GameMaster Rating: 83 points (of 100)

General Comments: This casino has been online for over two years now and longevity is always a good sign of a reputable casino. Another good sign is that the software is by Bossmedia, one of the 'biggies' of the industry, so the overall look and operation of this casino is of high quality. If you're a table games player, you might find happiness here, but don't go if you want a good Video Poker game or a 'hot' slot. This is a relatively small casino, so the download that is needed is also fairly small at 4.3 megs and a CD-Rom is available by snail mail, if you wish. If you do not open a 'real' $$$ account and play only for fun as I did, all the play is off your own hard drive, so you don't really get an idea of how the casino operates when you're connected to their server. Gold Club Casino also has a multi-player mode, but that's a different download and is, I'm sure, a much larger package. I didn't try it. But all that is window-dressing: What we care about here at GMO is good deals for the player and the visitor to Gold Club Casino has to be very selective to find any.

Recommendations: This casino has a good reputation, but it needs to recognize that players are getting smarter every day, so they should upgrade those games which currently give below-par paybacks.

Games Analysis (All this information was correct on the date listed above)

Blackjack: The site doesn't specify the number of decks in play, but I did not receive duplicate cards in the same hand after quite a bit of play, so it's probably single-deck and I'll use that for my calculations. The rules are: dealer stands on A-6, double on any first two cards, double after split and unlike 10s may be split. Pairs may be split only once. Insurance is available, the dealer 'peeks' and split Aces receive only one card. The player using proper basic strategy has a slight edge (about 0.08%) over the 'house', if this is a single-deck game. Limits are $5-$500 and only one hand at a time may be played.

Blackjack playing tips: I saw no indication of a shuffle, so I assume the deck is shuffled after every hand. Beyond that, this is a nice game.

* The theoretical return is the long-term payback a player who is using the correct strategy may expect. The return is lower for 1-coin play because the Royal Flush pays less when fewer than 5 coins are played.

Video Poker Playing Tips: This is a 7/5 Jacks or Better game with a 5000-coin Royal which you should not play.

Slot Machine: The only machine available is called "Gold Pirates" with 'pirate' being the operative word, in my not-so-humble opinion. It's available in both quarter and dollar formats. I played it twice; the first time I lost $99 in 90 spins, betting $3 per spin. That's a return of 63% of all the $$$ bet. The second time, I played 100 spins ($300 total bet) and lost $72 which is a return of 76%, so we can extrapolate a casino edge of about 25-30% from this admittedly small sample. But who's willing to play long enough to get a larger sample?

Craps: Good news and bad news They offer 3X odds and that's good. They also offer a Big 6 and Big 8 bet, which I thought had died a long time ago. This is a sucker bet on the 6 or 8 which pays even money, giving the casino an edge of 9.09% If you put the same bet on as a 'place' bet, you'll get paid 7 to 6 for a casino edge of only 1.5%. Limits are $5-$500 max. on one roll, though hardways have a minimum of $2 and a max. of $50. If you play here, be sure to check the Help menu for other bet restrictions.

Roulette: This is a double-zero wheel and there is no 'en prison' rule, so the casino's edge is 5.26% on all bets. Betting limits are $5-$500.

Baccarat: This appears to be a standard game. The 'commission' on a winning Banker bet is 5%. Ties pay 8 to 1. The casino's edge is 1.06% on a Banker bet and 1.23% on a Player bet. The edge on a Tie bet is 14+%. Limits are $5-$500.

Caribbean Stud Poker: This has the usual pay schedule, except that the Royal pays 200 to 1 instead of the usual 100 to 1 (that adds only 0.034%) but there is no dollar side bet for a progressive Royal. The house edge is about 2.56% if the player raises only with hands of A,K,J,8,3 or better.

Pai-Gow Poker: The casino is always the Banker in this game and the 'commission' on a winning bet is 5%, so when combined with the natural edge of the Banker, the net effect is a casino edge of about 3% against a skillful player. The casino says that they set the dealer's hand according to the strategies of Stanford Wong. His book, "Optimum Strategy for Pai Gow Poker" is the best book on the game.

Summary and Rating of Gold Club Casino: As you can see from my evaluations, this casino offers some good table games but nothing here really stands out. Their longevity on the Internet is a good sign and I've never heard an ill word about their payoffs or customer service, so they have earned an 'average' rating of 83 points.