Microgaming Casino Spanish Blackjack
Spanish Blackjack is a variant of blackjack that is offered at all Microgaming online casinos. The most striking feature of this online blackjack game is that the deck has only 48 cards instead of the regular 52 cards. All the tens are removed from the deck. Such decks are referred to as Spanish decks. Other than this the rules are similar to the usual blackjack games The exact rules under which Spanish Blackjack is played at Microgaming online casinos are explained below. The game is played with eight Spanish decks. The dealer will check for blackjack when he is dealt face up card with a value of 10 or an ace. If the dealer has a blackjack then the player loses his wager. The dealer hits on a hand value of soft 17. The rules for splitting are as follows. Cards having the same value can also be split
such as a queen and a jack. Blackjack obtained after splitting aces and tens does not count as blackjack but as a hand value of 21. A player can split a maximum of three times in a game. Players can double down after a split. The usual insurance and late surrender bets apply. However
because the tens have been removed from the decks the insurance bet is a sucker bet in Spanish Blackjack and it should never be placed. Overall Spanish Blackjack offers a house edge of around 0.5% which is par for blackjack games. The minimum bet is 1 credit and the maximum bet is 500 credits. A feature in Spanish Blackjack
which is not found in other variants of blackjack
is the bonus payout for special combinations of hands that yield a hand value of 21. The Bonus 21 hand combinations and their payouts are bulleted below. Three sevens of the same suit
if the dealer has a seven face up: 50:1 Any five card 21: 3:2 Six
seven and eight of a mixed suit: 3:2 Three sevens of a mixed suit: 3:2 Any seven card or more 21: 3:1 Six
seven and eight of spades: 3:1 Three sevens of spades: 3:1 Any six card 21: 2:1 Six
seven and eight of the same suit: 2:1 Three sevens of the same suit: 2:1 Microgaming Spanish Blackjack belongs to the Gold Series of Microgaming online casino games. Therefore it is more elegantly crafted than the normal games offered by Microgaming and also contains several useful features. When the cursor is moved over the Game Rules text
all the game rules appear in a pop-up box. However
the most important feature in the Gold Series Spanish Blackjack is the Expert Mode. It has the Auto Play feature. This feature allows the players to set a number of deals that can be played without having to interact with the software manually. The time between deals can also be set. The Auto Play can be programmed to stop when any of a number of conditions is met such as a specified amount of a win
a specified increase in number of credits or a specified it decrease in number of credits. Auto Play in blackjack will work only if a strategy card is provided. Spanish Blackjack provides an optimum play default strategy card according to which all the moves are made in the Auto Play. Should the player want to make any changes in this strategy card he can access the card through the Expert Mode and save the modified strategy card
which will then be used in subsequent Auto Play games. Articles from Casino Advisor
Understanding eCOGRA Audit Reports
All online casinos get their games audited for fairness by reputed independent agencies. This is not only a requirement imposed by their licensing authority but also serves to demonstrate to their customers that they are operating a fair business. eCOGRA is one of the most commonly used agencies by online casino operators. Their reports are usually displayed in the public domain by the online casinos. Players who are just starting out at online gambling should take a look at these reports and understand what they imply. There are three sets of certificates that are given by eCOGRA. The first certificate is issued af
ter to the initial audit. This certificate asserts that eCOGRA is satisfied that the games are fair
the casino operates honestly and behaves responsibly and monetary deposits are safe. The second set of certificates pertains to the Random Number Generator in the various online casino games. These certificates are issued separately for blackjack
roulette and video poker. The certificates pertain to a six month period. All the outcomes in all the games during the six month period are analyzed by eCOGRA for randomness based on standard statistical tests. The certificates state that the Random Number Generator guarantees that each card in blackjack and video poker and each number on the roulette wheel have an equal chance of being selected. The most important and useful a report is the Percentage Payout Review. This is conducted on a monthly basis by eCOGRA. The report displays average percentage payouts for various game categories. The report states “The figures reflect the percentage of total player unit winnings to the total unit amount wagered by the players in the month under review.” The data is presented for the following categories: all games
slot games
table games and poker games. The individual categories are the important ones and merit separate discussion. It needs to be first clarified that these figures are the actual average percentage payouts obtained during the month. They need not reflect the theoretical payouts of the games based on the mathematics involved on the configuration of the games. However
in games that do not require players to make decisions apart from the amount wagered the actual payouts and the theoretical payouts will not differ significantly. The average percentage payout for slot games at Platinum Play casino was found to be 95.60% in September 2009. This means that for every $100 wagered on slot games players were paid out $95.60 and the casinos retained $4.40. Given the nature of slot games
where no player decisions are required
players can expect this kind of return from slot games. The poker games referred to are the video poker games. The report indicates an average percentage payout of 99.51%. This needs further elaboration. Video poker games require strategic decisions from the players. Players who are able to make optimum decisions all the time will realize average percentage payouts that are more than the specified number. However players who are not good at video poker games may realize average percentage payouts that are significantly below the reported number. Hence new players should not blindly assume that they will be able to get the return of around 99.5% on video poker games. The table games are the most difficult to decipher. They usually include games like roulette and craps in which no strategic decisions are required. They also include games like blackjack in which players decisions play a major role in determining the average payout ratio. Hence it would be unwise to draw any conclusions about individual games from this report. As players continue to wager at an online casino they should make it a practice to check out the Percentage Payout Review and follow the trend. If nothing else it would give them satisfaction that they are wagering at an online casino that is fair to its customers. Articles from Casino Advisor
Emotion Control When Online Casino Gambling
