Baccarat, which is played with from seven to 14 seats and a dealer’s area, is one of the most popular games in casinos around the world. The game’s history dates back to medieval Italy. Its three variants – punto banco, chemin de fer and baccarat banque – have been enjoyed by European royalty, the aristocracy and high rollers for over 500 years. Today, the game is also popular in Asia and is gaining popularity in the US.
In a game of baccarat, players bet on either the player hand or banker’s hand. The dealer deals two cards for each side, face up and visible to all players. The goal is for the hand you are betting on to total closer to nine than the opposing side. The winning hand is determined by whose final digit, when all the pips (the dots on the cards that represent clubs, diamonds, hearts and spades) are added up, is closest to nine. Tens, jacks and queens count as zero, while aces are worth one point.
After all the bets are placed, the dealer calls ‘no more bets’ and then reveals a card in the Player box. Another card is then dealt in the Banker box and this process is repeated until each box contains exactly two cards. If the initial card totals 8 or 9 for the player or banker hands, the game ends and all placed bets are paid. If the first two cards do not equal 8 or 9, a third card is drawn on the Player and Banker hands, depending on their score.
Aside from bets on the player and banker hands, there are other bets to make in baccarat, including Super Six and Pair Bets. These bets are optional and pay out a higher percentage of the bet amount. These bets should be avoided because they have a much larger house edge than the player or banker hand.
According to Bill Zender, a former Nevada Gaming Control agent, casino dealer, executive and consultant who literally wrote the book on managing casino games, Asian high rollers have almost universally made baccarat their game of choice because it fits their cultural preferences. He explains that they like the game for the low hold percentage, which is roughly 1.2 percent on banker and player bets. The tie bet, however, pays eight to one but has a higher house advantage of over 14 percent.
While baccarat may be an intimidating game to play, it’s actually relatively simple. The key is to understand that you don’t have much control over the cards that are dealt. Instead, you should focus on making the best bets possible based on what’s in front of you. Hopefully this will help you to become a successful baccarat player!