Baccarat Odds

Guide to understanding baccarat odds.

Baccarat is a very simple card game that appeals to newcomers to gambling. In this game, two cards are initially played by a banker and a player. The primary objective of this game is to achieve a total that is closest to nine. The ace is equivalent to one, two to nine retain their value, while ten and the face cards equal to zero. To participate in this game, one takes a seat among the fourteen vacancies at a table (or seven for a mini-baccarat game) and chooses to place a bet on either the banker or the player. The bet-prize ratio here is one to one. For every winning bet that is made, the amount that equals to it is added to the original amount placed. If a tie is the end result and a player bets on this, he or she gets eight times more money. Easy, isn't it?

But if one is looking to baccarat for a surefire way to get some quick cash, then he or she is plain out of luck. Baccarat is more of a game of chance, and there is absolutely no completely accurate way of making that right bet. Some baccarat players prefer to note down their bets by listing the results of the cards they played. But sad to say, this does not really help a player in making the winning decision. However, it is safe to say that if one wants to increase his or her odds of winning, it is best to put one's bet on the banker. The banker's chance to win a game is higher than that of his opponent. The odds between the two are roughly 45.8% and 44.6%, in favor of the banker. The remaining 9.5 percent makes room for a possibility of a tie between the banker and the player. These figures apply to the standard six and eight deck baccarat games.

A player must remember that there exists a commission worth 5% that must be paid to the house and this also helps in placing the advantageous bet. This is called the house edge, and these numbers are 1.06% and 1.24% on the banker and the player, respectively. For a tied game, the figure stands at 14.44%. So from these percentages, anyone can see that it is in fact wiser to place one's bet on the banker instead of the player.

But even with these seemingly precise calculations, one can never be too sure. Perhaps the wisest bet that anyone can make in this game is to start with a fairly small amount first. But if one does not have the luxury of doing this, then there is always an online alternative. Before anyone decides to seriously hit the casino with hopes to win big at the baccarat tables, it is advisable to get some practice first. The best thing to do is, first, become a seasoned player at online baccarat tables where anyone can play just for fun and see if this game of chance is suited to one's taste. If things go well, then that's when one can start playing for some cold hard cash.

Last Updated ( Friday, 14 December 2007 )

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