How to Play Baccarat
Baccarat has long been the game of choice for high rollers, but over the past few decades it’s also become one of the most popular casino games in the world. Bill Zender, a former Nevada Gaming Control agent and casino executive who literally wrote the book on managing casino games, says that Asian high rollers in particular are flocking to baccarat because it suits their cultural preferences. He’s also noticed that baccarat has one of the lowest hold percentages in the casino, with the house taking less than a 1.2 percent of the money wagered on player and banker bets.
Like blackjack and poker, baccarat is a card game that involves betting on which hand has the highest point total. Two cards are dealt to the Player and the Banker, and whichever hand has the value closest to nine wins. All numbered cards two through nine count as their face value, while picture cards and the tens, jacks, queens, and kings count as zero and aces are worth one point. If the hands total more than 10 points, only the rightmost digit counts.
In baccarat, players place their bets on either the Player hand or the Banker hand, and can bet up to nine times the amount of their initial bet. Then, the dealer deals two cards to each of these boxes, with a third card sometimes drawn. The rules vary slightly depending on the version of baccarat being played (punto banco, chemin de fer, or both), but the general strategy is always the same: bet on which hand will have the higher value after all the cards are dealt.
The first step in playing baccarat is understanding the rules. There are a few different versions of the game, and the rules can differ slightly between casinos and online. The simplest way to understand the rules is to watch how a professional dealer plays baccarat. Many online baccarat sites provide videos of professional dealers that can help you get the hang of the game.
After you’ve familiarized yourself with the rules, the next thing you should do is learn what each bet means and how they work. The most common bets are on the Player, the Banker, or a tie. You can also bet on the pair of cards that you think will be dealt, though this bet pays out only eight to one.
After you’ve placed your bets, the dealer will deal two cards to the Player box and then to the Banker box. If your bet is on the Player, the hand that has the higher total wins. If you bet on the Banker, you will pay a commission to the casino, which is usually about 5-10% of your winnings. In addition, the Banker must follow a set of rules that determine when he or she will draw a third card. These rules are called the “drawing rules,” and can be complicated for new players to follow.