How to Play Bingo?

Bingo is played usually in halls where the Bingo rules and payouts vary from place to place. If you are a beginner to the game, you can always pick up a copy of the Bingo brochure which is available at each respective location. These will provide you with more details on the particular games, rules and payouts. Basically, players buy cards with numbers on them in a 5 x 5 grid corresponding to the five letters in the word B-I-N-G-O. Numbers are then drawn at random (out of a possible 75 in American Bingo, and 90 in British Bingo )and announced to the audience so that the players will cross out the same corresponding number which appear on their card. This process is repeated until one player completes a 'Bingo' pattern. There are a lot of different combinations of patterns that can be attained. Some examples are "Black Out", "Single Line", "Double Line", " Y pattern" and many more.

A bingo Card usually contains 24 numbered spaces and one free space (blank), with which you play BINGO. The numbers are assigned at random on each card and are arranged in five columns of five numbers each by five rows (5 x 5 = 25 in total including the blank square).

For instance, the numbers in the B column are between 1 and 15, in the I column between 16 and 30, in the N column (containing four numbers and the free space) between 31 and 45, in the G column between 46 and 60, and in the O column between 61 and 75.

The numbers are announced quickly by the caller, so you must pay careful attention to the numbers that are called and mark them quickly and accurately on your card(s). In some halls, they will provide the flashboard which is used display the numbers that will appear to make it convenient for everyone to see. Usually, on the flashboard, each number is placed under the letter that it corresponds to. This will allow your players to do some essential reviews and backtracking, in case they missed out on some of the announced numbers.

Each game stops only when one of the players shout "Bingo" aloud. This is then followed by the verification of his winning numbers. If there is a winner, the prize is awarded and a new bingo game begins with new cards. In the case of more than one winner, the prize is then equally split among all the winners.

For more information on playing bingo online, bingo supplies and bingo bags, please visit bingo.com

Sky Joe is a well known author, website publisher and owner of the website http://bingo.mygeneralknowledge.com. ©Skyjoe. All rights reserved. This article may be freely distributed as long as it remains unchanged.

Bingo Supplies Should Sell For Less at Your Bingo Concession

Bingo supplies is an interesting business. As a distributor of bingo game supplies, we see a lot of good bingo managers, and a lot bingo managers that struggle. One mistake that I think a lot of managers make with their operation is running a high cost concession.

For instance, some bingo managers feel that if they buy a bingo marker for $1.00, they must charge at least $1.50 or some other number to their players. If they buy a cushion for $20.00, they think they have to charge at least $25.00. After all, when you're in business, you buy something, mark it up to a higher price, and then you sell it, right?

Well, in the case of a concession, I don't think so.

I am a firm believer that a bingo concession should not operate to make much, if any, profit. Instead, a concession should act as a "loss leader", or at least like a "break-even leader" for the entire bingo. Instead of looking to make a $0.50 profit on a bingo dauber, most concessions should look at the bigger picture. Your bingo's profit centers should be your bingo paper, electronic handhelds, pulltabs, and other gaming products, not your concession items. Low priced bingo game supplies such as daubers, bingo chips, bags, cushions, etc. should be used to attract new players and keep existing players at your event.

I've heard many stories about bingos getting more players to attend with low cost supplies. New players frequently will show up to your bingo (and skip another) because of a low-priced concession. And, both new and existing players that save some money on supplies will often enjoy spending that savings on additional electronic bingo cards, more bingo paper, and/or pulltabs.

These bingo items, not the supplies at your concession, should be a bingo chairperson's best profit makers. Think about it. There's a reason many casinos in Las Vegas will give out free food to people sitting at slot machines. In this regard, bingo is no different.

For more information on playing bingo, bingo supplies, ordering bingo paper and selections of bingo game sets please visit Bingo Supplies

"Bingo Bob" has been in the charity bingo distribution business for over 20 years, is the owner of the website WholesaleBingoSupplies.com, and blogs about the bingo industry on the Bingo Supplies Blog. This article my be freely distributed as long as it remains unchanged.