On Line Casinos

It may look like an intimidating and even daunting pastime to the uninitiated, but gambling online is pretty simple. Once you have broken the ice and taken your first steps into the online casino world, you will see exactly how easy it really is. Like many other activities, one’s first steps into the online casinos can be quite frightening for someone who is there for the first time. However, there are hundreds of websites and portals which provide essential tips and tricks for potential players.

Websites such as ‘Online Casino Reports’, are there to help a player choose which games they wish to begin with, understand the rules of the games and choose an online casino site which is highly recommended and that best suits their needs.

Once an online casino has been selected and the game has been chosen, it is now only remains for the player to try out the free games that the casino offers. Rule number one is ‘practice first without using real money’. Spend as much time as you need in order to feel confident about the games’ rules and your own personal strategy.

When you feel confident inside the casino, you are now ready to get into the real thing - gambling for money. You will need to register and open an account at an online casino, which usually involves depositing some money. The sign-up bonus will be presented to you at this point and you may find that you have doubled the money you have available for gambling with. Personal details will also have to be given while registering with the online casino in order to open the account.

You are now ready to play!

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An upcoming conference which is generating great interest in the gaming industry will focus on the subject of gambling addiction and responsible gambling at online casino sites. For online casino personnel who are unable to attend eCOGRA’s training session, a new web-based training course has been launched by O/E Learning. Titled ‘Responsible Gaming’, the course is designed to increase awareness to the indications of problem gambling and will help online casino personnel to combat gambling addiction.

The online course offers a full introduction to gambling issues and includes a pre-evaluation test that online casino staff can take to test their level of knowledge. The course will offer specific modules on the history of gambling addiction; the contribution that online casino staff can make towards the recognition and control of gambling addiction and how to recognize the early signs to prevent irresponsible gambling practices. The course includes advice on how to deal with online casino customers, along with a comprehensive list of the different types of treatment available.

According to O/E Learning, the firm’s previous courses concentrated on compliance training for the online casino industry. The introduction of this new course is aimed at complementing other online casino firm’s gambling awareness programs.

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A popular variation of poker that can be found at all good quality online casinos is Omaha High poker. Check your favorite online casino to see if they offer this variation of online poker. Omaha is similar in many respects to Hold’em poker. There are two types of Omaha High poker games offered in the online casinos: Limit Omaha High, so called because there is a specific betting limit applied in each game and on each round of betting; and Pot Limit Omaha High. In this version of online casino poker a player can bet up to what is currently in the pot.

We said that Omaha poker is similar in many respects to Hold’em poker, another popular card game in the online casinos and recently the subject of television broadcasts. The difference is that in Omaha poker, the players are dealt 4 unexposed hole cards as their initial starting hand prior to the flop and five board cards are dealt as community cards. The community cards are exposed in the center of the table to the players as they are in Texas Hold’em. Betting takes place after each round and the betting order is clockwise.

In Omaha poker there are 3 betting rounds: the flop, the turn, and the river. The five community cards and their rankings may be used by all the players in the game. When the game arrives at the final betting round, the players still in the game will display their cards.

In order to qualify for a winning low hand, a player must have five cards of 8 or less without a pair, using two from their hand and three from the board (the exposed community cards). Straights or flushes are acceptable for the low hand if all the cards have a value of 8 or below.

Look for Omaha poker at your favorite online casino and play a few hands just to get the feel of the game. You will find many great online casinos offering all the most popular online casino games in the many online gambling directories.

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The past several years has seen a renaissance in the popularity of Poker, due in great part to the internet. One can currently find a wide array of poker games at any good online casino. Of all the classic casino games, Poker has the most variations and offers players a wide range of games to choose from. Jacks or Better is one highly popular variation of poker.

The ‘Jacks or Better’ version is based on the standard poker game but has several different rules. By learning and implementing some of the ‘Jacks or Better’ strategy tips, you will improve your odds of winning when playing at the online casinos. Below you will find a few tips as well as an explanation of how the game is played together with a list of hand rankings to help you before you try it out at an online casino on the net.

Next time you are playing video poker at an online casino, take the time to try a few hands of Jacks or Better poker. Jacks or Better, along with Deuces Wild, is another of the very popular versions of online poker found in the online casinos. Jacks or Better is easy to play and by following a few simple strategies, such as never holding a high or kicker card together with a pair, you can succeed at this poker game. Following is a description of the basic concept behind playing Jacks or Better at a top online casino.

Dealt hands, such as Three of a Kind with two off-cards, offer very clear hold or draw decisions in Jacks or Better video poker. In this example, you simply hold the trips and draw two cards. There is no other reasonable play. However, most dealt hands present two or more reasonable draw options. In that case, choose the hand that is highest on the list. Always discard all the off-cards. In video poker it is best to never hold a “kicker”, or high card. We also advise players to play the maximum coins per game, as the payout for five coins played is far greater than five times the payout for only one coin.  Below is a listing of the hand rankings for playing video poker games at an online casino.

