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Baccarat History

The game was introduced to the French Court in the 15th century and became the favorite game among French nobility. Mini Baccarat has the same rules as Baccarat but has lower stakes and is played on a standard Blackjack shaped table.

How to Play Baccarat

There are three bets available: The Player’s hand, the Banker’s hand, or a Tie. A bet on the Banker pays even money minus a 5% house commission. Aces count as One and Two through Nine are counted at face value. In the classic game of Baccarat the deal rotates among the players. Natural hands always immediately win or Tie (although a 9 beats an 8). There are many debates pertaining to the history of baccarat, particularly where the game was invented: France or Italy. It's been suggested that the game was first played with a deck of Tarot cards in the middle ages. The result of the die decided her fate. If an eight or a nine was thrown, she would become the priestess; if she threw a six or seven, she would be banned from any further religious activities; if she threw any number less than six, she would walk into the sea. 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. The highest of the high rollers often come from overseas to try their hand under the chandeliers of the stylish Vegas baccarat rooms. A number of casinos have installed a smaller version of the baccarat game played on standard blackjack-sized gaming tables. It is played by the exact same rules, but lacks the accoutrements of the formal version.

Baccarat Rules

Baccarat, pronounced "Bah-Caw-Rah", is probably one of the easiest and uncomplicated table games there is. The baccarat game is now ready to play. Once the bank looses it moves on to the next player. If the first two cards dealt count Eight or Nine it is called a "Natural" and wins automatically, unless both hands have the same value then it is of course a Tie. You can bet on a Tie where you get a one to eight payoff but a Tie is very rare, it occurs less than once in ten hands. This is not only the case with single card values but with the result of two cards combined. Unlike in Black Jack it is impossible to overdraw in Baccarat. Unlike blackjack, but rather, like craps, multiple players around the table can bet on which hand will win. The hand closest to a total value of nine wins. If both hands are the same, the game is deemed a tie. Two components of the game need clearing up at this point. Please note that both hands are allowed a maximum of one card draw. a baccarat hand will never exceed three cards total. All cards numbered 2 through 9 are worth their numeric value. For instance, a hand of 6 and 10 will have a total value of 6. (7 + 4 = 11 - 10 = 1) A hand that has drawn and composed of three cards is calculated in the same fashion. If such is not the case, the Player Hand makes the first move. Winning bets on the player hand pay back 1 to 1, while winning bets on the banker hand do the same, but with a 5% vig (commission) winning tie bets pay back 9 to 1. The player's objective is to get a hand that is closer to 9 in value than the banker's. If the players cards total 15, 10 is subtracted and the value of the hand becomes 5. The task for you as a player is to bet on the banker's hand, the player's hand, or a draw, which means that the two hands are tied. If the player or banker has a two card total of 8 or 9, he/she turns the cards over immediately. This is of course because there is more of a chance for a banker win. It may still be a good idea to try it online first, and within minutes you'll feel comfortable enough to play anywhere. The game of baccarat is unlike most casino games as the is no level of skill involved the reason for this is that neither the player or dealer has any options or decisions to make during the course of the game. Three dealers run the game and one of these is the caller who runs the game and stands between positions 1 and 15. Each player takes it in turns to deal from the shoe there is however no advantage to be gained from it and it is just part of the tradition of the game. 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. The aim of the game is to get as close to 9 as possible and if you are nearer then you win. If either you or the dealer has a 6 or 7 then you must stand if you stand on a 6 or 7 then the dealer must hit on a score of less than 5. If the dealer has 2 then he must draw.

Tips

- Depending on the number of decks being played, the casino advantage for the player hand wager is generally 15%, whereas on the banker hand it is only 16%. The banker hand does carry with it a 5% vig, or commission, bringing the House Edge up to 2%. Going back the card-counting issue, if a player does indeed insist on counting cards, they should pay attention to 6's and 4's.
- For an eight deck game, the casino advantage on the banker hand is 16%, whereas it is 15% in a six deck game. Although this difference is so negligible that most players do not advise picking one version of baccarat over the other, it is advisable to take all the advantage one can possibly take.
- Usually this commission is 5%, which returns a House Edge of approximately 15%. If you can get a 4% commission, by all means take advantage of it - and bet on the banker every time.
- As for other bankroll management strategies, a good one is posted on this website. At the least, set yourself limits on losses and stake amounts.

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