Bad Beat Jackpot

How the Bad Beat Jackpot works:

What is a “Bad Beat” in the first place?

In poker terminology, a “Bad Beat” occurs when a really great hand loses to a super amazing hand! For example, let’s say you have AA and your opponent has KK. Pre-flop, you’ve got the statistical edge. After the flop, turn, and river are dealt, the cards on the board are:

AKK58

You have a great hand - a Full House, Aces full of Kings! However, your opponent has Four-Of-A-Kind Kings, an even better hand! In this case, you received what’s known in poker circles as a “Bad Beat”.

How do I win the Bad Beat Jackpot?

HD Poker has specific requirements for winning the Bad Beat Jackpot. It’s awesome when it hits – everyone who played in the hand gets a piece of the glory, even if they folded pre-flop! Here’s a breakdown of what you need to know:

1)     Initially, the Bad Beat Jackpot Qualifying Hand (the hand you need to be holding, or holding better than, to qualify) will be Quad Jacks. You can examine the Hand Rankings to see all the hands that can beat Quad Jacks or better.

2)     Every 8 hours, if the Bad Beat Jackpot hasn’t been hit, the Qualifying Hand will be reduced by one hand in the Hand Rankings. For example, after the initial 8 hours, Quad Tens becomes the Qualifying Hand. After another 8 hours, Quad Nines becomes the Qualifying Hand.

3)     When the Bad Beat Jackpot hits, the Qualifying Hand resets to Quad Jacks or better.

There’s one really important rule to trigger the Bad Beat Jackpot: '''Both players must use both of their two hole cards in order to win!''' What does this mean? Basically, if you have AT, your opponent has JJ, and the board is as follows:

AAAJJ

The Bad Beat Jackpot won’t trigger because even though you have Quad Aces and your opponent has Quad Jacks, you didn’t use both of your hole cards (the two cards you start with) in your hand (which would be AAAAJ, leaving out your T)!

Ok, let’s get to the good stuff – what do I win?

Here’s a breakdown of what everyone wins when the Bad Beat Jackpot is triggered:

1)      The player who receives the Bad Beat (they lost the hand to a better hand) is the big winner, receiving 60% of the Jackpot!

2)      The player who wins the actual hand gets 30% of the Jackpot.

3)      The remaining 10% of the Jackpot is distributed evenly amongst everyone else who was involved in the hand, even if they folded pre-flop!

4)      If there are only two people at the table, the distribution is 70%/30%.

5)      If two players have the same hand, they split that portion of the jackpot.

We here at HD Poker wish you the best at the tables and an enjoyable time with your friends from all over the world! Thanks for being a member of our growing community!