Baccarat is a casino card game that is currently experiencing something of a resurgence, both in America and elsewhere. It is a game of simple rules, and it offers high stakes. However, the game can be a bit tricky to play without some strategy. The good news is that there are plenty of baccarat strategies available, and some of them are very effective.
Baccarat has a long and proud history, with its greatest successes coming in the 19th Century, when it began to receive some of its most important commissions. The firm’s strong showings at the Great Exhibitions of 1855, 1867 and 1878 earned them admirers and customers far beyond the French borders, including patrons from Ottoman Turkey, Portugal, Japan and India.
The baccarat table is a large one, with 12 seats on either side of the dealer who only banks the game and does not otherwise participate in it. Green felt covers the table, and numbered areas indicate where bets may be placed. Eight 52-card packs are shuffled together and dealt by the croupier from a dealing box, known as a shoe, that releases cards one at a time, face down.
The Player and Banker hands are compared, with the hand closest to 9 winning and paying out 1 to 1. A third card may be drawn only when the initial total is 8 or 9, called ‘naturals’. Otherwise, no additional cards are drawn. In Mini-Baccarat, the Players are allowed to handle the cards, and in Macau-style baccarat the Players can also stand if their count is 6 or higher.