Baccarat
is an easy game to learn. The object is to create
a hand consisting of two or three cards that have
a total point value as close as possible to nine.
For each hand, you have only one decision to make.
Everything else is handled by the dealers. The
rules are strict, but not difficult to learn.
In many casinos, baccarat is played in a roped-off
room, separate from the other table games.
There are two “natural” hands in the
game of baccarat. Two cards that add up to nine
points make up the perfect hand. The second-best
hand would be a hand that has two cards that add
up to eight. These hands are both considered natural.
If any player in the current round has a natural
hand, then no one can draw a third card in that
hand. If no one has a natural hand, then additional
cards must be drawn to determine the winner. All
bets are called off in the case of a tie.
The point values for cards in baccarat are as
follows: Aces are worth one point. Kings, queens
and jacks are ten points each and the other cards
are counted at face value. If the point total
of your hand goes into double digits, then the
first digit is ignored and the second digit is
counted as your score. For example, if the point
total of your hand equals 17, then you would use
the final digit, 7, as the score for your hand.
If you have a king and a queen, which total 20,
the score for that hand would be zero. If you
have a ten and a nine, which add up to 19, that
is a natural hand of nine and no further cards
will be drawn for that hand.
Three hands of two cards each are dealt by the
banker. Two of these hands are for the players
to the right and left of the banker, and one is
the banker’s hand. The other players who
are at the table can bet on either or both of
the players hands beating the banker’s hand.
A player can also bet the total value of the bank’s
funds by declaring “banco.” If someone
does this, then all other bets are withdrawn.
Once the first two cards of each hand are dealt,
if no one has a natural eight or nine, additional
cards are drawn to determine the winner. A player
who has a hand of six or seven must stand, and
a player who has less than four must draw. |
