Baccarat Guide

European Aristocracy

The game was originally introduced from Italy into France in the 15th century after the Franco-Italian war by soldiers who were returning home from war. The game throughout its history has always been associated with elite classes and nobility, mainly because the game in its origins was played only by the Europe aristocracy at the time.

The game is still offered at various brick and mortar casinos as an exclusive game with baccarat tables placed in separate rooms or roped off with ropes to divide the rest of the casino area. To keep the game more inviting and intriguing to players, many casinos promote the idea of baccarat being a royal game, but of course, the game is completely accessible to any player.

Online baccarat is card game played in a similar way to blackjack or poker, by comparing two hands, one hand is player's, and another is bank's hand. Each online baccarat round play, which is known as baccarat coup, has three outcomes based on hand score. Therefore, 'player' outcome is when the player has a higher score, 'banker' when bank wins and 'tie' when a score is even. Being played by comparing one hand to another, the game is classified as a show and compare game.

Between Two Positions

To learn how to play online baccarat, you have to know only three basic bets. Therefore, learning to play online baccarat is quite easy and doesn't require special skills and knowledge.

The game is similar to online blackjack in certain ways since both of these games are played by using standard playing cards. Both of them assign various values to different cards and both deal at the beginning two card hand.However, online Blackjack offers players more betting options to choose and is played between the house/dealer and the player, while online baccarat is played between two players and the house/casino which is acting as the 'middleman'.

All players in a game can bet on the following three basic betting options:

Betting on the Banker position to have higher score
Betting on the Players position to have higher score
Betting on the tie between these two positions
The aim of the game is to obtain a two-card total of either nine or eight to win, either from the banker of players position. The players are betting on which position will have higher score hand or on an even score between these two positions. To get a two-card total of nine or eight, two cards are adding together to get a single number. If the outcome is double-digit, the first number is being discarded. For example, if the two card total is thirteen, the baccarat card total number would be three.

To get the value of the hand

The value of its individual cards is added. These are the card values in baccarat:

All kings are counted as zero
All queens are counted as zero
All jacks are counted as zero
All ace cards are counted as one
All ten (10) cards are counted as zero
Cards between two and nine are counted as their face value
Online baccarat game is played using standard playing cards divided into six decks, but there are some versions which are played with eight decks of standard playing cards. To begin online baccarat round, the bets must be placed on either on the Banker position or the Player position. After placing bets, two cards are added to the both of these positions.

In the case when the Player position two card total is counted as zero through five, The player can draw a third card.In the another case when the Banker position two card total is counted as nine, eight or seven, this position is winning automatically, and there is no need for third card drawing. However, the Banker position draws a third card in the case when a two-card total is two, three or four.

Winning bets are paid in one to one ratio, regardless of the position you are betting on, but a commission is charged which amount to five percent. There are some reports that Tie bets are paid in eight to one ratio, but this winning odds may vary from one casino to another. Once bets are placed, there is no opportunity for making further decisions.

House Advantage and Baccarat Odds

Only three betting option can be made in online baccarat, so it's a simple card game which is easy to learn and understand. Before betting on any of these options, you should know that each of them is carrying its own casino advantage percentage. Casino advantage percentages may vary from one casino to another. The casino advantage percentage may help you to become more successful in the game. In the online baccarat, the house percentage advantages are:

Betting on the Banker position: 1.06 % casino advantage
Betting on the Player position: 1.24% casino advantage
Betting on the Tie position: 14.36% casino advantage
As you can see, the best odds for a player are when betting on the Banker position, while the worst odds are when betting on the Tie position.

To increase your winning odds there are few more things to keep in mind.

Bet on the Banker position: The best odds and the smallest house advantage is when you bet on the Banker position.
Keep going with the banker position until it loses: If the Banker is on the streak, you should keep betting it.
Don't go with the Tie bet: Every time you bet on the Tie, you actually lose 14.4 units counted for every hundred units wagered.
Manage your money: Keeping an eye on your money is crucial when it comes to any gambling game. Make sure you know how much money you can afford to spend. There can be losses before gains.
Online baccarat offers plenty of exciting moments while enjoying at the coziness of your home. Today online casinos are offering various online baccarat versions such as Baccarat Gold and High Limit Baccarat. Regardless of which version you decide to try, you are going to enjoy and have fun. Keep in mind that the game is supposed to be fun and excitement, when it stops being fun, you should quit and try some other day.