I have a (handheld) Radica Big Screen Poker game, however the Instruction Manual that came with the game nor the online version of the Instruction Manual explains how to use or play the 'Parlay Bet'. Are there more instructions available or some other source which can explain how to use the 'Parlay Bet' function?

"kkheldt" wrote on Apr 24, 2009:
< I have a (handheld) Radica Big Screen Poker game, however the Instruction Manual that came with the game nor the online version of the Instruction Manual explains how to use or play the 'Parlay Bet'. Are there more instructions available or some other source which can explain how to use the 'Parlay Bet' function? >

I will speak about the red, square-ish looking model rather than the black, rectangular model; though I don't think it makes any difference. Also, I will speak of the Draw Poker game, rather than the Deuces or LoBall games.

The "Parley" function is basically just another way of saying "Let it Ride"; that is, let your winnings remain in play to become your next bet. You can't use the Parley as your initial bet; you can only use it after you have had a "Win". To use this bet press the small button that reads "Ride", located to the left of the large button that reads "On/Deal/Draw". Pushing it after a win re-bets your winnings as the new wager amount for the next hand. However, there is a limit of betting no more than 500 (points/dollars, whatever).

Without using this function betting is usually done by pressing the "On/Deal/Draw" button. Pressing and quickly releasing this button results in a $10 bet. If instead of quickly releasing the Deal button you hold it for a moment or two, you can increase your bet up $50. Push and hold, will give you a bet of $20, $30, $40, or $50; then once you release it the cards will be dealt.

Alternatively, you may press the small button that reads "Max Bet", located to the right of the large, "On/Deal/Draw" button. Pushing this button quickly places a $50 bet, without having to increment up to that amount.

Another feature of the game is that after your third straight win it gives you a bonus of $100. Thus, if the hand you just won with awarded you $100, the game will add to that an additional $100. This will continue for each consecutive win after two in a row; i.e.: the third, the fourth, the fifth, and so on.

On the back of the game you find a chart listing the winning amounts for each type of winning hand. The amounts listed are based on a $50 bet. Thus if you bet $50, then draw two pairs, your winnings will be $100. As it says to the left of the name of the hand, it is giving you two times (2X) your wager. Thus if your bet was only $10, then you would only win $20; not $100 as listed on the chart. The chart is based on a $50 bet, since that is the maximum of an initial bet.

Using the parley button, you can keep rolling over your winnings, assuming an unbroken series of wins, until you build up to a bet of $500. (The game puts a cap of $500 on the parley function.) With each win on bets over $50, you consult the chart to see by how much your wager will be multiplied.

For example, a series of wagers might run as follows. You begin with an initial bet of $50 and by drawing two pairs you win $100. You press the "Ride" button, and your new bet is now $100; you draw three of a kind, so your winnings now triple to $300. You press the Ride button so you are now betting $300; you draw a straight, so you win four times your bet that is $1,200; but since this is now your third straight win, it adds a bonus of $100 for a total win of $1,300. However, you will notice that as it counts up your winnings the first $500 will show in your "kitty" area of the screen, but the remaining $800 will be placed in the "bank" area of the screen. This is to limit the amount of parley betting to $500. As you continue to let the wagering ride, the winnings will follow the amounts given on the chart (3X, 5X, 25X, etc).

A couple of more hints: While your "bank" is less than $10,000, the game is somewhat "stingy" with giving wins (in my opinion). That is, it's not easy to get a run of several wins in a row. My game doesn't hit a winning hand more often than about 1:10; that is, I get one or two winning hands out of every ten hands played. So at first I have to play conservatively and slowly built up my bank a little at a time until I finally get past $10,000. After breaking that threshold, the wins seem to come much more frequent; like about 1:3. The game also seems to give many more runs of winning hands. So it's then easier to parley up to the higher wagers. To put it another way, building up the first $10,000 took longer than winning the next $90,000.

One last thing: the bank tops out at $99,990. It won't roll over to $100,000. If you continue to play and win, any winnings over 99,990 will just disappear; the counter can't go more than five digits. In that case you might use a pen or pencil to press the very small "Reset" button. That will return your bank to just $500. One warning though: after having a lot of high rolling and easy winning, it is very frustrating to go back to the beginning and have to slowly build up your bank with infrequent wins and conservative wagering.

Good luck.