Joker plus an ace, or the joker plus two far suited cards?
Keep W + the ace: 1.7148 per coin on 20/7/5 Joker Wild vs 1.5691 for W + 3♠ 6♠. Two gaps is too far — the exact reverse of the close-suited case.
The exact numbers — Joker 3♠ 6♠ A♥ 9♦
EVs are exact — every possible draw enumerated, not simulated — at max bet on 20/7/5 Joker Wild. Check it yourself: the analyzer runs the same solver in your browser.
See all 32 holds of this hand ranked →Why
Same joker, same shape of hold, opposite answer. 3♠ and 6♠ span two gaps, so only two straights can ever use them — 2-3-4-5-6 and 3-4-5-6-7 — against four for a pair like 8-9 suited. Halve the straight-flush upside and the ace's guaranteed paying pair takes over. This pair of hands is the one split the 35-line chart spends a line on: the joker's two suited CLOSE cards rank above W + an ace or king, two suited FAR cards rank below it. Everything else about the two holds is identical, which is why players who learn one of them get the other backwards.
Chart line #12 of 35 — 'W + an Ace or a King' — sits directly above line #13, 'W + 2 suited FAR cards still inside a straight — two gaps (3-6 up to 7-10), …'. One line apart, and this hand is why the split exists. See the full solver-optimized strategy chart, or drill hands with exact-EV feedback until plays like this are automatic.