Baccarat is one of the games that was meant to be played in a casino. This game more then just about any other is about being social and rooting for the player to win. Most times at the high roller table, it is considered bad etiquette to bet against the player. When you get to the Mini Baccarat tables, this rule doesn’t apply as often.

There are two differences between the High Roller baccarat and Mini baccarat. First, the Mini baccarat table can only seat about half of the people and has only a single dealer compared to the multiple dealers present at the High Stakes baccarat tables.

Second, the gamblers at the tables will take turns being the Player at the High Stakes tables; this gives that player the chance to handle the cards and slowly reveal the cards as others root. In Mini Baccarat, the dealer handles all of the cards and there is less dramatics while playing a hand.

There are only two ways to make this become a successful online casino game:

1) Play at a Live Dealer Baccarat table over the internet.
2) Play with baccarat software that doesn’t deal the cards too fast.

Although I like Real Time Gaming (like Lucky Red Casino), the software deals the cards too fast and you don’t get a good idea of what to root for unless you are an expert. Therefore, it almost turns into a coin flip and isn’t very exciting for casual players.

I do like to play baccarat online with casino software creators like Net Entertainment, Playtech and Microgaming. Those three do a better job of giving you a few seconds between dealing the first two cards to the Banker and Player.

When it comes to playing at a Live Baccarat table, there is no place better than Bet365 Casino.

They offer both European Live Baccarat dealers and Asian Live Baccarat dealers as well.

When you play live baccarat, you are able to watch the dealer shuffle the cards and deal as if you were at the casino. This takes away the dreaded “payout percentage” that the computer software games are programmed with.

There may be a Random Number Generator that virtually shuffles the cards and produces a random hand each and every time.

But it is also true that these games have algorithms that determine when the House has won or lost too much money and adjusts the RNG to achieve that payout percentage.

That is why I prefer to play the Live Dealer baccarat tables. The cards are shuffled up and dealt; they aren’t randomly generated.

How to Play Baccarat

Finding a good place to play is important, which is why I took up so much of the post explaining my view on this subject. But, it is even more important to know why that critical third card is dealt to either the Player, Banker or both.

By this point, you should know that the object of the game is to bet on whether the Player or Banker will get a higher point total on a particular hand. Both the Player and Banker will be dealt 2 cards. Based on these two cards, the game can either continue or end right there.

If either the Player or Banker receives a point total of 8 or 9 in the first two cards, it is referred to as a Natural and the game will end without a third card being dealt.

Otherwise:

If the Player receives a 6 or 7, the Player will stand and not take a third card. If the Banker has 5 or less, the Banker must take a third card.

If the Player receive 5 or less, the Player must take a third card. Based upon the Player point total, the Banker will either draw a third card or stand:

If the Player’s 3 card total is 8, the Banker will take a third card if he has 0, 1 or 2 and stand with 3 or higher.

If the Player’s 3 card total is 0, 1 or 9, the Banker will take a third card with 3 points or less.

If the Player’s 3 card total is 2 or 3, the Banker will stand with 5, 6 or 7 points.

If the Player’s 3 card total is 4 or 5, the Banker will stand with 6 or 7 points.

If the Player’s 3 card total is 6 or 7, the Banker will stand with 7 points.

The Dealer will always hit with 0, 1 or 2 and will always stand with 7 points.

If you have an abundance of pure luck, then Baccarat is your game. Baccarat is played using a fixed set of rules for the player and the dealer. Calculations have been made that show the odds of the player winning are 44.62%, losing 45.85%, and tying 9.53%. Thus it would seem advantageous to bet on the house winning almost every hand.

To even out the odds, the house charges a commission (usually 5%) on winning bets placed on the house. How should this change the way a player wagers?

Factoring in the commission, you are still slightly better off betting that the house will win. This assumes the commission is the usual 5%. However, should the commission change then you have to adapt your strategy. If the commission is less than 5% then it is always advantageous to bet on the house, while if the commission is more than 5% it pays to bet on the player winning.

Removing the tie hands in the event there is no payoff, the odds of the player winning are 49.32% and for losing 50.68%. For various commissions we can calculate the following average payoffs then, assuming 100 wagers of $1 were made.

Baccarat Strategy

To avid baccarat gamblers, a “baccarat strategy” is practically a non-phrase, and for obvious reasons. What possible need could there for a baccarat strategy when all one has to do is choose where to place his bet—the banker or player, or a tie—and how much money to wager?

It is really as random as a coin toss. But for some reason, method-based systems for baccarat continue to prosper, and for shame. Baccarat is a game of chance. There is no merit in applying to such games any strategy based on a series of or pattern in previous outcomes.

