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Extra Action Poker

Introduction

 

Extra Action Poker is a video poker variant I noticed at the Green Valley Ranch on February 23, 2014. The game plays like conventional video poker, except with an additional bet, the player earns bonus hands if he gets at least one ace (or a deuce in deuces wild games). Following are the complete rules.

Rules

 
  1. The game is based on conventional three- and five-play video poker.
  2. If the player makes a max coin bet in the base game, then for an additional bet of 5, 10, or 15 credits the player will enable the Extra Action feature.
  3. If the player gets at least one ace (or deuce in deuces wild games), with the Extra Action feature enabled, then the player will get extra hands. To be specific, with an extra bet of 5 credits the player will get 4 extra hands, 10 credits will get 8 extra hands, and 15 credits will get 12 extra hands.
  4. All extra hands will have the aces, and only the aces, automatically held (deuces in deuces wild games). The player may not choose to hold different cards.
  5. Each Extra Draw hand comes from a separate 52-card deck with only the aces held on the deal removed.
  6. Extra Draw hands are paid based on a different pay table as follows.
 

The following is the pay table for Extra Draw hands in all games except when deuces are wild. Pays are based per coin bet.

Extra Draw Hands Pay Table
(Nothing Wild)

Hand Pays
Royal flush 800
Straight flush 800
Four of a kind 200
Full house 12
Flush 8
Straight 4
Three of a kind 3
Two pair 2
Jacks or better 1
Loser 0

The following is the pay table for Extra Draw hands in deuces wild based games. Pays are based per coin bet.

Extra Draw Hands Pay Table
(Deuces Wild)

Hand Pays
Four deuces plus ace 400
Four deuces 160
Wild royal 27
Five of a kind 20
Straight flush 6
Four of a kind 4
Full house 2
Flush 1
Straight 1
All other 0

Image of the main rule screen.

Example

 

In this example, I made a 30-credit bet. 15 credits were for three hands of ordinary Triple Play video poker at 5 credits each. The other 15 credits enabled the Extra Draw feature for 12 extra hands.

In this first picture I was dealt a pair of queens, a single ace, and two junk cards. You can see the ace of spades was automatically propagated in the 12 Extra Draw hands. As usual, click on any image for a larger version.

In the next picture you can see I held the pair of queens and discarded the ace in the base game hands. Note how discarding the ace did not cause it to be removed from the Extra Draw hands.

In the base game I got one three of a kind and two high pairs for a total win of 15+2×5=25. In the Extra Draw hands I got one two pair and three high pairs for a win of 10+3×5=25 as well. So, my total win was 25+25=50 credits.

Strategy

 

The strategy is the same as conventional video poker for any given game and pay table.

Held Aces Analysis

The following table shows the expected value of an Extra Draw hand with one ace held. The lower right cell shows an expected win of 0.486531 per hand.

Extra Draw Hand Expected Value — One Ace Held

Hand Pays Combinations Probability Return
Royal flush 800 1 0.000004 0.003201
Straight flush 800 1 0.000004 0.003201
Four of a kind 200 60 0.000240 0.048019
Full house 12 360 0.001441 0.017287
Flush 8 493 0.001973 0.015782
Straight 4 510 0.002041 0.008163
Three of a kind 3 5,280 0.021128 0.063385
Two pair 2 11,880 0.047539 0.095078
Jacks or better 1 58,080 0.232413 0.232413
Loser 0 173,235 0.693217 0.000000
Total   249,900 1.000000 0.486531

The following table shows the expected value of an Extra Draw hand with two aces held. The lower right cell shows an expected win of 1.972245 per hand.

Extra Draw Hand Expected Value — Two Aces Held

Hand Pays Combinations Probability Return
Royal flush 800 - 0.000000 0.000000
Straight flush 800 - 0.000000 0.000000
Four of a kind 200 48 0.002449 0.489796
Full house 12 192 0.009796 0.117551
Flush 8 - 0.000000 0.000000
Straight 4 - 0.000000 0.000000
Three of a kind 3 2,112 0.107755 0.323265
Two pair 2 3,168 0.161633 0.323265
Jacks or better 1 14,080 0.718367 0.718367
Loser 0 - 0.000000 0.000000
Total   19,600 1.000000 1.972245

The following table shows the expected value of an Extra Draw hand with three aces held. The lower right cell shows an expected win of 11.591837 per hand.

