Baccarat History

The present form of Baccarat can be traced back to Italy. 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 Banker pays even money minus a 5% house commission. In the classic game of Baccarat the deal rotates among the players. In Mini Baccarat a casino dealer handles the deal. The Player’s hand is dealt to first, and only if the current value is 5 or less. If the Player did draw a third card, the Banker follows the rules at right. According to many, the game was first invented in Italy by a gambler Felix Falguiere, where it acquired the Italian name 'baccara', meaning zero in English. D. 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. 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. The infamous Dunes casino introduced baccarat in the late 50's. 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. 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 only thing you are betting against is the cards. So never mind what the other players bet on or how much they bet. The hand closest to nine wins. If the hand you bet on wins you get a one to one payoff. When there is a Tie and you did not bet on it nobody looses or wins. In Baccarat you always have to keep in mind that the fist digit in a two-digit number does not count. Unlike in Black Jack it is impossible to overdraw in Baccarat. After all is said and done, the hand with a point total closes to nine wins. The game begins with players placing bets. 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. The hand closest to a total value of nine wins. Tabulating the hand value is straightforward and only takes simple mathematics of addition. A hand of seven and four has a value of 1. If both hands have an 8 or 9, the game is deemed a tie, in which all Tie Bets win. Player shows a 6, 7, 8, or 9 (8 and 9 win) Player Hand must Stand. Player shows a 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 or 0 Player Hand must Draw. Once the player hand is finished and standing, the bank hand will determine whether it must draw a third card. 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. An ace counts as 1, two counts as 2, etc,, , up through nine counts as 9, but tens (jacks, queens and kings) count as 0. 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. Although the payoff for winning a draw bet is much more appealing, the chances of actually getting it are pretty low. (In online baccarat cards are always face up) A 9 value wins over any lesser total, and if neither player has a 9 then 8 wins over any lesser total. With a total of 7, he stands. The advantage is slim, in the area 0,,8%, but in the world of gambling that's really not that small. 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. 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. A 9 is the best hand and beats all other totals followed by 8, if both the dealer and the player has an 8 or 9 the hand is tied and no money changes hands. 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 0 then he must draw. 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.

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%. When the wager is counter-weighed by the player hand, the edge lowers to more near the 1% mark. Since the house edge is relatively similar for both bets, it is presumptuous to entirely negate the player hand wager.
- 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. Looking at the House Edge, it is lowered, albeit not substantially, for every deck taken out of the equation. 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.
- Play Baccarat at Casinos with the lowest commission possible. Any informed player would see that this bet is one of the best in the casino.
- Unless you have a very hearty bankroll, and do not mind losing every bit of it, play with a money management system that does not try to chase after losses. Whatever you decide to follow, be sure you plan ahead of time.

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