Baccarat Explained!

History

The game of Baccarat can be traced back to the latter part of the 1400s, during the reign of Charles VII, King of France. The game became very popular in French casinos in the 1830s, and is still extremely popular in European and South American casinos today.
 

The Game

Baccarat is the simplest table game in the casino to learn and play. Its simplicity lies in the fact that the player has only three choices, and all three deal with the betting; no other playing skill is required. There are two versions of the game; the American version and the European version.

An eight deck shoe or a six deck shoe is dealt in the American version of the game. All the numbered cards, 2 through 9, are counted as face value, with the suits having no relative value. The ace is counted as 1. Tens and all face cards are counted as zero. Any hand that adds up to more than 9 is counted by the second digit only. For example, if your hand totals 14, the hand is counted as 4; likewise, 11 becomes 1. Using this system, the highest possible score is 9.
 

Some Examples of Card Totals

If you get a 5 and 6, the total baccarat hand is 1.
If you get a 2 and queen, the total baccarat hand is 2.
If you get a 4 and 9, the total baccarat hand is 3.
If you get two 8’s, the total baccarat hand is 6.
If you get a 10 and king, the total baccarat hand is 0.
If you get a 4 and 6 and 9, the total baccarat hand is 9.

Baccarat is a very good game for you, the player, primarily because it has a relatively low house advantage. Additionally, it’s important for you to know that there is a very strict set of playing rules that have been established and that cannot be changed by the player or by any actions of the house. In other words, in baccarat there are no decisions or options, and no degree of skill is required to play as either the player or the banker.

Phase 2 of Baccarat Explained!