Patent ID: 8287354

Claim:
A method of providing an electronic bingo game via a plurality of gaming machines, the method comprising: drawing a first set of bingo numbers; drawing a second set of bingo numbers; causing each gaming machine of the plurality of gaming machines to: display a bingo card, the bingo card including a plurality of bingo numbers, display information indicating a winning bingo pattern associated with the bingo card, display face values for a first hand of playing cards, each playing card in the first hand corresponding to a bingo number in the plurality of bingo numbers included on the bingo card and the number of playing cards in the first hand being equal to a first amount, permit bingo numbers on the bingo card corresponding to the bingo numbers in the first set of bingo numbers to be daubed during a first time, wherein each playing card in the first hand of playing cards further corresponds to a daubed bingo number on the bingo card, receive input indicating selected playing cards in the first hand, display a face value for an additional playing card for each unselected playing card in the first hand, thereby forming a second hand of playing cards composed of the selected playing cards in the first hand and, if present, the additional playing cards, permit bingo numbers on the bingo card corresponding to the bingo numbers in the second set of bingo numbers to be daubed during a second time, wherein each additional playing card in the second hand of playing cards further corresponds to a daubed bingo number on the bingo card, and determining, after the second hands have been formed, the gaming machine or gaming machines in the plurality of gaming machines that display the highest-ranked poker hand with respect to the second hand of playing cards, wherein: the drawing the first set of bingo numbers includes drawing bingo numbers until the winning bingo pattern is daubed on the bingo card of one or more of the gaming machines in the plurality of gaming machines, and the first hand of playing cards is displayed only after the second set of bingo numbers is drawn when one or more of the gaming machines has less bingo numbers daubed during the first time than the first amount after drawing the first set of bingo numbers.