Extra Draw Hand Expected Value — Three Aces Held

Hand Pays Combinations Probability Return
Royal flush 800 - 0.000000 0.000000
Straight flush 800 - 0.000000 0.000000
Four of a kind 200 48 0.040816 8.163265
Full house 12 72 0.061224 0.734694
Flush 8 - 0.000000 0.000000
Straight 4 - 0.000000 0.000000
Three of a kind 3 1,056 0.897959 2.693878
Two pair 2 - 0.000000 0.000000
Jacks or better 1 - 0.000000 0.000000
Loser 0 - 0.000000 0.000000
Total   1,176 1.000000 11.591837

The following table shows the expected value of an Extra Draw hand with four aces held. The lower right cell shows an expected win of 200.000000 per hand.

Extra Draw Hand Expected Value — Four Aces Held

Hand Pays Combinations Probability Return
Royal flush 800 - 0.000000 0.000000
Straight flush 800 - 0.000000 0.000000
Four of a kind 200 48 1.000000 200.000000
Full house 12 - 0.000000 0.000000
Flush 8 - 0.000000 0.000000
Straight 4 - 0.000000 0.000000
Three of a kind 3 - 0.000000 0.000000
Two pair 2 - 0.000000 0.000000
Jacks or better 1 - 0.000000 0.000000
Loser 0 - 0.000000 0.000000
Total   48 1.000000 200.000000

The next table shows the probability of getting 0 to 4 aces on the deal, the average win per Extra Draw hand, and the expected return by the number of aces. The lower right cell shows that each Extra Draw hand is worth 0.248273 units.

Extra Draw Hand — Aces Held Return Table

Aces Avg. win Combinations Probability Return
4 200.000000 48 0.000018 0.003694
3 11.591837 4,512 0.001736 0.020124
2 1.972245 103,776 0.039930 0.078751
1 0.486531 778,320 0.299474 0.145703
0 0.000000 1,712,304 0.658842 0.000000
Total   2,598,960 1.000000 0.248273

With an extra three units bet (where each unit is five credits), the player gets 12 Extra Draw hands. The expected win from these Extra Draw hands is 12 × 0.248273 = 2.979271. These feature costs three credits, so the expected return from the feature, assuming the player buys all 12 Extra Draw hands, is 2.979271/3 = 0.993090.

Held Deuces Analysis

The following table shows the expected value of an Extra Draw hand with one deuce held. The lower right cell shows an expected win of 0.454102 per hand.

Extra Draw Hand Expected Value — One Deuce Held

Hand Pays Combinations Probability Return
Four deuces plus ace 400 4 0.000016 0.006403
Four deuces 160 44 0.000176 0.028171
Wild royal 27 260 0.001040 0.028091
Five of a kind 20 372 0.001489 0.029772
Straight flush 6 1,028 0.004114 0.024682
Four of a kind 4 14,292 0.057191 0.228764
Full house 2 2,376 0.009508 0.019016
Flush 1 3,824 0.015302 0.015302
Straight 1 18,468 0.073902 0.073902
Three of a kind 0 93,060 0.372389 0.000000
Loser 0 116,172 0.464874 0.000000
Total   249,900 1.000000 0.454102

The following table shows the expected value of an Extra Draw hand with two deuces held. The lower right cell shows an expected win of 2.145714 per hand.

Extra Draw Hand Expected Value — Two Deuces Held

Hand Pays Combinations Probability Return
Four deuces plus ace 400 4 0.000204 0.081633
Four deuces 160 44 0.002245 0.359184
Wild royal 27 120 0.006122 0.165306
Five of a kind 20 192 0.009796 0.195918
Straight flush 6 428 0.021837 0.131020
Four of a kind 4 4,952 0.252653 1.010612
Full house 2 - 0.000000 0.000000
Flush 1 660 0.033673 0.033673
Straight 1 3,300 0.168367 0.168367
Three of a kind 0 9,900 0.505102 0.000000
Loser 0 - 0.000000 0.000000
Total   19,600 1.000000 2.145714

The following table shows the expected value of an Extra Draw hand with three deuces held. The lower right cell shows an expected win of 13.156463 per hand.

