K-Q-J-9: Draw to the Inside Straight or Hold the High Cards?

Dealt: K♣ Q♦ J♥ 9♠ 3♣
Best play: Hold K♣ Q♦ J♥ 9♠.

Jacks or Better hand K♣ Q♦ J♥ 9♠ 3♣, with the best hold marked

Inside straights are usually a trap, but with three high cards in it the draw is worth it. The high cards still pair for a payout when the straight misses.

Every hold that matters, exactly

Expected return per coin bet on 9/6 Jacks or Better, averaged over every possible draw. A return of 1.000 gets your bet back on average.

Hold Return Cost
K♣ Q♦ J♥ 9♠ 0.5319 best
K♣ Q♦ J♥ 0.5005 0.0315
Q♦ J♥ 0.4884 0.0435
K♣ Q♦ 0.4765 0.0554
K♣ J♥ 0.4765 0.0554
J♥ 0.4569 0.0750

Getting this hand wrong costs 0.0315 coins per coin bet, or 3.1% of your wager on this hand. Over thousands of hands, mistakes like this are what separate a 99.5% game from a 97% one.

Practise the hands that trip people up

Casino Trainer deals you real video poker hands, solves every one of the 32 possible holds, and shows exactly what each mistake cost. It's the same calculation as on this page.

More hands: Every Jacks or Better hold decision · Video poker strategy · The 9/6 paytable

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