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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.
San Diego Video Poker Survey
Last Update: Dec 12, 2008
IntroductionBetween November 30 and December 1, 2008, I visited the eleven casinos in the San Diego area. The purpose of this visit was to survey the rules in blackjack, craps, roulette, video keno, and video poker. This page shows the results of my video poker findings. After I returned, on December 10, Barona made some game changes, which are reflected in the tables below.
The following tables show the optimal strategy return for the best games I could find. A blank indicates that I could not find the game. The casinos are listed in order of average return. Casinos not listed in the $5 table did not have any video poker in that denomination, that I could find.
| 25-Cent Video Poker Returns | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Casino | Jacks or Better | Bonus Poker | Double Bonus | Double Double Bonus | Deuces Wild | Bonus Deuces | Joker Poker | Average |
| Barona | 99.54% | 99.17% | 99.11% | 98.98% | 99.73% | 99.45% | 99.92% | 99.41% |
| Viejas | 97.30% | 98.01% | 97.81% | 98.98% | 98.91% | 96.74% | 97.96% | |
| Pechanga | 99.54% | 98.98% | 96.01% | 96.74% | 97.82% | |||
| Pauma | 96.87% | 97.81% | 98.98% | 97.58% | 97.36% | 97.72% | ||
| Pala | 97.30% | 96.87% | 97.81% | 96.79% | 99.73% | 97.70% | ||
| Valley View | 98.01% | 97.81% | 96.74% | 98.91% | 97.36% | 96.74% | 97.60% | |
| Golden Acorn | 98.45% | 96.87% | 97.81% | 95.96% | 97.27% | |||
| La Posta | 97.30% | 98.01% | 96.74% | 98.91% | 93.78% | 96.95% | ||
| Harrah's | 96.15% | 96.87% | 97.81% | 96.79% | 96.77% | 96.22% | 96.77% | |
| Santa Ysabel | 96.15% | 96.87% | 97.81% | 96.77% | 96.22% | 96.74% | 96.76% | |
| Sycuan | 96.15% | 96.87% | 95.71% | 96.77% | 96.37% | |||
| One-Dollar Video Poker Returns | ||||||||
| Casino | Jacks or Better | Bonus Poker | Double Bonus | Double Double Bonus | Deuces Wild | Bonus Deuces | Joker Poker | Average |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Barona | 99.54% | 99.17% | 99.79% | 98.98% | 99.73% | 99.45% | 99.92% | 99.51% |
| Valley View | 99.17% | 99.79% | 98.98% | 99.73% | 99.45% | 99.42% | ||
| Pechanga | 99.54% | 99.17% | 99.11% | 98.98% | 99.73% | 99.31% | ||
| Pala | 99.54% | 99.17% | 99.11% | 98.98% | 99.73% | 99.31% | ||
| La Posta | 99.54% | 99.17% | 98.98% | 99.73% | 94.27% | 98.34% | ||
| Santa Ysabel | 98.63% | 98.01% | 96.74% | 97.58% | 98.8% | 98.44% | 98.04% | |
| Viejas | 97.30% | 98.01% | 97.81% | 98.98% | 98.91% | 96.74% | 97.96% | |
| Golden Acorn | 98.45% | 98.01% | 97.81% | 96.77% | 97.76% | |||
| Pauma | 96.87% | 97.81% | 98.98% | 97.58% | 97.36% | 97.72% | ||
| Harrah's | 97.30% | 98.01% | 97.81% | 96.74% | 97.58% | 97.36% | 97.47% | |
| Sycuan | 97.30% | 98.01% | 96.79% | 97.58% | 97.42% | |||
| Five-Dollar Video Poker Returns | ||||||||
| Casino | Jacks or Better | Bonus Poker | Double Bonus | Double Double Bonus | Deuces Wild | Bonus Deuces | Joker Poker | Average |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Barona | 99.54% | 99.17% | 99.79% | 98.98% | 99.73% | 99.45% | 99.92% | 99.51% |
| Viejas | 99.54% | 99.17% | 99.11% | 98.98% | 99.73% | 99.45% | 99.92% | 99.41% |
| Pala | 99.54% | 99.17% | 97.81% | 98.98% | 99.73% | 98.8% | 99.92% | 99.14% |
| Harrah's | 98.45% | 98.01% | 97.81% | 97.58% | 97.96% | |||
| Pechanga | 97.81% | 96.74% | 97.58% | 97.38% | ||||
Methodology
My methodology is admittedly simple. With each property I noted the best pay table I could find inJacks or Better, Bonus Poker,Double Bonus,Double Double Bonus,Deuces Wild,Bonus Deuces, and Joker Poker, at the 25-cent, $1, and $5 denominations. I know there are other games, but in the interests of time, I limited the survey to just these major games. When I do this survey again, likely in June 2009, I intend to add more games. It is possible that I didn't find some games that should have been included. Some of the San Diego casinos are on par with large Strip casinos in terms of size, and I didn't have the inclination to check every single machine.
Links
VP Free California survey of video poker.
Acknowledgements
Bob Dancer for reviewing my survey results, and correcting some omissions and errors.
Disclaimer
The Barona Casino hired me to perform surveys of the San Diego casinos for blackjack, roulette, and craps. Research on other games, including video poker, I did at my own initiative.
Other Games Surveyed in San Diego
| 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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