Articles - Poker articles Thursday, 07 October 2010 12:32

The range of card games casinos offer is pretty wide. Among the most popular ones we must mention poker with its many variations, baccarat and blackjack. The several poker variants you can find in any casino guarantee the endless fun you can have while enjoying your hobby. From all variants, Texas Hold’em poker is the most widely dealt. The main reason for this is that it is quite simple to play. Each player is dealt two cards and meanwhile, all the players share five common cards. The object of the game is to stay in the pot until the game ends and to combine your cards with the community cards so that you achieve the best 5 card hand. Omaha hold’em resembles Texas hold’em a lot. The difference is that here the players are dealt four cards each and share five cards. It is usually played 8 or better or high/low and the pot is therefore split between the highest and the lowest hand.

 

Stud poker has again many variants. 7 card stud is probably the most popular one in both land based and virtual casinos, while its high/low variant is the most common in tournaments. 5 card stud is not played that much because it’s a bit harder to win than 7 card stud, as it involves more skill and more strategy. However, good, experienced gamblers play it online pretty often. Draw poker, on the other hand is played by millions of people each day, although a good strategy is required in order to turn out profitable.

Blackjack is another common card game gamblers prefer because it requires more intuition than skill and strategy. It is very simple to win at blackjack, as you’re only competing against the dealer, and not all players, like in poker, for instance. The object of the game is very simple: you need to keep drawing cards until their value adds up to 21, or as close to 21 as possible, but without exceeding 21. The rules vary slightly from one casino to another, but the object is the same. Given the fact that aces can count either as 11 or as 1, the chances of getting a blackjack or a hand with a value close to 21 are high, which means your chances of winning at this game are considerable.

As for baccarat, the aim of this game is to make a hand of 2-3 cards whose point value must be 9, or as close to 9 as you can. Nines and eights are called naturals, as they are the best hands. The value of the cards is all you need to learn before playing baccarat. Face cards and 10s are counted as 0 and the other cards have their numerical value. When calculating the value of your hand, you only use the last digit of the total, so it can only be between 0 and 9. Although 6 and 7 is 13, it only counts as a 3. The hand with the highest value wins. It is a 100% game of chance.

All these games are worth trying your luck at, and all the other card games as well, so that you can be aware of what you might lose if you are not interested in everything a casino has to offer.