Baccarat Information

Baccarat, also known as Punto Banco, is one of the oldest and most popular games in
casinos all over the world. It is especially popular among high-rollers and Asian
gamblers. In Macau, Baccarat is extremely dominant. Although the game seems serious
and elegant, it is really as simple as betting on the flip of a coin.

Game Objective

In Baccarat, the cards are dealt to two hands, named Player and Banker. The object of the
game is to correctly pick which hand will have the higher score, with the highest score in
Baccarat being 9, and the lowest being 0. You can also place a bet on Tie.
Mini Baccarat has the same rules as the big table Baccarat, but since the dealer turns over
all the cards, it makes for a much faster game. The odds are exactly the same as those of
the big table, assuming the same number of decks. Mini Baccarat is sometimes dealt from
a six-deck shoe (which we will use), which changes the odds slightly.

Calculating Hands

Face cards and 10s are worth zero. All other cards are counted at face value. For
example, the three of hearts is worth three points. If a hand totals more than 10 points, 10
points are subtracted from the final total. For example, a hand that consists of the nine of
hearts and the seven of diamonds equals six, not 16.

Hits

Unlike Blackjack, Mini Baccarat Players don't make decisions about hits. Hits are dealt
out automatically depending on the hand totals. The rules of the game govern whether
additional cards are given to the Bank hand or the Player's hand. A two-card hand that
totals eight or nine is considered a natural. If either side has a natural, hits are not given.
Whichever side has the best original hand wins. Two hands with the same score are
considered a tie.
If no one has a natural, hits are given out according to the following rules. The Player's
hand is always addressed first. If the Player's first two cards total six or seven points, they
are forced to stand and will not receive another card. If the Player's hand totals zero
through five points, another card will be added to the hand. The hand will be hit until it
reaches a total score of six through nine.
Rules for hitting the Bank hand follow these guidelines. A Bank hand that totals zero, one
or two is always hit. The Bank always stands on totals of seven, eight and nine. If the
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Player's original two cards total six or seven points, the Bank draws a third card if it has a
total of zero through five. It stands on six or better.
When the Bank hand totals three points, the hand is hit unless the Player's hand drew a
third card of eight. In this case, the Bank stands. When the Bank starts with a hand
totaling four points, it draws a third card only if the Player drew a third card worth two
through seven points. Otherwise the Bank stands.
When the Bank starts with a total of five points, it draws a third card only if the Player's
hand drew a third card valued between four and seven. Otherwise the Bank stands. When
the Bank starts with a total of six points, it hits only if the Player's hand drew a third card
valued at six or seven.

Bets

There are only three possible wagers gamblers can make. A bet can be made that the
Bank hand will win, that the Player's hand will win or that there will be a tie. The hand
that comes closest to nine prevails.

Players bet by placing their chips in either the Player, Banker, or Tie spot in the numbered
box opposite their seat. Winning bets made on the Player are paid off at even money. If
the Banker was the winner, players who won must pay a 5% commission on their
winnings. A record of the commission owed by each player is kept in a numbered box (as
below) – this has historically been done by use of plastic lammars. Players can pay this
vigorish at any time, but it must be paid when the shoe is completed.

You have choices:-

1. The commission can be taken from the payment before it is given to the player, and
kept in the numbered box (ie. the seat he/she is sitting in) until it can be rounded up
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to a higher denomination and dropped. Quarter coins will be required in the float
bankroll.

2. Plastic lammars can be used and placed within the numbered box until the shoe
finishes or the player leaves (whichever comes first), and the dealer will ask the
player to settle the commission. Or

3. The player can pay at the same time he/she is being paid from his/her chip bank.

The minimum bet will be $5, and the maximum allowable bet will be $500 on either the
Player or Banker.

The only other bet that can be made is a tie bet, which is paid off at 8:1.

The tie bet is based on 10% of the posted table min/max bets, and for our purposes, it will
be $1 to $50.

(On the applicable test ship, Players may place a Pairs Wager by placing a wager on one
or both of two designated betting areas on the table layout. These betting areas are
identified as "Player Pair" and "Banker Pair" and are located on either side of the betting
area for the "Tie Hand".

