Baccarat 101

Baccarat is one of the simplest card games. It only requires 2-3 cards to play the game. There are usually 12 to 14 players in a game of Baccarat with at most 3 dealers in a single game. In some casinos, the players sometimes called the punto are allowed to deal the cards. Two bets are made in Baccarat by the banker a.k.a Banco and the player.

Players may bet either on the Banco or the Punto but it is customary for the dealer to bet on the Banco. The difference between the two is that when the Banco wins, a tax is usually deducted from the winnings. This is because the banco has 3-4 hands, thus more chances of winning than the Punto.

A hand in a game of Baccarat has at least two cards and a max of three. For one to win the game, the highest score of nine must be achieved. Baccarat dealers will have to put two cards face down and must give the player with the highest bet on the Punto the next two cards facing down. Then, they will both have to give it back to a third dealer to identify the winner.

Once dealing is completed, the hand with the highest count wins. The dealer will collect the bets and is responsible to pay the winner.

Baccarat is played either from a 6 or 8 deck shoe. Unlike in Blackjack, face cards and 10s have no numerical value while those less than ten assume their corresponding numerical equivalent including Aces with a value of one. Single digits are valid and those with two digits drop the left digits like 13 being counted as 3.

In Baccarat, cards are given to players first with the banker receiving the last two cards. Again, in Baccarat, the goal is to reach a score of nine. A player may request for a third card if he is discontented with his score card values.

Baccarat rules state, however that third cards can only be given if the player's total is less than 5 or equal to it. However, these Baccarat rules vary from one casino to another.

The Banco may get a third card in a game of Baccarat if their total is less than two. In other casinos, the banco can't draw third cards if the player's total is eight. In most cases of Baccarat, when the banco has a total of seven, a general rule is that they should stand off with their cards.