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Baccarat History
Although it has always been a popular game in European and Latin
American casinos, it never caught on as strongly as Blackjack in US
casinos. 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.
How to Play Baccarat
Baccarat is a very simple game to play with no decisions
made after a bet is placed. The winning hand is the
hand that holds two or three cards totaling closest to nine. Aces count as One and Two
through Nine are counted at face value. A Tie at any point
in the game ends the hand and pays Tie bets. The Player’s hand is dealt to first, and only if the current value
is 5 or less. There are many debates pertaining to the history of baccarat, particularly where the game was invented: France or Italy. Eventually,
baccarat evolved into European baccarat and the French game 'chemin de fer'. The interesting bit to observe of course is that the casino is taking no risk here; they simply charge a fee from each
banker. The basis of this game is very similar, but the rules and payoffs are much less
dramatic. 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. A number of casinos have installed a smaller version of the baccarat game played on standard blackjack-sized gaming tables. 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
Baccarat, pronounced "Bah-Caw-Rah", is probably one of the easiest and uncomplicated
table games there is. 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. So never
mind what the other players bet on or how much they bet. The baccarat game is now ready to
play. Once the bank looses
it moves on to the next player. 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. That is
why the Ten, Jack, Queen and the King count 0 and the Ace 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. 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. Depending on hand outcomes, the player hand will either
draw a third card or stand. 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. All other cards (tens and picture cards) are
worth zero points. (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. If one hand is an 8 and the
other is a 9, the 9 wins. Banker shows a 3
Banker Hand must Draw if player's draw card is a
0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 or 7
Banker Hand must Stand if player's draw card is an 8. Banker shows a 5
Banker Hand must Draw if player's draw card is a 4, 5,
6, or 7
Banker Hand must Stand if player's draw card is a 0,1,
2, 3, 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.
- 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 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. 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. 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. With a total of 6 or less, his selection depends on the value of his two card total and the value of the card that the player drew. Baccarat rules state that winning banker bets are subject to a 5% house commission. 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. Player put their bets on the numbered box in front of the players after the winner is called the other two dealers pay out or collect from the winners and losers around the table. All picture cards count as 10 and aces count as 1. 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 1 then he must draw. If the dealer has 9 then he must stand. Once all the hands are dealt it is closest to 9 that wins.
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%. 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. 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.
- 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. 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. If you want to take your chances, then by all means use a system - just know when to quit.
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