Baccarat, or Punto Banco as it is also known, is a popular casino game that is played by many players from all over the world. The game is very simple to learn and offers a number of ways for players to win. It is a game of chance and is played with eight decks of cards that are dealt from a dealing shoe on a special table. Players place bets on either the Player hand, Banker hand or a tie. Once the bets are placed, the two hands are dealt and the winner is determined by which one has a total closest to 9. In some cases, both the Player and Banker hand may be drawn a third card depending on the initial values of the first two cards.
The game is a simple guessing contest between the Player Hand and Banker Hand. Players place their chips on the box of their choice and then wait for the dealer to deal the cards. The object of the game is to guess which hand will have a higher value, i.e. a higher 9 or a lower 8. There are five types of bets available in Baccarat: the Players Bet, Banker’s Bet, Tie Bet, Super Six Bet and Pair Bet. All bets have a specific payout depending on the winning bet. The Super Six Bet pays out a high amount of money if the Banker Hand wins with a total of 6 points. The Pair Bet is paid out if the first two cards are a pair.
While baccarat was historically a game for high rollers, it has now moved to the mainstream with more and more casinos offering the game on a regular casino floor. According to Bill Zender, a former Nevada Gaming Control Agent and casino executive who literally wrote the book on managing casino games, Asian high rollers have made baccarat their game of choice for several reasons. These include cultural preferences, the fact that the game is played with a fixed set of rules and a very low house edge of around 1.2% on both player and banker bets.
The game’s elegance and upscale reputation has also contributed to its growing popularity. It was a favorite of French royals in the 19th century, and then made its way into American pop culture with the 1953 debut novel and later movie of Casino Royal. This featured the fictional suave James Bond beating Le Chiffre, a KGB agent, at a game of baccarat in order to pay off his debts to the Soviets. The game has since made its appearance in a number of other films including Dr. No; Thunderball; On Her Majesty’s Secret Service; For Your Eyes Only and GoldenEye. The game is also very popular at online casinos where it has become a staple for many high-rollers. This has helped to keep the house edge low and attracted a wider audience of players. The game has also been adapted for television, video games and even slot machines.