The Magic Word - BINGO

"BINGO!" has become a common expression especially when we find something we have wanted to find; when we see something we've been craving to see. Bingo is also used when something you have been anticipating happened. But where exactly did this "magic word" come from?

Bingo is a favorite pastime by many especially those who want to turn their lousy moments into moments of pure fun and excitement. It is a game whose main objective is to achieve a specified pattern on your bingo card through the combinations of numbers and letters that the moderator picks. Player who gets the pattern immediately shouts these musical words and voila! The prize is yours now!

How do we play bingo?

First, secure yourself a bingo card from the moderator. Get a marker or something that you can use to mark the combinations on your card which matches the combinations picked by the moderator. The game commences as the moderator announces the desired pattern. This could be a full block, a cross, an L, diagonal, horizontal or any other possible patterns.

Next, the moderator picks up a chip and announces the combinations, if it matches with your card then mark it but if it doesn't just wait until something matches yours. This goes on until someone completes the pattern and shouts the word "bingo!"

Bingo is mainly a game of chance. Winning depends on your luck in getting the cards whose numbers will most likely be picked by the moderator. However, there are certain strategies and skills needed for hitting the jackpot.

First, familiarize yourself with the patterns. This is easy but very important. Imagine the embarrassment that you could get if you shout bingo at the top of your lungs yet you formed a different pattern. You'll get laughter and embarrassment as a prize.

Second, use more than one card. Don't just depend and entrust your luck with a single card. If two heads are better than one, so are two cards better than a single chance. You can even use more but make sure you can manage it easily. Using more cards increases you chances in winning. Many players opt to play with more cards.

Third is that you should listen intently. Otherwise, you could miss some combinations which may be of great importance to your game, or you could mark the wrong squares and declare a bingo when actually you're not.

And lastly, never shout bingo if you're not. Don't play around. Remember, bingo is a neck to neck game of chances and every player is easily aggresses by simple unnecessary movements and words. Surely, you wouldn't want other players to crumple their cards and throw them at you and be evicted from the game.