Clarification about Jacks or Better Simple Strategy from wizardofodds.com

I have been working on a video poker algorithm and I have reached stages 7 and 12 or the algorithm. They are "3 to a Royal Flush" and "3 to a Straight Flush" respectively.
For "4 to an Outside Straight", you clarify that it is specifically an outside straight, meaning - only 4 consecutive numbers.
My question is: for stages 7 and 12 of the algorithm, do the 3 cards have to be consecutive?

For example: would the hand
5H 8H 9H JS KD
qualify as 3 to a straight flush (with the flush being 5H 6H 7H 8H 9H)?

Would the hand
2H 4S 10C QC AC
qualify as being 3 to a royal flush (with the flush being 10C JC QC KC AC)?


Thanks.

So I guess I should assume the answer is yes?

Yes. Sorry, didn't see this earlier.

When VP strategies draw the distinction, there is a difference between "3SF", "3SFi" or "3SF(one gap)", "3SF2i", etc. etc. Therefore if I see "3SF" on a strategy chart, I look elsewhere on the chart to see if there are other entries for similar hands. There are many cases where a 3SF is a hold, but a 3SFi is not. So I generally presume that if I see "3SF", it refers to precisely three consecutive suited cards.

The same doesn't seem to be true of three to a royal, however--"3RF" seems to refer to any three royal cards. This gets muddled when, for example, QJ10 suited is playable, but AQ10 is not. The strategy charts usually resort to naming each 3RF separately on the table--this happens a lot in DB, DDB, and wild card games.

So you're saying that 3 to a Royal Flush can be any three of the following: 10, J, Q, K, A (suited) while 3 to a Straight Flush is only 3 consecutive suited cards (excluding A 2 3 and Q K A, since they are the same as an inside straight)?

Three to a straight flush is the toughest hand on the draw in video poker. The value of it depends on how many gaps it has, whether it bounded on the low (for example A23), and how many high cards it has. Fortunatley, the penalty of each gap is roughly equally offset by a high card. In my 9-6 jacks strategy, I note three different types of straight flushes. Royal flushes are a lot easier. With one unusual exception, if 3 to a royal is the best play, it doesn't make any difference which three to the royal you have. The only exception to that is 4 to a flush beats three to a royal if the 3-royal includes a 10 and ace, and there is a 10 or a straight penalty card.

I think your response confused me even further.
I'm talking about the basic strategy you have on your website. I was just wondering if I should count non consecutive 3 to an RF and 3 to an SF in that category or do only consecutives count?

Quote: Mic

So you're saying that 3 to a Royal Flush can be any three of the following: 10, J, Q, K, A (suited) while 3 to a Straight Flush is only 3 consecutive suited cards (excluding A 2 3 and Q K A, since they are the same as an inside straight)?

Uh, no. I'm saying that the symbols used on the strategy charts often make a distinction between "3SF", "3SFi", and "3SF2i", because quite often, the decision on whether to play the hand that way (keeping the 3-card straight flush) depends on the number of gaps. This is not true nearly as often for a three-card royal, so an entry of "3RF" would mean that you play ALL three-card royal flushes, whereas an entry of "3SF" means that you only keep CONSECUTIVE three-card straight flushes. It's kind of ambiguous, and confusing.

You must be referring to my Simple Strategy. In that one, any three cards will do.