Extra Draw Hand Expected Value — Three Deuces Held

Hand Pays Combinations Probability Return
Four deuces plus ace 400 4 0.003401 1.360544
Four deuces 160 44 0.037415 5.986395
Wild royal 27 40 0.034014 0.918367
Five of a kind 20 72 0.061224 1.224490
Straight flush 6 124 0.105442 0.632653
Four of a kind 4 892 0.758503 3.034014
Full house 2 - 0.000000 0.000000
Flush 1 - 0.000000 0.000000
Straight 1 - 0.000000 0.000000
Three of a kind 0 - 0.000000 0.000000
Loser 0 - 0.000000 0.000000
Total   1,176 1.000000 13.156463

The following table shows the expected value of an Extra Draw hand with four deuces held. The lower right cell shows an expected win of 180.000000 per hand.

Extra Draw Hand Expected Value — Four Deuces Held

Hand Pays Combinations Probability Return
Four deuces plus ace 400 4 0.083333 33.333333
Four deuces 160 44 0.916667 146.666667
Wild royal 27 - 0.000000 0.000000
Five of a kind 20 - 0.000000 0.000000
Straight flush 6 - 0.000000 0.000000
Four of a kind 4 - 0.000000 0.000000
Full house 2 - 0.000000 0.000000
Flush 1 - 0.000000 0.000000
Straight 1 - 0.000000 0.000000
Three of a kind 0 - 0.000000 0.000000
Loser 0 - 0.000000 0.000000
Total   48 1.000000 180.000000

The next table shows the probability of getting 0 to 4 deuces on the deal, the average win per Extra Draw hand, and the expected return by the number of deuces. The lower right cell shows that each Extra Draw hand is worth 0.247835 units.

Extra Draw Hand — Deuces Held Return Table

Deuces Avg. win Combinations Probability Return
4 180.000000 48 0.000018 0.003324
3 13.156463 4,512 0.001736 0.022841
2 2.145714 103,776 0.039930 0.085678
1 0.454102 778,320 0.299474 0.135991
0 0.000000 1,712,304 0.658842 0.000000
Total   2,598,960 1.000000 0.247835

With an extra three units bet (where each unit is five credits), the player gets 12 Extra Draw hands. The expected win from these Extra Draw hands is 12 × 0.247835 = 2.974014. These feature costs three credits, so the expected return from the feature, assuming the player buys all 12 Extra Draw hands, is 2.974014/3 = 0.991338.

Return Summary

The following table shows the return for all base games Extra Draw is available in. As usual, all returns assume optimal player strategy.