Video Poker Hand Rankings

Note: In the following examples, C=Clubs, D=Diamonds, H=Hearts, S=Spades

Royal Flush.
This is the highest ranking hand possible.

An Ace, King, Queen, Jack and 10 of the same suit. The hand must include the Ace. All five cards are in sequence and in the same suit.
Example: AH, KH, QH, JH, 10H

Straight Flush
Five cards both in sequence and common suit, but not including the Ace.
Example: 10D, 9D, 8D, 7D, 6D

Four of a Kind
Four cards of the same rank.
Example: 5C, 5H, 5S, 5D, 2D

Full House
Three cards of one rank and two cards of another rank.
Example: KC, KD, KH, 4S, 4C

Flush
Five cards of same suit.
Example: KD, JD, 9D, 6D, 3D

Straight
Five cards in sequence, and aces may be used high or low.
Example: 5C, 4D, 3H, 2S, AC

Three of a Kind
Three cards of same rank.
Example: 9C, 9D, 9H, AS, 8C

Two Pair
Two groups of two cards of same rank.
Example: 4C, 4D, JH, JS, AC

A pair, Jacks or better
Two cards (Jacks or better) of the same rank
Example: 8C, 4D, JH, JS, AC

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One of the most enduring and all-time popular games that is offered in all good quality online casinos is Online Baccarat. It is a European card game that brings to mind the ‘high rollers’ of the casinos of Monaco and the French Riviera, dressed in black tie dress suits and standing around the Baccarat table. Baccarat is a game of sheer luck and is not a game that requires a lot of practice or playing technique like Blackjack, Poker and many of the other casino games found in online casinos.  The player has little decision making to do and in the end it really comes down to the luck of the draw. Bets are placed on the outcome of the game and the object of the game is to get as close to the number 9 as possible.

Any one of the high quality online casinos will offer baccarat as a standard game along with all the other classic casino games such as Blackjack, Poker, Craps, Slots and others. To learn more about the game of Baccarat, check the Baccarat glossary listed below. These are the terms used in the game and any prospective player should familiarize himself with them before playing a game in an online casino of his choice.

Read on to find out more about the great game of online Baccarat.

A Basic Baccarat Glossary

Banker/Banco: The ‘dealer’ or person in charge of taking the bets and making payouts.

Bankroll: The total amount of money a gambler wins.

Coup: A round of play.

Croupier or Dealer: The person in charge of giving out cards to the players.

Down Card: A card which is dealt face-down.

Face Cards: A card with a picture on it i.e. Jack Queen or King of any suit.

High Roller: A player who paces high bets and wins large amounts.

House Edge: This is the advantage the casino has over the player.

Le Grande: A hand totaling a 9.

Mini-Baccarat: The smaller table version of baccarat

Natural: A dealt two card hand totaling either 8 or 9.

Punto: A player.

Shoe: A card holding device used in games played with more than 4 decks. It allows the dealer to slide and deal the cards from the deck.

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Blackjack:
Any hand made up of an Ace and a 10-value card (10, Jack, Queen or King) which totals 21. This hand pays 3:2.

Bust or broke:
A hand that exceeds a total of ‘21’ including the additional cards drawn to the original hand.

Hard total:
A hand which has no Aces or a hand where the Ace is counted as ‘1.’ For example, a nine-eight combination counts as a hard ‘17′.

Hit or draw:
Calling for the dealer to add a card to your hand in an effort to come closer to 21, but without going over.

Insurance:
If the dealer shows an Ace as his up-card, you can bet up to one-half the amount of your original wager that the dealer has a Blackjack. Insurance pays 2:1 if the dealer does have blackjack. If he doesn’t, the house collects the insurance bet.

Natural:

A Blackjack dealt in with the original two cards which must be an ace and a face card.

Push:
A tie between the player and the dealer tie. The player retains the money he bet.

Soft total:
A hand with an Ace that is counted as an ‘11′ in the interests of making a winning hand. For example, an Ace-8 combination counts as a soft 19.

Stand:

The player ’stands’ with the cards he has. He does not want any more cards.

Stiff:

A hand that could go bust by adding one more card. For example any hard 12 to 16 card combination is a stiff.

Surrender:

Some casinos allow the player to forfeit half of his original bet if the player does not want to play against the dealer’s hand. For example, the player has $10 and is dealt a 7 and a 9 card for a total of 16 and the dealer’s card is showing a 10. If the player now says “surrender” the dealer will remove the player’s cards and $5 of the player’s original bet, leaving the player with $5. This is not a recommended strategy. New players should check the casino house rules with the dealer.

