Baccarat Rules

Baccarat rules are simple to understand and are the basis for every player strategy and bet on the game. The objective of the game is for a player to secure a hand of nine points; also, the game follows specific card values and each player is dealt two cards initially.

Understanding the Baccarat Points System

According to Baccarat rules, each card is worth a certain number of points; 10 and all picture cards worth ‘zero’, while the other cards retain their face value. This means that the face values of the King, Queen, Jack and Ten cards are zero. The Ace card has face value of 1 and other cards are assigned their face value. Therefore, all baccarat values are in the range 0-9.

The Rules of the Game

Once you have gained an understanding of the point system and the objective of the game, players will need to understand the rules of the game which can be summarized as follows.

• Bets are placed before the cards can be dealt. Bets can be placed either on the first hand which is the banker hand, or even on the player’s hand or as another alternative on the ‘tie’.
• The house dealer deals two hands from a baccarat shoe that holds multiple decks of cards; the first one is called the ‘banker hand’ and the other is the ‘player hand’.
• Each hand is initially dealt two cards and based on whether a result is obtained or not, another card is dealt to the hands. Thus each completed hand will have either two or perhaps three cards eventually.
• The value of a hand is determined by adding up the face values of the individual cards; after which the final digit of the total sum is taken into consideration.
• The hand that has the highest value is declared the winner and if the values are the same the game is declared a ‘tie’.
• The player hand is dealt the third card if the total value of its two cards is 5 or less; else it must stand without the third card.
• If the player was not dealt the third card, the banker hand is dealt the third if the banker hand value was 3, 4 or 5 but not if it was 6. If the player is dealt a third card, the banker is dealt or not dealt a third card depending on the value of the card that the player has drawn.
• The wins on the banker hand and the player hand pay 1:1 each; meaning an even sum of money is paid for these bets; however, the winning of bets on banker hands are charged a commission by the house, which is often 5 % of the winnings. Winnings on the player hand however are not charged.
• Winning bets on a tie between the banker and the player hands pay 8:1 –although there are a few casinos that will pay 9:1.