Bingo a refreshing gambling change of pace

Bingo is a traditional mainstay of the games people play. Children and adults around the world play it for fun.

When you get right down to it, it's probably one of the first games we learn how to play and is arguably familiar to more people around the world than any other game of its genre.

Playing bingo for fun is one thing, however. Playing bingo for fun AND profit is something else altogether.

It's something we've all done at one time or another. Charity, church, and fraternal organization bingo nights for the purposes of fundraising have been around for many years.

The popularity of bingo halls as a gambling option in casinos around the world is enjoyed by legions of fans.

Bingo is affordable to a broader base of the population, the rules are simple, the game is easy to understand, and there's no intimidating strategy.

Bingo halls are a popular component of many of the locals-oriented casinos in Las Vegas. Because of space limitations, no casino in the greater Chicago area has the game.

Potawatomi Bingo Casino in Milwaukee has an ultra-modern huge bingo facility with a vibrant promotions schedule and an imaginative array of games during the daily sessions.

Check out Potawatomi's Web site at paysbig.com for complete information.

The premise of winning at bingo is based on pure luck. Superstitions abound as a way to entice Dame Fortune to smile favorably on your pack of bingo cards.

People can play as few cards as they like or as many cards as they can handle. It's all up to the individual.

Bingo games afford people of all ages the chance to socialize, get the adrenaline flowing and, best of all, the opportunity to focus your attention and concentration on something other than worries.

Oh, did I forget about the chance to win some money?

As is the case with all games of chance, it's important to know what you're up against when you play.

Bingo cards consist of 24 numbers and a "free spot" arranged in a square of five rows and five columns.

The numbers on a bingo card range from 1 to 75. Under the "B" the random selection comes from 1 to 15, under the "I" from 16 to 30, under the "N" from 31 to 45, under the "G" from 46 to 60, and under the "O" from 61 to 75.

There are a staggering 552 mil lio n billion billion possible combin ations of number arrays!

The odds against you, however, can be compensated by the fun, excitement and enjoyment that you derive from playing.

Even so, as with all gambling, it's wise to become the smartest, most informed bingo player that you can be.

For example, mathematical studies reveal that the probability of a player getting a standard bingo (vertical, horizontal, diagonal) after 10 numbers are called is a miniscule 0.081 percent.

The probability of the same occurrence after 20 calls is 2.29 percent.

You can see that you have to be mighty lucky to get a bingo. It's kind of like lottery drawings in some respects.

We all know the astronomical odds we face in some of the bigger lottery games. Well, the odds are similar in bingo.

Or how about the popular "cover all" bingo games that usually have the highest jackpots?

After 50 of the 75 numbers have been called, the probability of a player having a cover-all is just 0.00048 percent! After 60 numbers have been called, the probability is still just 0.14 percent.

Another popular bingo game option is "four corners."

After 20 numbers have been called, the probability of a player having a four-corner bingo is 0.4 percent. After 40 numbers have been called, the probability is just 7.5 percent.

Casino news

It didn't take long for the Grand Victoria Casino in Elgin to expand its new live poker room.

A fourth table was added less than a week after the grand opening, and property executives are already planning to install two more, bringing the total number of tables to six.

Located on the lower level of the casino, the poker room is open from 8:30 a.m. to 6:15 a.m. daily and features no-limit and limit Texas Hold'em starting at $5 or $10.

John G. Brokopp is a freelance casino columnist and author.

He can be reached at jbrokopp@comcast.net