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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. More
recently, a lot of US casinos have offered “Mini Baccarat”.
How to Play Baccarat
Baccarat is a very simple game to play with no decisions
made after a bet is placed. Aces count as One and Two
through Nine are counted at face value. Even though the player dealing is acting as the Banker, he is not
obligated to bet on the Banker’s hand. After players make their bets the dealer
deals a two-card hand to the Banker and Player. If
neither hand is 9 a hand with a total of 8 is a Natural winner. 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. 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. The Baccarat we know today originated in Great Britain and was then passed along to South America and finally to Nevada. There exists quite a diversity today, especially so since it has made its way onto the world wide web. It is played by the exact same rules, but lacks the accoutrements of the formal version. The limits are lower and usually range from a $2 to $5 minimum, up to $500 maximum.
Baccarat Rules
The most important thing you need to know is whether
you are betting on the Player, on the Bank or on Tie. Baccarat is played with eight decks of cards without Jokers. Before the cards are dealt each baccarat
player has to make his bet. 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. 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. 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. After the players
turn, and depending on both the outcome of the players
hand and its own, the dealer hand will either draw a
third additional card or stand. The hand closest
to a total value of nine wins. Two components of the game need clearing up at this
point. One factor is how hand values are tabulated. The other is how drawing a third card is determined. Please note that both hands are allowed a maximum of one
card draw. Tabulating the hand value is straightforward
and only takes simple mathematics of addition. For instance, a hand of 5, Queen and 9 has a
value of 4 (5 + 0 + 9 = 14 - 10 = 4) Card draw determination is slightly more
involved and is often explained with a chart. If one hand is an 8 and the
other is a 9, the 9 wins. Player shows a 6, 7, 8, or 9
(8 and 9 win)
Player Hand must Stand. Once the player hand is finished and
standing, the bank hand will determine whether it must
draw a third card.
- 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
. There are two hands dealt regardless of how many players there are: the banker's hand and the player's hand. 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. The payout for winning a bet on the banker's or the player's hand is even money, or 1 to 1 and winning draw bets are paid off at 8 to 1 odds or 9 to 1 depending on where you are playing. The other must do so also. The player stands on a total of 6 or 7, but if the player has a total of 5 or less he/she must draw one card (face up)
Now it is the bankers turn. Dealers normally wear tuxedos and the surrounding are is quite lavish. Three dealers run the game and one of these is the caller who runs the game and stands between positions 1 and 15. 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. 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 the dealer has 4 then he must draw if your card is a 2-3-4-5-6-7. If the dealer has 6 then he must draw if your card is a 6-7. 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. When more 4's are leaving the deck, the banker bet has slightly better odds, whereas when 6's leave the deck, the player bet has a slightly better chance of winning than it does from the start of a fresh deck. As for the tie wager, it should be out of the question since it gives a casino advantage of nearly 15%.
- Looking at the House Edge, it is lowered, albeit not substantially, for every deck taken out of the equation. A baccarat game using eight decks will deliver a probability of 456% of winning on the bank hand, 442% of winning on the player hand, and 92% of winning on a Tie.
- sometimes casinos will only impose a 4% commission, which brings the House Edge on the banker bet down to only approximately %. If you can get a 4% commission, by all means take advantage of it - and bet on the banker every time.
- Any system like the Martingale, which is designed to cover losses, should be avoided. Whatever you decide to follow, be sure you plan ahead of time.
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