Top 5 Casino Table Games

Casino table games are a gambling favorite for good reason. This is where the real action is. Table games allow players to incorporate strategy and put that knowledge to use. It’s all about knowing the odds, making it a more active way to gamble than pulling a slot lever (virtual or real) and hoping for the best.

The same is true at real-money online casinos, where experienced players and newcomers alike can profit from knowing what to do and knowing which games give the house the biggest edge. Some games, such as blackjack, incorporate a lot of strategy while others, including baccarat, are more straightforward.

Like anything in life, playing these games and playing them well is all about reps. The more you play blackjack or three-card poker, the more comfortable you’ll be making the right decision. Eventually you won’t even have to think about it anymore. The strategy and by-the-book plays will be ingrained in your brain.

The only way to reach that point is with lots of practice, and there’s no better way than with online casino table games. Playing online gives you the chance to hone your skills and learn these games inside and out with a lot of repetition. Yes, you can play to win real money, but many online casinos also have low-limit games, welcome bonuses and even a free bet to entice new bettors. Check out the top games offered at all the best paying online casinos below.

Baccarat

Baccarat is still a mystery for many casino players. It has a fancy name and is generally considered a high-stakes table game, so a lot of folks gravitate toward their comfort zone in the slots area. It’s all nonsense. Baccarat is a relatively easy game to learn. A player is dealt two cards (and a third if the total is less than 5). Same for the dealer. Nine is the magic number. Whichever hand equals or comes closest to nine wins, with face cards counting as zero and aces counting as one.

If a hand adds up to more than nine, the total is subtracted by 10. For example, a pair of eights has a value of six: 8 + 8 = 16; 16-10 = 6

We’re talking elementary-level math here. The twist is that players don’t have to bet on their own hand. Before the cards are dealt they can bet on their hand, the dealer’s hand, or a tie, with varying odds for each bet.

Playing online baccarat is the quickest way to learn. The hands go fast and, unlike blackjack, players don’t make any decisions once the cards have been dealt. The only decision is made before the hand when players choose which outcome to bet. Playing popular table games such as baccarat online is a great way to get comfortable with the various odds.

And, despite its high-stakes reputation at the casino and in movies, online games offer a variety of stakes and minimum wagers. Try a few hands online – you can even play a live dealer version – and you’ll quickly realize baccarat is actually less complicated than most casino table games. You can learn more about online baccarat here, including recommended casino sites that offer it, such as the best New Jersey online casino.

Craps

If you’re at the casino and hear a massive cheer, there’s a good chance it’s coming from the craps table. Players are usually rooting for the same outcome as they take turns throwing dice onto a large, numbered board. Simply put, it is one exciting game to watch and even better to play.

The most common bet is the “pass line.” If the shooter rolls a 7 or 11, the pass bet wins. If the shooter rolls a 2, 3 or 12, the pass bet loses. If the shooter rolls any other number, that number becomes the “point.” The shooter will continue to roll the dice until he rolls the same number again, in which case the pass bet wins, or rolls a 7, in which case the pass bet loses. Those are just the very basics, with tons of additional bets and opportunities to increase wagers throughout the shooter’s turn.

Getting hot on the dice is easily one of the most thrilling gambling experiences and can lead to big payouts for everyone at the table. But craps is a bit more intricate than other casino table games. It requires more time to understand all the different bet types and when player are allowed to increase their wagers during a shooter’s turn.

RELATED: Check out our beginner’s guide to the craps table

Playing online craps, even a free version, is the perfect way to get acclimated with the action-packed table game. You can try out different options like the don’t pass bet, playing the field, etc. Playing craps delivers a ton of bang for your buck on hot streaks and the inherent entertainment value is second to none. Playing online will give craps beginners a chance to understand the game and bet their money with confidence.

Three-Card Poker

This is a great way to scratch the poker itch without having to wait around for a spot in a live poker room against other players, playing online poker or even video poker. The player places an ante before every hand and is dealt – you guessed it – three cards. They can then choose whether to play the hand with an additional wager or fold and lose the ante. Standard poker hand values apply.

Again, this is a simple one to pick up by playing three-card poker online. It will come naturally to anyone with previous poker experience and won’t take long for novices to grasp the values. This one is all about choosing whether to play the hand or fold. Players who start online will quickly learn which hands should be bet due to great value and which hands should be folded to avoid risky wagers.

Three-card poker also includes bonus payouts for a flush, straight, three-of-a-kind or straight flush. Playing online will help players get acclimated at their own pace with the different payouts and learn how to manage their bankroll with a fun and relatively straightforward table game. Explore different online casinos, including the best online casinos in Michigan, and enjoy playing responsibly.

Roulette

There’s always a party at the roulette table in a casino. Chips flying around the table, wheels spinning, crowds going nuts. It’s also one of the most popular casino games to play online, but in a live dealer environment and virtually.

Roulette is a basic casino table game with a wheel and numbered board. A dealer drops a ball and spins the wheel and players can bet on whether it will land on a red or black wheel slot or, in American roulette, the green 00 spot. In European roulette, there is no 00, making for better odds. You can also bet on odd or even numbers, individual numbers or different combinations. You can learn more about European roulette here.

Learning when you’re allowed to place bets, how many different bets you can place and which chips you should be betting with just takes a little time. Playing online roulette means you don’t have to elbow through the crowd or ask someone for advice while they’re trying to make bets of their own. It is one of the most popular live casino games out there, and we encourage you to find a live casino site in your state to see why.

Speed is an added benefit to playing online. The casino atmosphere is fun, but it takes a while for dealers to sort everything out in the aftermath. There can be thousands of individual chips on the table at a given time, and there’s a break after every spin as the house collects losing bets and dishes out winnings.

Those winnings can be lucrative, with odds of 35-1 when betting individual numbers to hit. Playing online roulette with the most popular Connecticut online casinos and other sites, provides the same opportunity for big wins in a timelier fashion. Give it a shot. You might find it’s easier to play online with fewer distractions and no need to worry about catching a forearm to the ribs in the pre-spin scramble.

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Blackjack

Playing blackjack at the casino is awesome, but there are a few drawbacks to this exciting game. It’s generally the most popular game and various tables have different minimum bets, usually anywhere from $10-$50 dollars.

For many starting out, that can be a high limit. Sometimes it’s hard to find an open seat at a table with your preferred stakes and you end up betting more money than you are comfortable with. And casinos often raise those table minimums during peak hours. That’s obviously not a problem with online blackjack, as players can find any number of low or high-stakes options. It also goes way faster online. That gives players the opportunity to practice different scenarios like when to split sevens or how to play a soft 18.

Blackjack is different from roulette in that the player can drastically reduce his odds to win by playing hands incorrectly. There’s no wrong way to bet on red or black, but there is a statistically incorrect way to play a 13 with the dealer showing 5.

Blackjack strategy guides aren’t hard to find, including about when to double down , but the best way to learn and improve is by playing a lot of hands, and practicing with online blackjack is the best way to get started and improve. And if you want that real casino feel while online, there are plenty of top live dealer casinos that give you that sensation from your laptop or mobile phone.

One last thing to consider about blackjack: Single-deck blackjack has one of the lowest house edges of any game you can play.

Now that you’ve learned about these top casino table games, enter your state below to find the top legal, licensed and regulated real money online casinos near you and start playing!

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