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Baccarat History

The present form of Baccarat can be traced back to Italy. 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. The winning hand is the hand that holds two or three cards totaling closest to nine. A bet on a Tie pays 8 to 1. Even though the player dealing is acting as the Banker, he is not obligated to bet on the Banker’s hand. In Mini Baccarat a casino dealer handles the deal. 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. It's been suggested that the game was first played with a deck of Tarot cards in the middle ages. The interesting bit to observe of course is that the casino is taking no risk here; they simply charge a fee from each banker. Falguiere based the game on an old Etruscan ritual of the nine gods, who prayed to a blonde virgin on their tiptoes waiting for her to throw a nine-sided die. The basis of this game is very similar, but the rules and payoffs are much less dramatic. 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. In casinos based in the Portuguese territory of Macao, near Hong Kong, the popularity of baccarat is unrivaled.

Baccarat Rules

Baccarat, pronounced "Bah-Caw-Rah", is probably one of the easiest and uncomplicated table games there is. Betting on Tie is not really recommended because it decreases your winning chances. It doesn't matter which seat you take at the baccarat table because unlike in Black Jack you are not playing against other players or against the house. The baccarat game is now ready to play. Once the bank looses it moves on to the next player. When nobody has a natural additional cards are drawn to determine the baccarat winner. This is not only the case with single card values but with the result of two cards combined. 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. Essentially, only three bets can potentially be made - A bet for the player's hand to win, the banker's hand to win, or a tie. One factor is how hand values are tabulated. Please note that both hands are allowed a maximum of one card draw. All other cards (tens and picture cards) are worth zero points. In order to calculate a hand total, simply add the value of the two cards. If this sum goes over ten, subtract ten and you will have the final value. I will try to simplify this as much as possible with a few brief guidelines. If both hands have an 8 or 9, the game is deemed a tie, in which all Tie Bets win. If one hand is an 8 and the other is a 9, the 9 wins. If such is not the case, the Player Hand makes the first move. The following guidelines determine what action the Bank Hand will take: On a side note, if the player hand does not draw a card, the banker hand will always draw if its value is lower than the player hand or if its own two-card value is 0, 1, or 2. 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.

The maximum number of cards in a baccarat hand is three,,
If the banker or the player has an eight (natural eight) or a nine (natural nine) on the first two cards dealt, no further cards are drawn,,
The player always draws when the hand is a five or less, unless the banker has a natural, and stands on a six and seven,,
the banker always stands if the player stands on a six or a seven

. Although the payoff for winning a draw bet is much more appealing, the chances of actually getting it are pretty low. 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. Baccarat rules state that winning banker bets are subject to a 5% house commission. This is of course because there is more of a chance for a banker win. Baccarat has a reputation for being a high rollers game and the tables are normally separate from the rest of the casino in there own section called the pit. 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 your score is below 6 then you must hit and receive a third card, if you receive a third card then the dealer takes another depending on your total. If the dealer has 2 then he must draw. If the dealer has 5 then he must draw if your card is a 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

- When the wager is counter-weighed by the player hand, the edge lowers to more near the 1% mark. in the long run, a player should be making more bets on the banker than on the player. As for the tie wager, it should be out of the question since it gives a casino advantage of nearly 15%.
- Many online casinos will offer different versions of baccarat, such as a one deck version, and a 6 or 8 deck version with higher minimum betting amounts. These same probabilities in a baccarat game with six decks are 457% on the banker hand, 443% on the player hand, and 91% on the Tie. For an eight deck game, the casino advantage on the banker hand is 16%, whereas it is 15% in a six deck game.
- On the banker bet, the casino charges a vig, or commission to counter the players advantage. If you can get a 4% commission, by all means take advantage of it - and bet on the banker every time.
- If you want to take your chances, then by all means use a system - just know when to quit. Whatever you decide to follow, be sure you plan ahead of time.

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