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Baccarat History

In the 1950’s the game was popularized in Vegas because of the efforts of Frank Sinatra, a co-owner of The Sands at the time. Targeted towards high rollers, Baccarat tables used to be exclusive territory with roped off access and dealers dressed in tuxedos.

How to Play Baccarat

A bet on the Player pays even money. A bet on the Banker pays even money minus a 5% house commission. Even though the player dealing is acting as the Banker, he is not obligated to bet on the Banker’s hand. Natural hands always immediately win or Tie (although a 9 beats an 8). After the Player’s hand is complete, the Banker’s hand is dealt out according to the following set of rules: If the Player did not draw a third card, then the Banker only draws a card to a hand of 4 or less. There are many debates pertaining to the history of baccarat, particularly where the game was invented: France or Italy. It's difficult to trace back the origins of this game mainly because slight variations of it name are used in both countries, each wanting to claim it as theirs. The Baccarat we know today originated in Great Britain and was then passed along to South America and finally to Nevada. The infamous Dunes casino introduced baccarat in the late 50's. There exists quite a diversity today, especially so since it has made its way onto the world wide web. Although a few rules have been changed here and there to accomodate the individual taste of a certain country, the style has remained the same. It has kept it's elegant trait and is still one of the most appealing games to the well situated individuals in our society. The table is staffed by only one dealer who is responsible for handling the cards.

Baccarat Rules

Baccarat is played with eight decks of cards without Jokers. The baccarat game is now ready to play. Each player is given the bank in turn and can hold the bank as long as the bank wins. Before the cards are dealt each baccarat player has to make his bet. If the hand you bet on wins you get a one to one payoff. In Baccarat you always have to keep in mind that the fist digit in a two-digit number does not count. So if you draw an eight in baccarat and a three, for instance, the value of both together would be eleven but since the first digit does not count your hand counts only one. Unlike in Black Jack it is impossible to overdraw in Baccarat. After all bets are made, which cannot be added to or retracted once play begins, the House will deal four face-down cards - two cards each to both the player and banker (House) After the cards are finished being dealt, they are revealed and tabulated. Depending on hand outcomes, the player hand will either draw a third card or stand. Two components of the game need clearing up at this point. All cards numbered 2 through 9 are worth their numeric value. In order to calculate a hand total, simply add the value of the two cards. A hand of seven and four has a value of 1. (7 + 4 = 11 - 10 = 1) A hand that has drawn and composed of three cards is calculated in the same fashion. Player shows a 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 or 0 Player Hand must Draw. Banker shows a 4 Banker Hand must Draw if player's draw card is a 0, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, or 7 Banker Hand must Stand if player's draw card is a 0, 1, 8 or 9. Banker shows a 5 Banker Hand must Draw if player's draw card is a 4, 5, 6, or 7 Banker Hand must Stand if player's draw card is a 0,1, 2, 3, 8 or 9. After the dealer has finished drawing, the hands are added up and a winner is declared. The game is played modulo 10, that is if the total of the hand is greater than 10, then 10 is subtracted from the total. (Thus the value of a hand is always between 0 through 9). Tied 9s or tied 8s are a stand off; no money changes hands (unless ties can be bet on) If neither the player or the banker has a natural (a total of 8 or 9) then play goes to the player. With a total of 7, he stands. With a total of 6 or less, his selection depends on the value of his two card total and the value of the card that the player drew. This is of course because there is more of a chance for a banker win. This means the game is quite simple especially as there are only three possible bets that can be made. When the bank wins the house claims a %5 cut of the winnings and the total amount is collected every time the shoe is reshuffled. All picture cards count as 10 and aces count as 1. Player and dealer are both dealt two cards to start with, if either of them has a two card total of 8 or 9 then they must immediately turn over the cards. If the dealer has 4 then he must draw if your card is a 2-3-4-5-6-7. If the dealer has 8 then he must stand. Once all the hands are dealt it is closest to 9 that wins.

Tips

- The banker hand does carry with it a 5% vig, or commission, bringing the House Edge up to 2%. As for the tie wager, it should be out of the question since it gives a casino advantage of nearly 15%.
- A slight difference of only one hundredth of a percent shows, which is apparent when looking at the House Edge. For an eight deck game, the casino advantage on the banker hand is 16%, whereas it is 15% in a six deck game.
- Usually this commission is 5%, which returns a House Edge of approximately 15%. sometimes casinos will only impose a 4% commission, which brings the House Edge on the banker bet down to only approximately %.
- Any system like the Martingale, which is designed to cover losses, should be avoided. If you want to take your chances, then by all means use a system - just know when to quit.

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