How to play
Bonus Poker is the gentlest of the “bonus” machines: take a Jacks or Better game, keep two pair at 2, and pay extra for certain fours of a kind. If you can play Jacks or Better, you can play this.
Each hand costs 1 to 5 credits. Bet one raises the stake a credit at a time (after 5 it goes back to 1) and Deal starts the hand; Bet max does both at 5 credits. Tap cards to hold them, press Draw, and the cards you let go are replaced from the remaining 47. A full 52-card shuffle comes before every deal.
Need a second opinion? Hint (optional ad) highlights the hold that returns the most on average, found by checking all 32 holds against every possible draw. You play with 1,000 virtual credits, refillable for free.
Pay table
| Hand | Per credit |
|---|---|
| Royal Flush | 250, or 4,000 at 5 credits |
| Straight Flush | 50 |
| Four Aces | 80 |
| Four 2s, 3s or 4s | 40 |
| Four 5s through Kings | 25 |
| Full House | 8 |
| Flush | 5 |
| Straight | 4 |
| Three of a Kind | 3 |
| Two Pair | 2 |
| Jacks or Better | 1 |
Where it sits among bonus games
The bonus family is a ladder. Each step pays more for quads and takes it back somewhere else:
| Game | Four Aces | Four 2s-4s | Two Pair | Full House / Flush |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jacks or Better | 25 | 25 | 2 | 9 / 6 |
| Bonus Poker (this game) | 80 | 40 | 2 | 8 / 5 |
| Double Bonus | 160 | 80 | 1 | 10 / 7 |
| Double Double Bonus | 160 (400 with a 2-4 kicker) | 80 (160 with an A-4 kicker) | 1 | 9 / 6 |
Bonus Poker is the only step above Jacks or Better that still pays 2 for two pair. That keeps sessions smooth: the win rate stays near 45.5% of hands, and your balance doesn’t lurch as much as on the higher rungs.
The numbers
Perfect play at 5 credits returns 99.17% on this table, an exact figure over every deal and hold. Four Aces land about once every 5,100 hands; a royal about once every 40,000. The two bonus quads add a little excitement without changing how you play most hands.
Strategy
Here’s the good news: almost every decision is the same as in Jacks or Better. The bonuses aren’t big enough to rewrite the priorities. Some checks with the game’s exact hold values:
- Pair of 3s with four to a flush (3♣ 3♦ 5♣ 9♣ K♣). Go for the flush. Even though four 3s pay 40, the flush draw is worth about 1.02 per credit and the pair about 0.86.
- Aces up (A♣ A♦ 3♣ 3♠ 5♥). Keep both pairs. Two pair pays 2 here, so the hold is worth about 2.51 against 1.68 for the Aces alone. On Double Bonus, where two pair pays 1, this changes.
- Three Aces and a low kicker. Hold just the Aces. There’s no kicker bonus on this table.
- A full house of 3s over 9s. Keep it. Breaking for four 3s is worth less than the guaranteed 8.
- A-K of different suits with junk. Hold both cards; dropping the King is a small mistake.
Bet 5 credits for the 4,000-credit royal, and use Hint for the close calls with three-card straight flushes and unsuited high cards.
If you enjoy Bonus Poker, try Bonus Poker Deluxe or Bonus Wheel Show next.