The min/max allowable bets will be $1 to $10. A winning Pairs Wager pays 11 to 1).

The type of wager and the amount are the only decisions a player must make, after which
point the dealer's actions take over. Each time the shoe is depleted of cards, all decks are
thoroughly shuffled and replaced in the shoe.

Winnings

A winning bet placed on either hand receives even money. A small commission is
imposed on winning bets placed on the house hand because the odds for the house hand to
win are slightly better due to the hitting rules. A tie is least likely to happen and therefore
winning tie bets receives the biggest payout - eight to one.
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Rules

 Usually eight decks of cards are used. We will use 6 decks.

 Cards are given point values as follows: Ace = 1, 2-9 = pip value (i.e. the number of
pips on the card), 10 and face cards = 0.

 Players will not be allowed to touch, or ‘squeeze’ the cards.

 At the start of a new shoe, the dealer will turn over one card. This will determine
how many cards the dealer will burn, according to the Baccarat value, except a 10 or
face card which will result in 10 cards being burned.

 The cut card will be placed 26 cards from the bottom of the shoe. When the cut card
appears, the dealer will finish that hand, play one more hand, and then start a new
shoe. If the cut card comes out instead of the first card, the dealer will finish that
hand, and then start a new shoe.

 Play begins by all Players betting either on the "Player", "Banker", or a tie. (At some
tables you may also bet on a Player pair and Banker pair. When the dealer has
delivered 4 cards (two for the Banker as well as two for the player), he/she needs to
determine if either side has a pair and action the pairs bets, pay winning bets (11 to 1)
and remove loosing bets, in order (from box 1 to 7). At this stage, the dealer
continues to call the game, and pull cards if needed as per procedure to determine the
totals for both the Player and Banker.  

 After all bets are down, the dealer gives two cards each to the Player and the
Banker. The score of the hand is the right digit of the total of the cards. For example,
if the two cards were an 8 and 7, then the total would be 15 and the score would be a
5. The scores will always range from 0 to 9 and it is impossible to bust.

 A third card may, or may not, be dealt to either the Player or the Banker (house)
depending on the following rules:

o If either the Player or the Banker has a total of an 8 or a 9 they both stand.
This rule overrides all other rules.

o If the Player's total is 5 or less, then the Player hits, otherwise the Player
stands.
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o If the Player stands, then the Banker hits on a total of 5 or less. If the Player
does hit then use the chart below to determine if the Banker hits (H) or stands (S):

 The score of the Player and Banker are compared; the winner is the one that is
greater. Winning bets on the Banker pay 19 to 20 (even money less a 5%
commission), winning bets on the Player pay 1 to 1, winning bets on a tie usually pay
8 to 1. In the event of a tie, Banker and Player bets will push.

 On winning Banker bets, the Player will be paid even money. Meanwhile, the
dealer will keep track of the 5% commission owed by all players (with small
laminated markers). This is done by using the applicable numbered box (which
equates to the guest’s seat number 1 – 7) in front of the float. At the end of each
shoe, or when a Player wants to leave, the dealer will collect all commissions owed.

 There will only be one player per box. Maximum of 7 players per game.

 Players can not play more than one box. (If this was allowed it would amount to
‘syndicate’ betting – ie. a situation where a group had a strong overall knowledge of
odds and gambling with unlimited funds, and make bets calculated the chances of
winning on every deal. Effectively, a single player could bypass the table maximum

 Players could play more than one bet at a time, e.g. banker & player in the same
hand, but it is worse than playing red and black.  Realistically this would be very rare
scenario, and if a player did want to do this, the dealer should explain why this is not
a good idea.  If done anyway, the maximum of $500 would apply to the bet.
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Odds

6 Decks

The following return tables show the possible outcomes of the Banker, Player, and tie bets
for a 6-deck game. As the lower left cells in each table show, the house edge is 1.06% on
the Banker bet, 1.24% on the Player bet, and 14.44% on the tie.

Riding Trends

Every Baccarat table will have plenty of score cards and pencils for the Players to keep
track of the outcome of every hand. Most Players will do so religiously, and carefully
analyze their card for trends as the winning hand switches back and forth from the Banker
to the Player. Please make sure to provide these cards, which should be printed onboard.