Baccarat Regulations
Baccarat is played with 8 decks of cards in a shoe. Cards which are valued less than 10 are worth their printed value meanwhile ten, J, Q, K are 0, and A are each equal to 1. Bets are placed on the ‘banker,’ the ‘player’ or for a tie (these aren’t actual individuals; they only represent the two hands to be dealt).
Two hands of 2 cards are then dealt to the ‘banker’ as well as ‘player’. The value for every hand will be the grand total of the 2 cards, but the first digit is discarded. For eg, a hand of 7 … 5 produces a total score of 2 (7plus5=12; drop the ‘one’).
A third card might be given out depending on the foll. protocols:
- If the gambler or banker has a value of eight or nine, each players stand.
- If the gambler has 5 or less, he/she hits. gamblers stand otherwise.
- If player stands, the banker hits of five or lower. If the gambler hits, a chart might be used to decide if the banker stands or hits.
Baccarat Odds
The greater of the two scores is the winner. Victorious bets on the banker pay out 19 to 20 (even money less a 5% commission. Commission is followed closely and cleared out when you leave the table so be sure to have money still before you leave). Bets on the player that end up winning pay one to 1. Winning bets for tie generally pays out at eight to one but sometimes nine to 1. (This is a bad bet as ties happen lower than 1 every ten hands. Definitely don’t try betting on a tie. However odds are vastly better – 9 to 1 vs. eight to one)
When done smartly, baccarat presents generally good odds, away from the tie wager of course.
Baccarat Tactics
As with just about all games, Baccarat has some common misconceptions. One of which is very similar to a roulette misconception. The past is in no way an actual indicator of future results. Staying abreast of past outcomes on a chart is a waste of paper … an insult to the tree that gave its life to be used as our stationary.
The most common and almost certainly most successful strategy is the 1-three-2-six method. This method is employed to boost profits and cutting back risk.
Begin by wagering 1 unit. If you win, add 1 more to the two on the table for a total of 3 on the 2nd bet. If you win you will have six on the table, clear away four so you have 2 on the third wager. If you win the third wager, add two to the four on the table for a total of six on the 4th wager.
If you lose on the 1st bet, you suck up a loss of one. A win on the first bet followed up by loss on the second will create a loss of two. Wins on the 1st 2 with a loss on the third gives you a profit of 2. And wins on the first 3 with a loss on the fourth mean you break even. Winning at all four bets leaves you with 12, a profit of 10. In other words you can lose the second bet 5 times for every successful streak of 4 bets and still break even.