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Web Casino Online Baccarat Overview
Baccarat has long been somewhat shrouded in mystery since it is a game that is played by those who can afford to place big bets. Often, baccarat is played in separate rooms of a casino, further cementing its reputation as a game for high rollers only. However, with the advent of mini-baccarat and web casino online baccarat, people everywhere are discovering this game, which is actually very easy to learn. There's no skill involved, and not that many betting options. House edge on baccarat is generally very low.
First you need to know how baccarat is scored. 10s, Jacks, Queens, and Kings are all scored 0. Aces are worth 11, and other cards are worth their face value. To determine the score, add up the value of your cards, then use the last digit only as your score. In other words, if you draw an 8 and a 9, first add them to get 17, then use the last digit only to get a score of 7. Suppose you draw a 6 and a 3. 6+3=9, and that is the last digit, so the score is 9. The highest score wins.
Watching a baccarat game may be a confusing at first, but the "game" is basically ceremonial, with player and banker simply drawing cards from a six or eight deck "shoe" of cards. The next actions of the player and banker are spelled out based on which cards they draw. Here is how it works.
Both banker and player draw two cards. If the player, the banker, or both have a total of 8 or 9, no more cards are drawn and the winner is determined based on those two cards. If nobody has drawn an 8 or 9, this is what happens next:
If the player's initial score is 0 to 5, he draws a third card. If, however, the player's initial score is 6 or 7, he stands.
If the player stands with two cards, the banker follows the same rule as the player: if the banker has 0 to 5, he draws, or stands with a 6 or 7.
However, if the player draws a third card, the banker acts according to the rules shown below.
- If players third card is 2 or 3, banker draws if he has 0 to 4, and stands if he has 5 to 7.
- If players third card is 4 or 5, banker draws if he has 0 to 5, and stands if he has 6 to 7.
- If players third card is 6 or 7, banker draws if he has 0 to 6, and stands if he has 7.
- If players third card is 8, banker draws if he has 0 to 2, and stands if he has 3 to 7.
- If players third card is 9, 10, face card, or ace, banker draws if he has 0 to 3, and stands if he has 4 to 7.
Once the dealer's action is determined, the croupier (the person at the table who pays and collects bets) announces whether the player or the banker has won.
Each player continues until losing a hand. At that time, the player passes to the next person at the table. For each hand, all gamblers bet on the player or the banker. In some casinos you can bet on a tie, which pays out at 8 to 1 or 9 to 1. Betting on a tie and winning pays very well, but it is a rare occurrence.
Gamblers who bet correctly usually get even odds. This means they get their stake back plus that same amount again. Casinos generally take a commission of 5% on successful bets that the dealer wins. The commission, plus the fact that gamblers are rarely successful betting on ties are the two factors that give the web casino online the house edge over the long run. Some casinos pay even money to the player and banker bets unless the banker wins with 6, in which case the banker is paid 50% of the original bet.
Playing baccarat at a web casino online is even faster paced. The casino "knows" instantly whether the player must draw or stand, and then whether the banker must draw or stand, and who won. If the banker's and the player's hands have the same value, then tie bets win and bets on the player or banker remain in place for the next game.
Baccarat offers house advantages that are lower than in just about all other games. The house advantage on player bets is 1.24%, and it's 1.06% on banker bets. However, the house edge with tie bets is 14.44% in games using six decks, and 14.36% in games using eight decks. Because baccarat is such a popular game among players with large bankrolls, it is possible for some casinos to win or lose millions of Euro in one night. Web casinos online offer smaller betting minimums so that players who can't afford to put down 50 Euro up front can still get in on the action.
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