Baccarat Rules

Rules of Baccarat - How to Play Baccarat

Baccarat Rules

Baccarat RulesThe game of casino baccarat proceeds as follows: there are two designations for participants - "Player" (that's you), and "Banker" (the house). As the game commences, two cards are dealt to the Player, with the Banker getting two as well. At this point, the rules of the game are going to be the determinant factors as to whether there is a third card dealt to either of these hands. As we mentioned in the previous installment, as far as this is concerned, the player does not have a specific call on what is done.

The rules of baccarat - and this is true of the online version as well as what you will find in the land-based casino - dictate that the best possible hand is a nine (9). This is where you don't want your mind to wander, because this forms part of the basis on which play proceeds - when the total of a two-card hand is ten (10) or more, the value the hand assumes is that of the second digit.

Let's offer an example. We'll say that as the baccarat game has been proceeding in the casino the Player has been dealt a 5 and a 7 for a total of 12. The total that two-card hand will represent in baccarat is not 12, but two (2). If it is a pair of sevens for 14, the hand is worth four (4). As you have undoubtedly caught onto by now, all ten-value cards are counted as zero (0). Aces, by the way, are counted as one (1), which is no surprise, since they would have that same value even if they counted as eleven (11), as is the alternative value in blackjack.

Following the process whereby the necessary cards have been dealt, the hand that comes closest to nine wins. If it winds up in a tie, no additional cards are going to be drawn; the "tie" wins and wagers that have been made on that result will be paid off to the players. In the brick and mortar setting, winning bets often get paid at the end of a shoe, but when you're playing in an online game, you are going to be paid off immediately. There's very little you need to understands about the basics of playing baccarat.

In the game of baccarat, winning a wager that is made on the Player or the Banker pays off at even money (1:1). But one of the things you have to keep in mind is that there is a 5% commission that is paid to the house on each successful bet on the Banker. As far as ties are concerned, the rules prescribe that the bet gets paid off at 8-to-1 odds, and in online baccarat the hands are often displayed side-by-side.

After the Player hand and Banker hand are dealt, the decision is made as to what is going to happen next. Hands that wind up as an 8 or a 9 are considered "natural" and do not necessitate drawing a third card. If the Player or the Banker has a natural, they must both stand. On a Player hand of zero (0) through 5, one card is drawn. If Player stands and the Banker's total is five or lower, the Banker can get a card. The Banker may also get a card under other circumstances, depending on what the Player has drawn (there are charts you can refer to here). For instance, if the Banker has 5 and the Player draws a five, then a third card is taken.