The rules of baccarat are basic and simple to follow. Once you
learn it's easy to remember and you can feel completely comfortable
sitting at any baccarat table or mini baccarat table at the
casino, or playing online. If you're learning the simple (yet
non-intuitive) baccarat rules for the first time you should
download a free software package from one of the many online
casinos out there and play along. Many offer unlimited free
play. We have a number of downloads available on this site which
include a selection of online casino packages and a few tutorial
style baccarat programs. I have honestly found it easier to
learn, and easier to teach, by simply downloading a game from
a real casino (one which offers free play of course) and reading
along while messing with the software. The tutorial style software
available for baccarat often overcomplicates the learning process
and tends to leave you feeling more confused than ever.
As the player you are given the choice of either betting
on the banker hand winning, the player hand winning, or a
tie between the two. Two cards are dealt to the player and
the banker. If the hand you're betting on wins, you win even
money. Even money bets are 1 to 1, meaning if you bet five
dollars, you're paid back the five plus five more, so your
profit is equal to your bet. If you bet on a tie and it turns
out to be one, you're paid 8 to 1. Meaning if you bet 5 dollars
on a tie and win, you're paid back your five, plus 40 dollars
more.
The goal of your two-card hand is to try and have a total
that is close to 9. Tens and face cards count as zero, with
the exception of the ace, which is worth 1. Cards 2 thru 9
are worth their face value. The simplicity of baccarat rules
reflects the simplicity of the scoring and goal itself. There
is really only one tricky part: although there is no such
thing as a 'busting hand' as in blackjack, when your initial
card total is a two digit number, the first digit is dropped.
Say you are dealt a pair of sevens - the total is 14, but
the count is set to 4, as the leading 1 is arbitrarily dropped.
If the first two cards of a hand total 8 or 9 the hand is
declared a 'natural' and wins (unless there is a tie between
two naturals). If either hand is a natural, both hands stand,
the natural hand wins. If the total is not a natural win on
either hand, another card is drawn for each hand to determine
the winner. Winning banker hands are usually taxed 5% by the
casinos. Remember, anybody can be the banker, not always a
casino employee. This hint is enough to gain an advantage
in baccarat, because you know if the casinos take a cut of
just one hand, that one hand probably has a good chance of
winning.
Something the other baccarat rules pages on the Internet
aren't likely to offer as info is this interesting tidbit:
even with the 5% cut taken from winning on a banker hand bet,
there is still an advantage to betting on the banker. The
advantage is slim, in the area 0.18%, but in the world of
gambling that's really not that small. So from reading this
page you should have picked up enough about baccarat rules
to play a game. It may still be a good idea to try it online
first, and within minutes you'll feel comfortable enough to
play anywhere. There aren't many rules, and the baccarat rules
that do exist are fairly simple, they just differ from other
games you may have played at the casino, so may take a little
getting used to.
We recommend the following online casinos for Online Baccarat:
1.Spin Palace Online
Casino.
2.Golden Riviera
Online Casino.
3.Miami Paradise
Online Casino.
4.Ruby Fortune Online
Casino.
5.River Nile Online
Casino.
