Rules of Baccarat
In a casino, the game of baccarat is played with 6 or 8 decks. In American style baccarat only two hands are dealt, the bank and the player. Betting occurs before the hands are dealt. Bets are place on either the bank's hand or the player's hand at essentially even money. Or a bet may be placed on a tie at a nine to one pay out. Two cards are dealt, face-up, to the two hands. No one but the dealer touches the cards.
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The best hand is the one in which the total of all the cards together comes closest to equaling nine. The value of each card is the number of pips on the card. An ace is one, but 10s and face cards are equal to zero. If the total goes over ten, the digit in the 10s column is disregarded. Thus a seven and a six, would equal to three and not thirteen.
Once the first two cards are dealt, the dealer checks to see if there is an automatic winner. A hand with a total of 8 or 9 automatically wins unless both hands have the same value. Such a score is called a "natural". An eight is a "petite natural", and a nine is a "grande natural". If there are no naturals after the first two cards are dealt, then an additional card may be called for.
The player's hand is then examined. If he has a five or less, then an additional card is dealt to the hand. Then whether or not the banker takes a third card is dependent on several factors. A seven, eight, or nine always stands fast. A zero, one, or two always draws. But the numbers in between are a bit more complicated. The following table should help to make the process more clear:
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As you can see from the above table, because the player hand must draw first, it is possible for the bank to be forced to draw, even when he already has a better hand. (For example, the player is dealt a King and a 3 and so is forced to take another card. The card is an 8. The value of the player hand is then 1. Even though the dealer has a 5 and a 7 which equals a two, a winning hand at this point, he has a good chance of drawing an 8 which would make it a losing hand or a 9 which would make it a push.) The dealer can also be forced to not draw even though he has a worse hand. These rules have a tendency to equalize the odds of either hand winning, and simulate a situation where the banker hand would not know the player hand's first two cards. Even so, the dealer's hand still has a slight edge.
The two hands are now compared. The one closest to 9 wins, and a tie pushes the bets. Track is kept of the betters' bets on the bank and generally a 5% commission on this is paid to the house after the shoe is played out or the player leaves the table.
Next Page: Baccarat Variations
