`Baccarat:`


The Baccarat game objective is to assemble a hand of two or three cards with a

points value as close to nine as possible. The perfect hand is one that totals nine

in the first two cards. Eight is the second-best hand and, along with the nine, it

constitutes the two "natural" hands. The only hand that will beat a natural eight is

a natural nine. If any player's hand or the Bank has a natural eight or nine, the

others may not draw a third card. In a tie, bets are called off.



Aces count as one, picture cards as 10, and the others their face value. If your hand

total is in double figures, then the first figure is ignored. So a hand totalling 18 would

count as eight.



The player with the most money is usually is declared the banker - this is the casino

in Baccarat Banque and rotates in Chemin de Fer. The banker deals three hands of

two cards each, face down. These hands are for two players, one to the right and

one to the left of the banker, plus his own hand. Other players at the table may bet

on either hand (cheval) or both to beat the banker's hand. If a player declares

"banco", it means he is betting the total value of the bank's funds and all other bets

are withdrawn.



If either player has a count less than eight or nine, he may stand (saying "non") or

get one more card face up (saying "carte"). The player must stand on six or seven

and must draw on four or less. Casinos usually take their percentage of the bank and

bets as their fee for the game.



There are two hands played in Baccarat - the "player" hand and the "banker" hand.

You can bet on either one. If the hand you bet on wins, you receive an even money

(1:1) payoff. There is one other bet you can make - the tie bet. If you make this bet

and the two hands tie, you receive an 8:1 payoff. Ties, however, occur less than

once out of every ten hands. At the start, each hand receives 2 cards. When

necessary, additional cards are drawn according to the rules. The hand closest to

9 wins.



10s, Jacks, Queens, and Kings all count as 0. The ace through 9 cards have face

values of 1 to 9, respectively. To determine the value of each hand, you simply add
 
the cards. If the total is over 10, the first digit is ignored. So an 8 and a 6 would

normally equal 14 but, since we disregard the first digit, we have instead a hand of 4.

Similarly, a 6 and 4 would equal 0 and a 10 and 9 would equal 9.



If the first two cards total 9, the hand is called a "natural" and automatically wins.

Two cards totaling 8 are also referred to as a natural and that hand wins also,

unless the hand it is playing against has a natural as well. When both hands contain

a natural, the higher natural hand wins (9 beating an 8). If the hands have equal

value, it is a tie.



When neither hand has a natural, there is no automatic winner, and additional cards

are drawn to determine the outcome of the hand



Baccarat Game - The Player Hand :



The player hand is played first, according to the following rules:

`When the first two cards equal.......`	`...the player must...`
`6, 7, 8, or 9`	`Stand`
`Any other value`	`Draw one card`


The player hand can never receive more than one additional card. The hand must

stand after the third card, regardless of its value at that point.



Baccarat Game - The Banker Hand :



The banker hand is a bit more complicated. How the banker hand gets played is

usually determined by the player hand's third card. If the player did not draw a third

card (i.e. had a 6 or higher), then the banker draws a card only if its first two cards

total less than  5.  Otherwise, the banker stands.



If the player did draw a third card, then the banker plays as follows:

`When the banker's first two cards equal...`	`...the banker draws if the player's third card is:`
`3`	`1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10`
`4`	`2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7`
`5`	`4, 5, 6, 7`
`6`	`6, 7`
`When the banker's first two cards equal...`	`...the banker will:`
`2 or less`	`Always draw`
`7, 8, or 9`	`Always stand`


Baccarat Game - Wins, Losses, and Ties :



The hand closest to nine always wins. If there is a natural, it is an automatic winner,

and no further cards are drawn.



Banker and player bets pay even money when you win. A winning banker bet is

subject to a 5% house commission. So if you made a $5 banker bet and won, you

would  receive $5.00 minus 5% ($0.25), which would actually be $4.75. If the two

hands tie, neither bet wins nor loses any money. If you made a tie bet, however, you
 
would receive an 8:1 payoff.



Although banker bets must pay a 5% commission when won, they are still good bets

to  make since banker hands actually win more frequently than player hands. All things

considered, the banker and player bets give you about the same odds. In both cases,

the house edge is quite small - in fact, it is only 1.17% on banker bets, and a 1.36%

on player bets. From a statistical standpoint, you are slightly better off wagering on

the banker.