vpFREE2 Forums

Reverse VP tournament

#1

Sharkey's in Gardnerville has a reverse video poker tournament (Wed 7pm I think) where you try to lose a set number of credits the fastest. 1st one to 0 wins. I was wondering the best way to play. Slap the deal and draw fast as possible like a slot tournament and hope for nothing on the redeal, or hold all 5 if nothing comes on the draw or hold 4 (or 3) to break up winners. Something different to think about.

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#2

Beta Theta wrote:

Sharkey's in Gardnerville has a reverse video poker tournament (Wed
7pm I think) where you try to lose a set number of credits the
fastest. 1st one to 0 wins. I was wondering the best way to play. Slap
the deal and draw fast as possible like a slot tournament and hope for
nothing on the redeal, or hold all 5 if nothing comes on the draw or
hold 4 (or 3) to break up winners. Something different to think
about.

Simply banging away at the Deal/Draw button as fast as possible,
attempting the burn credits quickly is ill advised. There are simply
too many hands that will come up on a 5 card draw to make this a
winning strategy.

Assuming a Jacks or Better type game (jb,bp,db,etc.), the strategy I'd
advise is akin to your second suggestion.

Hold all 5 if no winners on the deal, otherwise

Hold as many unsuited low cards as possible, avoiding holding more
than three cards to a straight -- and unless those three cards are
spaced with two gaps, holding only two unsuited cards.

If you can't manage to satisfy these criteria, hold up to two suited
cards that can't form a straight. Hold a single card otherwise.

Under no circumstance hold a high card except as part of a pat loser.

- Harry

#3

Under no circumstance hold a high card except as part of a pat loser.

I'll reverse myself on this. It turns out that holding 4 cards that
can't form a straight or flush is a very weak hold, no matter the
number of high cards.

If you don't have a dealt loser, or a dealt hand with 4 low cards that
can't possibly draw to a winner, this would be the 3rd combination I'd
look for.

- Harry

#4

I disagree. Not having to think saves a lot of time, and I think this
would compensate for the difference in EV from using an actual
strategy. Of course, if the contest was structured to remove time
from the equation, by allowing each player a fixed number of plays,
then strategy would be crucial.

The ER for holding five random cards is about 33.7%. The average
number of plays needed to burn through a bankroll of N wagers
would be about 3*N/2, requiring 3*N button pushes. If your playing
strategy had 0% ER, the average number of button pushes would
be larger than this, and time spent thinking would be quite significant.

···

On Thursday 11 September 2003 05:17 am, Harry Porter wrote:

Beta Theta wrote:
> Sharkey's in Gardnerville has a reverse video poker tournament (Wed
> 7pm I think) where you try to lose a set number of credits the
> fastest. 1st one to 0 wins. I was wondering the best way to play. Slap
> the deal and draw fast as possible like a slot tournament and hope for
> nothing on the redeal, or hold all 5 if nothing comes on the draw or
> hold 4 (or 3) to break up winners. Something different to think
> about.

Simply banging away at the Deal/Draw button as fast as possible,
attempting the burn credits quickly is ill advised. There are simply
too many hands that will come up on a 5 card draw to make this a
winning strategy.

#5

Steve Jacobs wrote:

I disagree. Not having to think saves a lot of time, and I think this
would compensate for the difference in EV from using an actual
strategy. Of course, if the contest was structured to remove time
from the equation, by allowing each player a fixed number of plays,
then strategy would be crucial.

The ER for holding five random cards is about 33.7%. The average
number of plays needed to burn through a bankroll of N wagers
would be about 3*N/2, requiring 3*N button pushes. If your playing
strategy had 0% ER, the average number of button pushes would
be larger than this, and time spent thinking would be quite
significant.

It's my guess that the ER with a simplified hold strategy would be
under 20% (may as low as 15%). Depending upon the speed of the
machine, I'm guessing that under that strategy, assuming a modicum of
practice, that a speed of at least 70% of the the default hold all or
none strategy would be possible without too much problem. So machine
speed is a critial factor, as well as the likelihood that you might
end play early by exhausting all your assigned play credits.

It's my suspicion, in absence of solid info, that a strategy that
involved greater consideration of what cards to hold would prevail
more frequently. Determination of a specific simple strategy and it's
related ER would make that more concrete.

- Harry

#6

I often play in VP tournament based on time. I think the determining
factor here may be how fast the cards are displayed. In the
tournament I play, the cards are displayed about as fast as a medium
setting in winpoker. There is also a delay between pressing deal and
when the cards are displayed. If not for these delays I suspect
pressing deal as fast as possible would be the best strategy.
However, with the delays I suspect pressing one or two low cards with
the left hand while keeping the right hand on the deal/draw button
would be the best. Note the decision is made while the cards are
still being displayed.

Who's going to try this? It shouldn't be too difficult to run a
series of tests using winpoker or FVP. However, we do need to know
the speed of the cards being dealt.

Dick

--- In vpFREE@yahoogroups.com, "Harry Porter" <harry.porter@v...>
wrote:

Steve Jacobs wrote:
> I disagree. Not having to think saves a lot of time, and I think

this

> would compensate for the difference in EV from using an actual
> strategy. Of course, if the contest was structured to remove time
> from the equation, by allowing each player a fixed number of

plays,

> then strategy would be crucial.
>
> The ER for holding five random cards is about 33.7%. The average
> number of plays needed to burn through a bankroll of N wagers
> would be about 3*N/2, requiring 3*N button pushes. If your

playing

> strategy had 0% ER, the average number of button pushes would
> be larger than this, and time spent thinking would be quite
> significant.

It's my guess that the ER with a simplified hold strategy would be
under 20% (may as low as 15%). Depending upon the speed of the
machine, I'm guessing that under that strategy, assuming a modicum

of

practice, that a speed of at least 70% of the the default hold all

or

none strategy would be possible without too much problem. So

machine

speed is a critial factor, as well as the likelihood that you might
end play early by exhausting all your assigned play credits.

It's my suspicion, in absence of solid info, that a strategy that
involved greater consideration of what cards to hold would prevail
more frequently. Determination of a specific simple strategy and

it's

···

related ER would make that more concrete.

- Harry

#7

Thanks for the inputs. I heard about the tournament on the radio and
just caught that it was a set number of credits and the fastest time
to get rid of them won. Don't know if it 1 machine or a bank or if
you're playing with you own money (hoping for the prize money) or
not. I'll pay more attention next time I hear the ad and go there and
check it out.
I think a lot would depend on how sticky the buttons are. If they
stick or don't take, then I'd just pound away like a slot tourny. If
I was to hold I'd always hold at least 2 different low ones so as not
to get 4 of a kind.
Wonder if they make you play to 0. If by accident you got a royal on
a redraw could be a long time to get them all to stay in.
I'll post the day and time next time I hear the radio ad.
Gardnerville is about 1/2 from Lake Tahoe incase anyone visiting
there wants to check it out.