Baccarat is one of the most beautiful casino games out there. From sticky California card rooms to Monaco’s elegant casinos with their tuxedoed players, high rollers and casual players alike love baccarat as it is fast, straightforward and offers almost the same house edge (1-1.5%).
Baccarat dates back to 1500s Rome in Italy. It is thought to have been invented under a different name but with similar rules; likely using zero as its reference point and giving each number worth zero points and one point only when playing against an Ace card. Over time the game has evolved into the modern card game we know today.
Baccarat’s basic rules are straightforward. There are two competing hands – the Player Hand and Banker Hand – each totalling 9 or closer and one hand can win outright. Every hand receives two visible face up cards before any further drawing takes place if necessary. In addition to betting on either hand directly, additional side bets exist such as Super Six Bet or Pair Bet which pay out if either pair of aces appear first two cards of an opponent hand or their total value exceeds 6 points in value.
Casinos make money on baccarat by paying out a 5% commission to dealers for bets placed only on the banker’s hand – this is how casinos make their profit from this game of six decks of cards shuffled together and dealt out randomly to players seated randomly around an oval table; play typically starts on the right of the dealer and proceeds clockwise.
Baccarat offers players a chance to win big money quickly while being an accessible choice for those on tight budgets. Macau recently dethroned Las Vegas as the world’s leading casino city and has seen over 80% of their gambling revenue generated through baccarat alone! Singapore and Japan also favor it highly.
Baccarat’s immense popularity has given rise to various variants of the game, such as Mini Baccarat and side bets such as Tie Bet and Super Six Bet, along with numerous forms of playing such as online baccarat. Some casinos even provide free practice games to help newcomers familiarize themselves with the rules and strategy of baccarat. Card counting is a common tactic used in this game that can reduce house edge by about 0.05%. Beginner players should avoid card counting as it can be detrimental to learning the game and can be particularly tricky with side bets where you must select either Player or Banker as your betting choice, since losses on such bets will reduce overall profits – something which may prove challenging when first learning the game.