Players in land-based casinos rarely display their emotions. While playing poker a display of emotions can be fatal. While playing other casino games display of emotions is not disadvantageous because the opponent is a device or a set of rules that cannot take advantage by ascertaining the player’s situation. However even those who play roulette
craps or blackjack keep their emotions in control in land based casinos. Possibly the social environment is such that it compels players not to stand out in the crowd by losing control of themselves. However
these restrictions do not apply in online gaming. Players are usually alone at
home while engaging in Internet gambling or with few close friends and family. Hence jumping with joy on receiving a big payout is par for the course. After all one of the advantages of gambling online from home is that players do not have to confirm either in dress code or in behavior. Yet not being able to keep emotions under control can have undesirable consequences in online gambling. Online casinos operate with much lower house edges primarily because they have lower costs. Therefore the average payout ratios should be much higher in online casinos and players should lose smaller amounts than in land-based casinos. Yet it is reported that players lose more quickly and larger amounts while playing online than while playing in land-based casinos. The reason is that a certain section of online players get emotional and are unable to stop gambling when they should. Consider the case of a player who has just won a huge amount at an Internet casino. He whoopees and rings up friends to inform them of his good fortune. They congratulate him and cheer him on. In this euphoria he feels that it is his lucky day and nothing can go wrong. Therefore he continues to gamble online and very soon loses all that he has won and perhaps a lot more. The case of a player who has wagered more than he can afford to and lost is similar. He sweats and curses his luck and gets desperate to make good his losses before his family comes to know of the misfortune. Therefore he keeps on wagering and keeps on losing. In both cases if the player had kept his emotions under control and let future actions be guided by rational thinking the outcome would probably have been different. Expressing joy at hitting a large payout is natural. But the player should not forget his overall betting plan. If he plans to keep his winnings aside he should immediately request for a withdrawal before starting the celebrations. In any event he should be focused enough to withdraw his original bankroll and then splurge with his winnings only. If a player loses more than he had intended to wager than the first thing that he should realize is chasing losses is the worst thing that he can do. This is possible only if he is not overcome with emotion and fear. A player is not likely to win big or lose big every now and then. But he will be able to control his emotions when such a thing happens only if he is habituated to doing so. Therefore online players should make it a practice right from the start that they should keep their emotions in control and not let the emotions cloud their rational judgment. If they are unable to do that then they have already taken the first step towards falling in the trap of problem gambling. Articles from Casino Advisor
Banking Online Casino Terms and Conditions
While registering at any online casino new players are required to accept the end user agreement that contains the terms and conditions under which they are being allowed to participate in the casino. Some of these terms and conditions relate to the function of banking and transfer of funds to the online casino. New players should understand the impact of these terms and conditions before accepting the end user agreement. Some of the more important banking related conditions are explained in this article. When the player signs the end user agreement he accepts certain obligations imposed on him by the online casino that are known as his warranties. He has to confirm that he is the true and lawful owner of the funds that he is using for wagering at the online casino. This implies that he cannot use credit cards that are not issued to him. Nor can he use any other payment options that are not directly in his name. When a player funds and online casino account using a credit card the casino usually allows him to wager immediately but does not allow him to withdraw funds until the credit card issuer has confirmed the transaction. Sometimes the player countermands the instructions given to the credit card company and this puts the onlin
e casino in a difficulty. The player anyway cannot withdraw the funds but a whole lot of unnecessary transacting has taken place. Such countermanding of instructions or charging back is explicitly prohibited and the player has to undertake that he will not engage in this kind of behavior. Should the player violate any of the terms of a wagering
where the related to banking or otherwise
this can have serious effects on the funds that he has with the online casino. If the player is deregistered or suspended
then the online casino can withhold the contested funds
whether they are deposits
refunds
bonuses or any other payments. The player specifically gives the online casino this permission when he signs the end user agreement. Should the player owe any funds to the online casino
the casino is authorized by the player to take the following actions. The online casino can circulate the details of the amount owed to intra-group databases that can be accessed by other online casinos. In the worst case they can also engage collection agencies for recovery of their debts. A very important condition relates to dormant accounts. This is an area where many online players make errors. Players often register at online casinos
wager for some time and move off elsewhere planning to return to that casino at some other time. For this reason they do not withdraw the balance that is due to them from the online casino. Online casinos usually specify a period of six months in which the player should withdraw the money if he is not carrying out transactions at the casino. Once the period of six months expires than the money is forfeited and it belongs to the online casino. Most online casinos implement this condition extremely rigidly. There is a reason for this. They incur a cost in maintaining the account of a customer. If the customer wagers regularly then the cost of maintaining the account becomes a part of the normal operating expense. But if the account is dormant then the online casino incurs the expense but does not get any revenue. In order to compensate for this loss funds in dormant accounts are forfeited. Hence it is a sound policy to withdraw the funds when the player decides to stop wagering at an online casino
no matter for how short a period of time. Reading the banking related terms and conditions is a one-time exercise and these conditions are usually available at the visitor’s website of the online casino. Therefore the player should first read and understand these conditions and only then start the registration process. Articles from Casino Advisor
