BACCARAT HISTORY
The word baccarat is resulting from the Italian word baccara, meaning
zero, and refers to the zero value given to all of the face cards and
tens. In Europe, the stylish game of baccarat is one of a good number
popular casino games.
It has long held the notice of gamblers and an early version was played
with cards from a Tarot deck back in the Middle Ages. Baccarat may have
been invented in Italy around 1490, but by the early 1950's it had grow
to be the game of choice for the French nobility. Ultimately baccarat
evolved into European baccarat and the French game chemin de fer. What
is recognized as American baccarat actually originated in England and
spread to South America. The version of the game that is played today
came from the Capri Casino in Havana, Cuba.
BACCARAT RULES
Baccarat or Punto Banco is usually played in a disconnected casino area.
The playing table is about the size of a craps table with three casino
dealers and up to 12 or 14 players. There are just two main bets to make:
banker or player - Banco or Punto, plus the not often used Standoff. Some
casinos let the players deal the cards in turn and others have a casino
dealer to deal the cards. In online Baccarat the cards are dealt automatically
by a virtual dealer. Each player, including the player dealing, may bet
on either Punto or Banco but it is customary for the dealer to bet on
Banco. Players may opt not to deal, passing the 'Shoe' to the next player.
The shoe remains with one player as long as the Bank wins. If Punto
wins, the shoe passes on to the next player. Two hands are dealt and
you bet which one will win, or that they will tie. It is just like betting
on Black or Red at roulette, and the payoff is even money, 1:1 (except
for the standoff, which pays 8-1 or 9-1). The only difference between
the Banco and Punto bet is a win on Banco will cost you 5% commission
or tax levied by the casino - the in-built advantage. The reason for
taxing the Banco is because it has been established that over an 8-deck
cards play on average the Banco will win three to four hands more than
the Punto. Each hand consists of a least amount of two and a maximum
of three cards. The person dealing will put two cards, face down, tucked
under the shoe, and offer the player with the largest bet on Punto the
other two cards, face down. The Punto player then looks at the cards
and gives them back to the player who is dealing. Then the player who
is dealing will turn over the cards of both hands while one of the casino
dealers will publicize the results and the winner.
BACCARAT STRATEGIES
If you have a profusion of pure luck, then Baccarat is your game. Baccarat
is played using a fixed set of rules for the player and the dealer. Calculations
have been made that demonstrate the odds of the player winning are 44.62%,
losing 45.85%, and tying 9.53%. Therefore it would appear advantageous
to bet on the house winning virtually every hand. To even out the odds,
the house charges a commission (usually 5%) on winning bets placed on
the house. How should this change the way a player wagers? Factoring in
the commission, you are still slightly better off betting that the house
will win. This assumes the commission is the usual 5%. However, should
the commission change then you have to adapt your strategy. If the commission
is less than 5% then it is always advantageous to bet on the house, while
if the commission is more than 5% it pays to bet on the player winning.
Removing the tie hands in the event there is no payoff, the odds of the
player winning are 49.32% and for losing 50.68%. For various commissions
we can calculate the following average payoffs then, assuming 100 wagers
of $1 were made.
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