Pontoon

Pontoon is a very similar game to Blackjack. It is played with eight 52-card decks. The objective of the game is to get a hand that is as close to 21 as possible, without going over.

Both you and the dealing will start with two cards.. The dealer checks his cards for the winning Pontoon hand, but otherwise they remain face down. You can hit for another card or stand (only if your hand total is 15 or more), doubling or splitting (if your two cards match). When you are happy with your hand then the dealer reveals his and hits or stands according to the house rules.

A tie between player and dealer will see the dealer win. The dealer must hit on a soft 17. Card values the same as in Blackjack (Jacks, Queens and Kings are all ten and an ace can be one or 11).

Pontoon rules are explained in more detail below:

Pootoon rules

The differences between Pontoon and Blackjack are:

There are two hands that will beat a regular 21: Pontoon (an ace and a ten or picture card) and Five Card Trick (when the player holds five cards without busting, no matter what the total value of the hand is). Both hands pay 2 to 1.
Both the dealer's cards will remain face down until the player stands or busts.
No insurance option for the player
In case of a tie, the dealer wins. Therefore the player must beat the dealer.
At the beginning of a hand, the dealer will check his cards. If the dealer has a Pontoon then it is game over and the dealer will win the hand.
The player must have at least 15 to stand.
The player can draw as many cards as they like after they double.
The player can only split cards with equal rank. For example you can split two eights or a queen and a king, both of which rank ten points.
If you get an ace and a ten or a picture card in your split hand, it counts as Pontoon

Card values

Regular cards have rank value (2 is two points, 5 is five points, etc). Jack, Queen and King are ten points. The ace is one or 11 points.

Hand ranking and payout

In descending order:

Pontoon (Ace + 10-point card) will beat every other hand. Pays 2 to 1.
Five Card Trick (Any five cards, as long as the total is not over 21) beats every hand except Pontoon. It again pays 2 to 1.
21 (Three or four cards totalling 21) beats every hand except Pontoon and Five Card Trick. This will pay even money.
High Total (Two, three or four cards, as long as the total is not over 21) beats every hand with a lower total, except a Five Card Trick. Again it pays even money.
Busting (Three or more cards totalling more than 21) will ensure that the player loses the bet.

Dealer rules

The dealer must hit on a soft 17 (two, three or four cards totalling 17, if one of them is an ace) or lower.
The dealer must stand on a hard 17 (two, three or four cards totalling at least 17 if none of them is an ace) or higher.
In case of a push, the dealer wins.

Table description

The Pontoon game table includes the playing area where the cards and played chips are displayed, the bet area that shows chips of available values, and the button area with the player's action buttons.

Choose the chips you want to bet with and place them in the betting area by left clicking on the mouse. When you have the starting bet you want then start the game.

The following action buttons are used:

Deal/Rebet . This button is used to start the hand once you've placed your bet, or to quickly bet the same amount as last time.
Hit . When you click this button, another card is dealt to you.
Stand . When you click this button, you tell the dealer that you are happy with your hand. The dealer then reveals his cards and hits or stands as necessary.
Double . If you believe that you will get a winning hand this time around (for example, if your current total is 11 and there's a good chance the next card will be a ten; or you have four cards with a low total and want to take your chances with a Five Card Trick hand), you can click this button and double your bet. You can only use this button once per hand, but there is no limit to how many cards you can draw after doubling - as long as you don't bust. You can also double after splitting.
Split . If you start out with two cards with equal rank, you can split the hand in two. Your bet will be doubled, and another card drawn to each of the two hands. You can then play both hands against the same dealer's hand. Only one of the split hands can be split again (up to three hands total).

Shortcut keys

You can use the following shortcut keys to speed up gameplay:

Spacebar - to start a new game round (and rebet if you haven't placed a bet manually)
Number keys - to enter your bet amount
Esc - to end the game and return to the lobby

Note on malfunctions: A malfunction voids all pays and plays.

Towards the bottom of the game window you'll find the Betfair Casino toolbar. This contains the following:

Current balance

Your account balance. The Betfair Casino keeps you u to date with the amount of money you have in your account at all times.

Cashier

Clicking on this button opens the Cashier window. In here you can make deposits and withdrawls from your account as well as checking out your transaction history et al.

Chat

Clicking on the chat facility will allow you to talk to others. A black strip next to the chat button will turn into a text box and in here you can type your message and to send simply press chat again. Doing this opens a new chat window.. Please note: You can only chat to other uses when you are playing multi-player games at the Betfair Casino.

Menu

Under the Menu function you'll find three important functions of the Betfair Casino

Viewing the games history is easy. Just click on the History button (this is available in both online and offline mode) This opens a window where you can read the latest results from the game which you are currently playing.

Clicking on Options gives you several ways to enhance your Betfair Casino experience including audio setting and various gameplay settings. Help opens the help article that accompanies the game which you are reading right now.

Online Support lets you contact a Betfair Casino customer support specialist, as long as one is available.

Close/Lobby

Clicking this button will return to the Betfair Casino Lobby and close your current gaming window. If you have Multiwindow support setup and enabled (this is where games are opened in new windows), the button will say Close. If Multiwindow support is not setup or disabled (your games are opened in the same window as the Lobby), then the button will say Lobby. You can easily enable or disable this feature in the options menu discussed in the previous paragraph.

Shortcut keys

If you wish, you can press the following keys on your keyboard instead of clicking on the buttons on the screen.

Press this key	To do this
TAB	Tab between the buttons on the screen.
ENTER	Click the button that is currently highlighted.
SPACEBAR	Place your previous bet, press again to spin the wheel as well.
Number keys	Select a chip. Different number keys select different chips. The number of functioning keys depends on the chips allowed for the current player and can be subject to change.
ESC	Exit the game and go back to the lobby.

Note on large wins: If you are lucky (or skillful) enough to win more than Â£10,000 then this will need to be varified by a live operator as the Betfair Casino regards this as a high win.

Note on malfunctions: A malfunction voids all pays and plays.

Note on disconnections: If your internet connection fails on you and you are disconnected from the Internet in the middle of a game while playing for Real Money then don't panic. Just re-establish your Internet connection and log back into the Betfair Casino lobby. Then click History and you'll see the result of your previous round and if you've won then your winning will be added to your account.