The game’s history can be traced all the way back to 1530 to an Italian lottery game called “Lo Giuoco del Lotto D’italia,”. Since then, the game of bingo has been played and enjoyed by people of all ages – from children enjoying its basic educational form, to adults who enjoy weekly bingo nights. The modern world has seen even more people playing thanks to the advent of the internet, bringing bingo online. Like any other game, bingo has rules that should be followed to ensure a successful online gaming experience.
In this guide, we have clearly explained to you the basic bingo rules on how to play bingo online. We will also explain bingo odds to you in a simple and straightforward way. Whether you are a beginner or a seasoned player, our basic bingo online strategies will be useful in taking your online bingo experience up a notch.
Bingo Rules
The basic premise for all bingo game variations (whether 30-ball, 75-ball, 80-ball, or 90-ball) is the same. The caller randomly selects the numbers on the ball. The caller randomly selects a ball from a basket or tumbler and calls out the number. The players must match these numbers to those on their ticket or card in a certain pattern. The first person to match all their numbers to the called ones becomes the winner.
However, each bingo online game variation will differ quite significantly from the others when it comes to predetermined winning patterns and the cards.
In 75-ball bingo, 75 numbers are divided into 15 groups using the letters B, I, N, G and O.
B: 1 to 15, I: 16-30, N: 31-45, G: 46- 60, and O: 61-75
The card has a “FREE” space at the center where all players ‘daub.’ The other spaces get filled with numbers randomly based on the B-I-N-G-O pattern. To complete a pattern specified at the beginning of the game, you must fill the required spaces.
On the other hand, 90-Ball Bingo uses 90 instead of 75 numbers. There are 3 rows of numbers in each of the 9 columns. 3 winners emerge from 3 phases of awarding players: 1-Line, 2-Lines, and Full House. If you daub one full line across, you win the first prize. If you get two full lines across daubed, you win the second prize. Lastly, the first player who gets all numbers on their ticket daubed wins the Full House.
When it comes to 80-ball Bingo, 80 balls are utilized in a grid of 4 by 4 squares.
Column;
1 (Red): 1-20
2 (Yellow): 21-40
3 (Blue): 41-60
4 (Silver): 61-80
Bingo online sites occasionally vary the winning patterns.
Understanding Bingo Odds
Theoretically, it is simple to calculate odds in online bingo games: just divide the number of cards that you have by the total number of cards in play. Hence, if you are playing 5 cards in a play that has 100 cards, your chance of emerging a winner is 5 in 100, or 5 percent.
The trick lies in knowing the number of cards in play.
You can count the number of players and multiply the figure you get by the probable average number of cards per player.
However, the above odds do not apply to jackpot games that are progressive. We all know that a winner is not guaranteed in most progressive bingo online games. So, the difficulty of matching the pattern in the preset number of calls determines the odds of winning a progressive jackpot. In some progressive games, it may take a while before a person wins due to the steepness of the odds.
Basic Online Bingo Strategy
- Reduce the competition
You can increase your chance of winning simply by playing against fewer opponents. For example, try to play during week days and odd hours, when fewer people are playing bingo online.
- Play multiple cards
Any professional advice on how to play bingo online will never fail to mention this as among the golden bingo rules. Playing more cards increases the chances of winning bingo games.
- Know the bingo rules of the game
You should do some research on the bingo game and its rules to avoid making mistakes. A good site should guide you on how to play a particular bingo game, the available prizes, and how to scoop those prizes.
- Make use of the chat room
When playing bingo on an online platform, you may be too focused on the main bingo game to remember using the chat room. Thus, maintain some chats with other players and keep the chat room open. As you chat, you will easily come across special prizes and competitions being discussed or announced.
- Apply bingo strategy systems
When answering the question of how to play online bingo, two main systems tend to feature in the discussions: Tippett’s and Granville. Although the numbers in bingo are drawn completely randomly, there is no harm in using these systems since they do not reduce your winning odds either.
Summary
Like in any other game, online Bingo games have rules that every player needs to know. The rules guide you on how to play online bingo like a professional. Although all online bingo variations have a basic premise, they differ in terms of the cards/ tickets and patterns. Thus, it is important to understand each variation or game and apply suitable strategies on how to play the specific bingo game in order to maximise your chance of winning.