Card Whiz

*Shot to master: left orbit lane.*

This is the 2-player version of Royal Flush.

With the ball on the right flipper, shoot the left side white lane to get the ball back up top into the area where you can collect any remaining top color lanes until all three colors are collected. Now shoot drop targets until finished; shoot the jacks first (\!) since the rebound off of them can go into the “open gate” lane on the right side; usually it’s the rebound from the right-hand jack. The optimal order for the drop targets is 2 jacks, 3 queens, 2 kings, ace, ten. Once done with the drop targets, go back to the left orbit white lane shot. This is most valuable when the left side lane is lit, i.e. after you’ve collected the white top lane, but is still the best strategy even when it’s not lit.

Ball on left flipper: transfer to right flipper until you finish all three colored lanes, then you can use it to hit the drop target with backhand shots. Don’t shoot the drop targets until after you get the colored lanes because the drop target value is 1000 \+ 1000 for each color, hence 4000 if you have all 3 colors. If you’ve finished the drop targets, shoot the center pad worth 3000 from the left flipper.

Ignore the saucer; it’s worth 1000 plus 1000 for each lit color, but a missed shot at it can drain.

Key Feed: left lane below the 3000 switch - - where does it go? Does it bounce off the rubber post below it and come to the right flipper? Stay right of and miss the post and come clean to the left flipper? Ever go SDTM? Hit the post and go to a slingshot?

Your end-of-ball card bonus is based on which poker-type hands you’ve finished. A pair of jacks or kings is worth 1000; both pairs are worth 2000; 3 queens earns 3000; a full house, i.e. the 3 queens and a pair of either jacks or kings earns 4000; and a royal flush, the A-K-Q-J-10 of hearts earns 5000. Get them all and you earn 15,000 in bonus. Bonus is doubled on the last ball.

The open gate returns the ball to the plunger lane instead of draining out the right outlane.

While you can light each of the white, pink and green lanes with the joker stand-up targets, don’t shoot at them - - they’re too risky compared to going up the left side. If the ball bounces into one of them to light it, fine.

Last ball strategy: since ball 5 is double bonus, the targets become more valuable if you can complete card sets, so shifting to target shots sooner is worthwhile.