SmartHold
9 / 6
QUADS NEED THE RIGHT KICKER
Double Double Bonus
Strategy guide
This is the most rank-sensitive conventional game. Aces and low quads dominate the ladder, and the correct 2/3/4 or Ace kicker matters only when the four of a kind is already complete.
Built for 9/6 Double Double Bonus.
REMEMBER THESE
The three rules that move the game
01
Keep a bonus kicker with made quads
Hold 2/3/4 with Four Aces, and hold A/2/3/4 with Four 2s–4s when that card activates the higher payout.
02
Do not drag a kicker with trips
With three Aces or three low cards, discard both side cards. You need two fresh draws to maximize the routes to the premium hand.
03
Ace pairs outrank Two Pair
Two Pair pays only even money. When one pair is Aces, keeping only the Aces is the core play.
DECISION LADDER
Scan from the top. Stop at the first match.
CORE ORDER
01
Royal flush
Keep the jackpot hand.
02
Premium quads with their bonus kicker
Hold all five cards that earn the enhanced tier.
03
Other four of a kind, then straight flush
Keep four cards for ordinary quads; discard a non-bonus kicker.
04
Four to a royal flush
The premium draw outranks the remaining made hands.
05
Three Aces
Draw two and do not keep a hoped-for kicker.
06
Full house, flush, or straight
Keep the completed payout.
07
Trips, 2s through Kings
Draw two.
08
Four to a straight flush
Keep the premium suited run.
09
Pair of Aces, then Two Pair
Break Ace-high Two Pair; keep other Two Pair.
10
Royal draws and paying pairs
JQK can outrank Kings; TJQ can outrank Jacks or Queens.
11
Four-flushes, low pairs, and straight draws
This crowded middle is where exact practice matters most.
12
High-card fragments or draw five
Do not force a kicker story onto an unmade hand.
Why this isn’t an exception chart
Suits, gaps, discarded cards, and custom payouts can move close hands. This ladder is the memory framework; SmartHold Practice compares all 32 holds for the exact deal.
COMMON TRAPS
Mistakes worth recognizing on sight
!
Keeping a kicker too early
The kicker bonus applies to completed quads, not to trips or a pair.
!
Holding all five with ordinary quads
Discard a fifth card unless it activates a listed kicker bonus.
!
Treating Two Pair as safe
Its one-credit payout makes Ace pairs and several premium draws comparatively stronger.
TURN THE LADDER INTO INSTINCT
Explore Double Double Bonus
See the exact pay table, return, and game details before you start training.