Counting Cards

Unlike Blackjack, counting cards in baccarat is not frowned upon. In fact, many Baccarat and Mini Baccarat tables will allow you to have a card and may even provide one for you. This card can be used to mark down the previous cards that have been dealt to the banker and player.

Generally, card counting in baccarat is more difficult because there are 6 or 8 decks in play. You have to be an expert in order to take advantage of this which is exactly why the casinos don’t mind providing a card.

Since the goal is to reach 9 in two or three cards, the 10′s are usually not kind to the Player. The Banker already has about a 1.5% advantage over the Player since the Banker always goes after the Player. The drawing rules will often mean that the Banker will not need to draw another card. One would argue that there is a slightly better edge to the Banker when there are more 10′s left in the Shoe.

However, some players in the High Stakes Baccarat table don’t appreciate it when you bet on the Banker to win. You are essentially betting against the person who receives the Player’s cards. This isn’t a problem with the Mini Baccarat tables. The Player’s cards are dealt on the table and not touched by the gamblers. Just remember that you will have to pay a 5% commission when you get a winning Banker bet.

What makes Baccarat a great game is that it’s so simple. The only decision a player needs is limited to deciding what kind of bet to make. In “Mini Baccarat”, the player doesn’t even get the option of handling the baccarat cards. In the ‘whale’ games of European Baccarat the players gets to mangle the baccarat cards whenever they like, just for their personal entertainment.

Baccarat System Guide

The first bet that you make is 1 unit. If you win this first bet:

1. Add more units, making the 2 bet a total of 3 units.
2. When you win the second bet, there are six units on the baccarat table. Remove 4 units.
3. If you win add 2 more units, and make a total of 6 units.
4. If the 4 bet wins, you can collect a 12 units.

If you lose the first bet: The loss is 1 unit. If you win the first bet, But lose the second bet: Your total loss is 2 units. If you win the second bet, but lose the third bet: You got a profit of 2 units. If you win the first three, But lose the fourth bet, you’ll get a tie. If you lose the second bet 5 out of 6 times and win 4 consecutive bets once, you will get a tie.

Remember you can use this Baccarat System Guide for betting at any other casino game.

Up to 14 baccarat players can be taking the seats according to the numbers on the table layout. The #13 seat is dropped, So the 14th baccarat player will occupy #15.

Remember that’s any open seat at the baccarat table can be occupied.

Baccarat game is played with 8 decks of cards. Each deck numbered card is less than 10. Baccarat game begins by all players betting either on the “player”, “banker”, or a “tie”. We put baccarat player and baccarat banker in quotes because that’s is the correct baccarat terminology.

After all the bets are down, The dealer gives 2 cards each to the banker and the player. The score of the baccarat hand is the right digit of the total of the baccarat cards. For example: If the 2 cards were an 8 and 9, then the total would be 17, and the score would be a 6. The baccarat scores will always range from 0 to 9 it’s impossible to bust.

If the total is 6 or less then the player stands, otherwise the player hits.

If the baccarat player stands, The banker will hits on a total of 6 or less. If the decide to hit then you should use the chart below:

Player’s Draw vs. Bank Drawing

All you need to do is to decide how much you want to bet. Chose your bet, And let the dealer do the rest.

Baccarat Rules Guidelines

• A card less than ten are worth face value, Ace is worth one and picture cards are worth Zero.
• Baccarat starts with the player placing a bet in the ‘banker’, ‘player’, , or ‘tie’. And the dealer can do the rest.
• Once bets are own, two cards are dealt to the “banker” and two cards are dealt to the “player”. The value of the two card hand is equal to the right digit of the two card sum. five and seven = two, Ace and ten = one, three and four =seven and so on…

A 3 card may be dealt to the banker and/or player according to the baccarat rules:

• If the banker or the player has a score of eight or nine, no further cards are will be dealt.
• If the player’s total is five or less, the player will hit, otherwise the player will stand.
• If the player will stand, then the banker must hit on five or less. If the baccarat player hits, Then the banker will have to stands or hit.

Mini-Baccarat is played with six or eight decks of cards. The cards are shuffled by the dealer and placed in a shoe. All cards in Mini-Baccarat are dealt by the dealer.

Mini-Baccarat is a simple game to play.

Mini-Baccarat involves just a few decisions: how much you want to bet, and whether or not to bet on the Bank, the Player or on the Tie Bet. In betting on the Bank, the casino will collect 5% commission on the money won. The commission is paid at the conclusion of each shoe or when leaving the game. A winning Tie Bet pays 8 to 1.

