Reading
| My Video Poker Offerings | |
|---|---|
Basic Video Poker Info
Practice / Play Video Poker for Free
Video Poker Calculator
Other Stuff
|
StrategiesFull-Pay Jacks or Better:
Full-Pay Deuces Wild:
Quick Quads:Other Strategies: |
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