Upcard: The face-up card in the dealer’s original hand.

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Every online casino on the internet offers sign up bonuses and prizes. Some are more generous than others and others may have built-in limitations. For example, an online casino might require a player to match his own money with the casino bonus before money can be paid out.

An online casino will usually offer a sign up or welcome bonus to a player at the time the player registers or signs up on the gambling website. The bonus is generally in the form of a 100% sign up bonus scheme, with a limit of approximately $100. Some online casinos may offer a more generous sign up bonus, while a few may not offer a bonus at all. However, there will be strings attached and the player must read the conditions applied by the online casino before accepting the gift blindly. This is an important tip to keep in mind.

Casinos do not give away money for nothing so take this advice and read all the conditions, especially the fine print. There will always be some conditions and limitations placed on the money before players are allowed to use it. One of the most common conditions is that players deposit an equal amount into the online casino and that this money must be used to place wagers on the online casino games.

It may not end there. Many of the bonuses will say that if money is won using the sign- up bonus, then the casino will require that more money, an amount equal to the bonus, be spent in order to qualify for the payout to be processed.

So it is clear that the sign-up bonus money cannot be considered as purely free money. Online casinos are simply giving a player some extra money to play with on top of their own as an inducement to play in that casino. These bonuses are a great boost to a new player’s bankroll but a player should not confuse the free money with their own money. The online casinos will not let you play only with their money; so make sure you have some of your own money to wager with as well.

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Here are some great tips and pointers to successful play and to making money when you are playing in the casinos:

• Know and understand the game you are playing. Study and learn the odds and strategies that can lead to success. Read as much as you can.
  
  
• Set yourself a budget. Decide how you will spend the money you plan to use. If you are planning to play for a few days, divide the money proportionately.

• No drugs and no drinks! Make sure you are not under any self-inflicted influences. Be yourself and be in control.
  
  
• Use all customer service options that are on offer. Take a look at the casino’s website for customer service support.
  
  
• Never forget that nothing can guarantee your winning.
  
  
• Study the odds involved in winning. If you don’t like them, don’t play.
  
  
• Set a money limit on you game.  Know when you should stop playing.
  
  
• Remember that casinos are in business to make money. They know the odds and they pre-calculate the number of winners to losers.
  
  
• Ignore the gimmicks that guarantee your success. It’s better to know the odds and play accordingly.

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The increasingly growing competition in casino markets has only benefited players. The following teaches these players how to make the most of the current situation in order to earn maximum financial rewards. Indeed, thanks to the massive competition, casinos have turned to persuasion tactics to encourage players to their sites. However, online sites are disadvantaged when attracting players, than their  brick and mortar cousins. Indeed, casinos have the options of treating their clients to many freebees such as room and board as well as drinks and shows.

As they are unable to attract customers with the above options, online sites use alternative measures for promoting their casinos. The most common of these is the bonus. Bonuses refer to sums of money that casinos deposit into players’ accounts. Such money can only be spent at specific locations/internet sites. Such a method is proving highly lucrative in encouraging players to play and join particular casinos.

Bonuses are divided into three main categories. The first is the welcome bonus, the second is the deposit bonus and the final one is the referral bonus. Generally speaking the welcome bonus offers the best perks for the player. Welcome bonuses are awarded to players playing at a new online casino for the first time. These players have opened an account with the casino as well as having already made a deposit into this account. To receive this bonus, it is important to confirm with the casino the required minimum deposit for receiving the bonus award. In some cases, online casinos will double or even triple deposits as a reward encouraging players to deposit more money into their accounts.

Bonuses offer players an excellent advantage for receiving and playing with free money. Furthermore, depending on the size of the initial deposit, players may even be invited to join the VIP club- thus being awarded further online casino bonuses and prizes in the future.

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Fans of online casino games are being greatly encourage to pick up playing tips and improve their odds of winning. With daily improvements in technology online poker is quickly resembling the real casino game. Today, the industry boasts multi player games as well as dealer online casinos. These types of advancements has made the online world practically a replica of that which you would find at Las Vegas.

Furthermore, the following poker tips will assist you in improving your odds at the online sites.

The bluff is one of the most important skills to master at poker. This is also true on the online sites. With live dealer games featuring web cams, the new online poker arena is allowing increased player interaction such as chatting with the other players. Bluffing is therefore just as important at online poker events. Even though your face may not be entirely visible to the other players, by employing tactile communication skills you may still impose on them the impression you desire.

The purpose of bluffing is to fool your opponent and to create the impression of having something you may not. In some cases you want opponents to believe you have a strong hand, while in others it suits you to have them believe your hand is really weak. It is possible to convey this via the internet games. It is a very important playing technique that others will be using. When playing the most important tool you can master is mastering the skills at your disposal.

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