Exploring the most popular card games played in casinos

Walk into any casino and you’ll likely find rows and rows of lighted slot machines, spinning roulette wheels, and card tables dotted about the room. It is the latter that interests us for this article.

Card games are one of the more exciting options and there is a lot of variety. Poker provides a strategic game that is played against others. Blackjack is a house game, but still requires thought. And baccarat is a game of chance where you can sit back and watch the action unfold. Online casinos offer an excellent way to play casino games from the comfort of your home by tuning into your favorite games from both desktop and mobile devices. The best online casino providers in canada will offer many options when it comes to blackjack and the latest in video poker.

When it comes to land-based casinos, there is usually the option to play one or more of these card games, especially poker and blackjack. Baccarat will also be on offer depending on the location and size of the venue.

Here is a rundown of the most popular casino card games.

Poker

One of the most popular casino games is poker. If you also enter a local casino, it is likely that many players will enter a poker tournament. When players drop out of tournaments, they tend to take seats at the cash tables. So, most of the time, you’ll be able to find a poker game.

The history of poker is vague. It’s thought to have evolved from the 16th-century Persian game As-Nas, taking influence from European bluffing games like bragging, before meandering up and down the Mississippi River and picking up new rules along the way.

The most popular game now is Texas Hold ’em, where players are dealt two hole cards and five community cards shared among all players. Players make five hands of cards and can bet and bluff their way to victory. This is the poker variation you will most commonly find in casinos across the country.

Another popular variation is Omaha, where players are dealt four hole cards and five community cards. The object is to make the best five-card hand using exactly two hole cards and three community cards. Again, betting and bluffing are an important part of the game.

Omaha games are harder to find in smaller casinos, but larger cardrooms will have them. You will also find different types of Omaha online. This is true for many of the more niche poker variants – online platforms are a great place to look.

Blackjacks

Blackjack is the most popular casino banking game globally. Even in the quietest casinos, you will almost always find at least one blackjack table open. Larger venues will be bustling with players standing around dozens or even hundreds of tables.

Blackjack is not as complex as poker, and neither is its history. It belongs to A group of card games called 21 that are played all over the world. Its direct lineage can be traced back to the 1600s and it was officially renamed blackjack in 1899.

The object of the game is to draw cards with a value as close to 21 as possible without going over and busting. If your hand is worth more points than the dealers, or you roll 21 outright, then you win the round. Blackjack rules can vary slightly between casinos, including the payouts if you roll 21, the numbers the dealer must hit and stand, and the side bets available.

Baccarat

Baccarat has grown in popularity over the years, generating an increasing amount of revenue at casinos all over the Vegas Strip and beyond. You may not always find it at your local casino on a weekday, but larger venues will certainly host plenty of tables.

The origins of Baccarat are unknown, although the first written account of the game it was in the 19th century, and it developed into the form we know today in the 1940s. The object of the game is simply to bet on whether the player’s or banker’s hand will win or a tie.

There may also be side bet options, such as betting on Player/Dealer pairs. The player has no real choices to make or control over the outcome, making baccarat a game of chance. The only suggestion is that the tie bet and side bets have the worst odds.

How a hand of baccarat plays out may seem convoluted, but it matters little to the player. The winning hand is the one that scores closest to nine points (face cards and tens are worth zero, aces are worth one point). If you predicted the winning hand correctly, you will be paid based on your bet.