Extra Action Poker — Return Table

Game Base Game Hands Extra Draw Hands
0 4 8 12
Bonus Poker 8/5 3 0.991660 0.992018 0.992232 0.992375
Bonus Poker 7/5 3 0.980147 0.983383 0.985324 0.986619
Bonus Poker 6/5 3 0.968687 0.974788 0.978448 0.980889
Bonus Poker 10/8/6 3 0.957771 0.966601 0.971899 0.975431
Bonus Poker Deluxe 8/6 3 0.984928 0.986969 0.988193 0.989009
Bonus Poker Deluxe 8/5 3 0.974009 0.978779 0.981642 0.983550
Bonus Poker Deluxe 7/5 3 0.962526 0.970167 0.974752 0.977808
Bonus Poker Deluxe 6/5 3 0.953611 0.963481 0.969403 0.973351
Deuces Wild Bonus 13/4/3/3/1/1 3 0.988025 0.988853 0.989350 0.989682
Deuces Wild Bonus 10/4/3/3/1/1 3 0.973644 0.978068 0.980722 0.982491
Deuces Wild Bonus 12/4/3/2/1/1 3 0.962183 0.969472 0.973845 0.976761
Deuces Wild Bonus 10/4/3/2/1/1 3 0.953368 0.962861 0.968556 0.972353
Dbl Bonus 9/7/5 3 0.991632 0.991997 0.992215 0.992361
Dbl Bonus 9/6/5 3 0.978062 0.981819 0.984073 0.985576
Dbl Bonus 9/6/4 3 0.963754 0.971088 0.975489 0.978422
Dbl Bonus 8/5/4 3 0.941897 0.954695 0.962374 0.967494
Dbl Dbl Bonus 9/6 3 0.989808 0.990629 0.991121 0.991449
Dbl Dbl Bonus 9/5 3 0.978729 0.982319 0.984474 0.985910
Dbl Dbl Bonus 8/5 3 0.967861 0.974168 0.977953 0.980476
Dbl Dbl Bonus 7/5 3 0.957120 0.966113 0.971508 0.975105
Deuces Wild 25/15/9/4/4/3/2 3 0.989131 0.989683 0.990014 0.990235
Deuces Wild 20/12/10/4/4/3/2 3 0.975791 0.979678 0.982010 0.983565
Deuces Wild 20/12/9/4/4/3/2 3 0.970554 0.975750 0.978868 0.980946
Deuces Wild 25/16/13/4/3/2/2 3 0.967651 0.973573 0.977126 0.979495
Jacks or Better 9/5 3 0.984498 0.986646 0.987935 0.988794
Jacks or Better 8/6 3 0.983927 0.986218 0.987592 0.988509
Jacks or Better 8/5 3 0.972984 0.978011 0.981027 0.983037
Jacks or Better 7/5 3 0.961472 0.969377 0.974119 0.977281
Tpl Dbl Bonus 9/6 3 0.981540 0.984428 0.986160 0.987315
Tpl Dbl Bonus 9/5 3 0.970204 0.975926 0.979359 0.981647
Tpl Dbl Bonus 8/5 3 0.959687 0.968038 0.973048 0.976389
Tpl Dbl Bonus 7/5 3 0.949178 0.960156 0.966743 0.971134
Bonus Poker 8/5 5 0.991660 0.991898 0.992069 0.992196
Bonus Poker 7/5 5 0.980147 0.982304 0.983845 0.985001
Bonus Poker 6/5 5 0.968687 0.972754 0.975659 0.977838
Bonus Poker 10/8/6 5 0.957771 0.963658 0.967862 0.971016
Bonus Poker Deluxe 8/6 5 0.984928 0.986288 0.987260 0.987989
Bonus Poker Deluxe 8/5 5 0.974009 0.977189 0.979461 0.981165
Bonus Poker Deluxe 7/5 5 0.962526 0.967620 0.971259 0.973988
Bonus Poker Deluxe 6/5 5 0.953611 0.960191 0.964891 0.968416
Deuces Wild Bonus 13/4/3/3/1/1 5 0.988025 0.988577 0.988972 0.989267
Deuces Wild Bonus 10/4/3/3/1/1 5 0.973644 0.976593 0.978699 0.980279
Deuces Wild Bonus 12/4/3/2/1/1 5 0.962183 0.967042 0.970513 0.973116
Deuces Wild Bonus 10/4/3/2/1/1 5 0.953368 0.959696 0.964217 0.967607
Dbl Bonus 9/7/5 5 0.991632 0.991875 0.992049 0.992179
Dbl Bonus 9/6/5 5 0.978062 0.980567 0.982356 0.983698
Dbl Bonus 9/6/4 5 0.963754 0.968643 0.972136 0.974755
Dbl Bonus 8/5/4 5 0.941897 0.950429 0.956524 0.961095
Dbl Dbl Bonus 9/6 5 0.989808 0.990355 0.990746 0.991039
Dbl Dbl Bonus 9/5 5 0.978729 0.981123 0.982832 0.984115
Dbl Dbl Bonus 8/5 5 0.967861 0.972066 0.975069 0.977322
Dbl Dbl Bonus 7/5 5 0.957120 0.963115 0.967397 0.970609
Deuces Wild 25/15/9/4/4/3/2 5 0.989131 0.989499 0.989762 0.989959
Deuces Wild 20/12/10/4/4/3/2 5 0.975791 0.978382 0.980233 0.981621
Deuces Wild 20/12/9/4/4/3/2 5 0.970554 0.974018 0.976492 0.978348
Deuces Wild 25/16/13/4/3/2/2 5 0.967651 0.971599 0.974419 0.976534
Jacks or Better 9/5 5 0.984498 0.985930 0.986953 0.987720
Jacks or Better 8/6 5 0.983927 0.985454 0.986545 0.987363
Jacks or Better 8/5 5 0.972984 0.976335 0.978729 0.980524
Jacks or Better 7/5 5 0.961472 0.966742 0.970506 0.973329
Tpl Dbl Bonus 9/6 5 0.981540 0.983465 0.984840 0.985871
Tpl Dbl Bonus 9/5 5 0.970204 0.974018 0.976743 0.978786
Tpl Dbl Bonus 8/5 5 0.959687 0.965254 0.969231 0.972213
Tpl Dbl Bonus 7/5 5 0.949178 0.956497 0.961724 0.965645

Acknowledgment

I would like to thank IGT for providing me with a table with the base games Extra Draw is available in and returns, which we agree on.

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Full-Pay Jacks or Better:

Full-Pay Deuces Wild:

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