The Game of Baccarat
Baccarat is a card game that is rather intimidating to most
but once learned is actually quite simple and could be quite
profitable as well.
There are two hands played in Baccarat - the "player"
hand and the "banker" hand. You can bet on either
one. If the hand you bet on wins, you receive an even money (one
to one) payoff.
There is one other bet you can make - the tie bet.
If you make this bet and the two hands tie, you receive an eight
to one payoff. The problem is, that ties occur less than once
out of every ten hands.
In the beginning, each hand receives 2 cards. When necessary,
additional cards are drawn according to the rules. The hand
closest to 9 wins the bet.
The values are as follows:
- 10s, Jacks, Queens, and Kings all count as 0.
- The ace through 9 cards have face values of 1 to 9,
respectively.
To determine the value of each hand, you simply add the
cards. If the total is over 10, the first digit is ignored. So
an 8 and a 6 would normally equal 14, but since we disregard the
first digit, we instead have a hand of 4.
Similarly, a 6 and 4 would equal 0, and a 10 and 9 would
equal 9. Sounds a bit confusing but once you master the values,
you'll get the idea of how the game is played. If the first two
cards total 9, the hand is called a "natural" and
automatically wins.
Two cards totaling 8 is also referred to as a natural, and it
wins automatically too, unless the hand it is playing against
has a natural as well. When both hands contain a natural, the
higher natural hand wins (8 beating an 7). If the hands have
equal value, it's a tie. When neither hand has a natural, there
is no automatic winner, and additional cards are drawn to
determine the outcome of the hand played.
Baccarat is played mainly in land based casinos but is becoming
more and more popular online as well.
Online Baccarat Basics
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