The Game starts with four cards dealt from the shoe, forming two hands-one called the Player’s Hand, the other is called the Banker’s Hand. The initial four cards are dealt alternately from the shoe. The first and third cards dealt are placed face down for the Player’s Hand. The second and fourth cards dealt are placed face down until the Player’s Hand is called.

At this time, the second and fourth cards shall be placed face up for the Banker’s Hand. If the point count of either hand is 8 or 9, it is called a “natural,” and no additional cards are drawn. There are no options regarding drawing the third card for either Player’s or Banker’s Hand. No more than one additional card will be drawn to each hand.

The dealer announces the point count of the Player’s Hand and the Banker’s Hand and draws additional cards if appropriate. All bets must be placed before the dealer calls “no more bets” and the cards are dealt. The hand closest to 9 wins and shall be paid at odds of 1 to 1.

If both the Player’s and the Banker’s hand are identical totals, the Tie Bet wins, but the Player’s and Banker’s hands neither win nor lose. Any card from 2 to 9 shall have its face value. Ace equals 1. All 10s and face cards, or any combination of them have no value. When the total of the cards exceeds 9, the first digit of the total is dropped (i.e., 9 + 5 + 4 = 8; Jack + Ace = 1).

RULES FOR DRAWING EXTRA CARDS

Player (when first two cards total).
1,2,3,4,5 or 0 Draws A Card.
6 or 7 Stands.
8 or 9 Natural Stands.

Banker (when first two cards total).
When the player stands on 6 or 7, the banker will always draw total of 0, 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5, and stand on 6, 7, 8 and 9.

When the player does not have a natural, the banker shall always draw on the totals of 0, 1 or 2.

If you are ever thinking about playing baccarat online, there are a couple of things that you need to understand beforehand:

Online Casino Bonuses

I can guarantee that 100% of the online casinos that you find will offer a “casino bonus” of some kind. This casino bonus is used to draw new players into an online casino with the lure of free money. In actuality, you are agreeing to wager a certain amount when you accept the bonus money.

Most often, the bonus will be most favourable to the people who play on slot machines. About 50% of the casino bonuses that I have seen have been exclusively for casino games with a large house advantage. This includes slots as well as keno and scratch cards.

Other bonuses may be labeled to intend which games are designed to help players. A blackjack bonus helps blackjack players, a video poker bonus helps video poker players and so on …

Excluded Games from Bonus

There are some games that you will specifically not be allowed to play online with a casino bonus. Baccarat is one of these games that is often excluded from most casino bonuses. By most, I mean about 98% of online casino bonuses.

Along with playing baccarat online, you can add the games of craps, roulette and pai gow poker as frequently excluded games from casino bonuses.

Basically, these games are excluded from bonus money play for two reasons: 1) The house advantage of the casino game is very low.
2) There exists the possibility to cheat in order to reach the wagering requirement by betting on both sides of a 50/50 bet. This possibility exists in Roulette (Red/Black, Odd/Even, etc.), in Craps (Pass/Don’t Pass, etc.) as well as in Baccarat (Player/Banker).

What does Excluded Game mean?

An excluded game can mean one of two things. One – you may be able to place bets on the game but these bets do not count towards the wagering requirement. You have to reach this wagering requirement if you would like to cash out.

Two – However, there is another option if you are not careful in reading the casino rules. You may have your bonus and winnings voided if you play an excluded game. That means that you could only get your original money back if you tried to cash out.

The moral of this story is that people who want to play baccarat at an online casino should not accept the casino bonus.

With the following exception …

Lucky Red Casino

I have found one online casino that does allow bet on Baccarat with their casino bonus. Lucky Red Casino offers an “Other Games” bonus. In order to receive this bonus, you must use the Coupon Code: OTHERGAMES55

In order to claim this bonus, you must download and install the Lucky Red Casino software. Just sign up for an account and login. You will find yourself in the casino lobby. From here, click on the Go To Cashier button.

Click on the Redeem Coupon tab and enter the coupon code OTHERGAMES55. Do this before you make your deposit. After that, make a deposit between $30 and $2000 and you will automatically receive a 55% bonus.

You will be allowed to play any game that is offered at Lucky Red Casino.

Bonus Terms

The deposit and bonus must be wagered 25 times before cashing out. The following games only contribute 60% of the wager towards the requirement: Baccarat, Blackjack, Video Pokers, Multihand Video Poker, Craps, Roulette & Sic Bo.

This means that you basically have to wager a 42x rollover on baccarat before you cash out. If you were to deposit $500, you will receive a $275 bonus. You would have to wager ($500 + $275) x 42 or $32,550 before you can cash out. If you average $10 per hand, you can finish this bonus in less than 8 hours of playing.

This bonus can be claimed multiple times. In order to qualify for the next bonus, you must either clear the first bonus or have busted out.