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Baccarat History

The present form of Baccarat can be traced back to Italy. More recently, a lot of US casinos have offered “Mini Baccarat”.

How to Play Baccarat

The winning hand is the hand that holds two or three cards totaling closest to nine. In Mini Baccarat a casino dealer handles the deal. If neither hand is 9 a hand with a total of 8 is a Natural winner. The Player’s hand is dealt to first, and only if the current value is 5 or less. 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. 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 basis of this game is very similar, but the rules and payoffs are much less dramatic. Baccarat has a history overseas too, which is evidenced by its popularity among the Asian population who visit Las Vegas each year. 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. The layout, conforms to the regular baccarat table and each of the seven seat positions correspond to a number and betting box with spots for banker, player, and tie.

Baccarat Rules

At the beginning of a new game or when the Cut Card in the Shoe is dealt, the dealer will shuffle all decks together and put them back in the shoe, called "The Bank". If the value of the first card is a four, for instance, the dealer will take the next four cards out of the shoe and discard them in a tray next to it along with the first card. At the beginning of the new game the shoe or the bank is given to the player on the right of the dealer. 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. In Baccarat you always have to keep in mind that the fist digit in a two-digit number does not count. This is not only the case with single card values but with the result of two cards combined. After all is said and done, the hand with a point total closes to nine wins. The game begins with players placing bets. The hand closest to a total value of nine wins. One factor is how hand values are tabulated. All cards numbered 2 through 9 are worth their numeric value. (7 + 4 = 11 - 10 = 1) A hand that has drawn and composed of three cards is calculated in the same fashion. If both hands have an 8 or 9, the game is deemed a tie, in which all Tie Bets win. Player shows a 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 or 0 Player Hand must Draw. Banker shows a 7, 8 or 9 (8 and 9 win) Banker Hand must Stand. 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 6 Banker Hand must Draw if player's draw card is a 6 or 7 Banker Hand must Stand if player's draw card is a 0,1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 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 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

. 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. If the player or banker has a two card total of 8 or 9, he/she turns the cards over immediately. 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. Dealers normally wear tuxedos and the surrounding are is quite lavish. The table layout is quite simple and consists of fourteen numbered positions seven on each side of the dealer; the number thirteen is omitted as it is considered unlucky. Three dealers run the game and one of these is the caller who runs the game and stands between positions 1 and 15. 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 1 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 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.
- Play Baccarat Games with the fewest decks. 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. A slight difference of only one hundredth of a percent shows, which is apparent when looking at the House Edge.
- Play Baccarat at Casinos with the lowest commission possible. If you can get a 4% commission, by all means take advantage of it - and bet on the banker every time.
- 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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