How To Play Baccarat: Rules and Tips For Beginners
Baccarat is one of the most common casino games in the world, and for the right reasons. Gamers play Baccarat in all top casinos largely because it is relatively simple and can earn you big money in no time.
Several rules govern the game, as we shall see in this article.
How Baccarat Works?
There are two sides when you play Baccarat:
- The Banker side
- The Player side
The game is controlled or run by the House Dealer. The house dealer draws or deals hands and is responsible for how the cards move as you play. You don’t pick or flip any cards.
All the players do is place their bets on the table for a given round.
Basic Game Rules
- You must place your bet before the dealer deals a hand.
- For each round, the hands dealt are in pairs, i.e., there are two cards for each hand. The house dealer draws two hands, one for the banker and another for the player side.
- Cards from numbers 2 to 9 carry their face value. If your hand contains 2 and 5, the closest you are to 9 is 7. 2 and 5. They are totaled to get your value closest to 9.
- Cards with 10, J, K, and Q carry a zero (0) value.
- Ace or A carries a value of one (1)
- When the numbers drawn add up to more than 9, you drop the first number. For example, if you bet on the player side and the numbers are 8 and 7 for a total of 15, you drop the 1, and that final points/score becomes 5.
- If you bet on the player and he wins, your win is double the money you betted.
- If you bet on the banker and he wins, your win is 95% of your wager, which is paid by the banker.
- There is also a Natural Win. This is when the total value of the cards drawn for one of the sides, i.e., the player or the banker, is 8 or 9. In this case, the game ends, and you proceed to cash out on the bets you’ve already placed.
- You can track your score on a sheet to keep track of your performance.
- When you place your bet on the player and your first two cards carry a total value of 6 or more, you stand and not draw a card.
Additionally, when you place your bet on the player and your first two cards carry a total value of 5 or less, you must draw one additional card.
Or, if you place your bet on the banker and your first two cards carry a total value of 7 or more, you must stand without drawing a card.
Subsequently, when you bet on the banker and your first two cards carry a total value of 0, 1, or 2, you must draw one more card.
Note that although these rules are somewhat standard, they vary across different casinos.
So, how do you apply them?
How To Play Baccarat
A player bets on either the player side or the Banker side. There is also an option to bet on a tie. A tie means that both the player and the banker have the same value of the dealt cards.
So, the dealer plays two hands, i.e., 2 pairs of cards—one hand for the player side and another for the banker side. The dealer basically does all the work as you play Baccarat.
The hand with the total value closest to 9 wins.
For example:
Placing your bet on a tie could produce big wins, i.e., 8:1. But, it isn’t popular among players because of how rarely a tie occurs.
When there is a tie and nobody bet on it, the dealer returns all bets placed on the banker and player sides.
Baccarat Tips For Beginners
There are several ways to increase your odds of winning when you play Baccarat.
Two key tips for beginners:
- Avoid betting on a tie. Ties have lower odds, but if you can afford the risk, the rewards can be big.
- The banker wins more than the player on average. Consider betting more on the banker. Although there is a 5% commission deducted from wins made by betting on the banker, these wins are more frequent.
Now that you know how this casino game works, go ahead and try out Baccarat. Just remember to inquire about the specific rules your casino may have. Good luck.
