Baccarat rules:
Graphic courtesy MGM Grand, AU
The basics and how to play baccarat
The rules of the game are somewhat complicated, but you can, and should, be easily able get to know them with just a little bit of study. In the online version of the game, you can play without. Online Baccarat is an exciting and fast casino game - understand the rules of baccarat and find out why high rollers all over the world prefer Baccarat! Baccarat - the Game of Kings - dates back to the 1500s. We detail the rules, including player & banker drawing rules, odds and how & where to play Punto Banco.
Baccarat has been in mainstream circulation since the early 1900s after originally becoming popular in France in the 1800s. Here is how to play. This way you can learn how to play Mini Punto Banco and get familiar with the rules. The drawing rules are as follows.
Punto Banco Drawing Rules For Dummies
Baccarat or Punto Banco is usually played in a separate casino area. The playing table is about the size of a craps table with three casino dealers and up to 12 or 14 players.
There are just two principal bets to make: banker or player - Banco or Punto, plus the rarely used Standoff. Some casinos let the players deal the cards in turn and others have a casino dealer to deal the cards. In online Baccarat the cards are dealt automatically by a virtual dealer.
Each player, including the player dealing, may bet on either Punto or Banco but it is customary for the dealer to bet on Banco. Players may opt not to deal, passing the 'Shoe' to the next player. The shoe remains with one player as long as the Bank wins. If Punto wins, the shoe passes on to the next player.
Two hands are dealt and you bet which one will win, or that they will tie. It is just like betting on Black or Red at roulette, and the payoff is even money, 1:1 (except for the standoff, which pays 8-1 or 9-1). The only difference between the Banco and Punto bet is a win on Banco will cost you 5% commission or tax levied by the casino - the in-built advantage.
The reason for taxing the Banco is because it has been established that over an 8-deck cards play on average the Banco will win three to four hands more than the Punto.
Each hand consists of a minimum of two and a maximum of three cards. The person dealing will put two cards, face down, tucked under the shoe, and give the player with the largest bet on Punto the other two cards, face down.
The Punto player then looks at the cards and gives them back to the player who is dealing. Then the player who is dealing will turn over the cards of both hands while one of the casino dealers will announce the results and the winner.
If either hand has a total of 8 or 9 (nine is the highest), then it is called a 'Natural' and no more cards are dealt. If it is not a natural, then depending on the value of each hand the casino dealer may instruct the card dealer to deal a third card. The decision when to deal a third card follows precise set rules used by all casinos.
Once dealing is completed, the hand with the highest count wins. The paying casino dealers will collect the losing bets first and then pay the winning ones. The player who actually deals the cards is not responsible for the payouts. He is just like any other player, playing against the casino.
The rules
Baccarat is played from a six-deck or an eight-deck shoe. All face cards and 10s have no value. Cards less than 10 are counted at face value, Aces are worth 1. Suits don't matter. Only single digit values are valid. Any count that reaches a double digit drops the left digit. 15 is counted as 5 and 25 is also counted as 5.
To start, the players bet either on Banco or Punto or Standoff. The card dealer gives two cards each; first to the player and then the banker. The object of the game is to bet on the hand that you think will have the highest total value.
A third card may be dealt to either or both the player (Punto) and the bank (Banco) based on the following three-card-rules. It is not necessary to learn these rules to play, they are compulsory decisions and therefore automatic. Only on rare occasions a mistake is made:
Player's third-card-rule
- If either the player or the bank have a total of 8 or 9 on the first two cards no further cards are drawn. The resulting hand is called a natural and the hand is over.
- If the player's total is less than or equal to 5 the player's hand draws a third card.
- If the player does not draw a third card, then the bank's hand stands on 6 or more and takes a third card on a total of 5 or less. If the player does take a third card then the Bank's third-card-rule below will determine if the bank takes a third card.
Bank's third-card-rule
- If the bank's total is 2 or less then bank draws a card, regardless of what the players third card is.
- If the banks total is 3 then the bank draws a third card unless the players third card was an 8.
- If the banks total is 4 then the bank draws a third card unless the players third card was a 0, 1, 8, or 9.
- If the banks total is 5 then the bank draws a third card if the players third card was 4, 5, 6, or 7.
- If the banks total is 6 then the bank draws a third card if the players third card was a 6 or 7.
- If the banks total is 7 then the bank stands.
House advantage
Banker (Banco) 1.17%
Player (Punto) 1.36%
Tie (Standoff) 14.12% at 8:1 payout
See Chemin De Fer - A brief description of the French version of Baccarat.
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Use the 'Main Menu' on the right margin to explore this site. This is a comprehensive great gambling information site with advice on winning, how to gamble, betting strategy, listing the best online casinos and world land-based casinos directory.
Topics covered include game summary, rules, how to play, how to win, game strategy, betting systems, gambling tips, on: Blackjack, Roulette, Poker classic and variants such as Texas Hold'em poker, Craps/Dice, Slots and Videopoker, Baccarat, Keno, Lottery, Powerball, Bingo, Sports betting, Horse racing and Greyhound racing.
Punto Banco Drawing Rules
This is the gambling website with lots of information and resources as well as helpful advice and frequent updates thanks to your helpful feedback.
The rules
Baccarat is played from a six-deck or an eight-deck shoe. All face cards and 10s have no value. Cards less than 10 are counted at face value, Aces are worth 1. Suits don't matter. Only single digit values are valid. Any count that reaches a double digit drops the left digit. 15 is counted as 5 and 25 is also counted as 5.
To start, the players bet either on Banco or Punto or Standoff. The card dealer gives two cards each; first to the player and then the banker. The object of the game is to bet on the hand that you think will have the highest total value.
A third card may be dealt to either or both the player (Punto) and the bank (Banco) based on the following three-card-rules. It is not necessary to learn these rules to play, they are compulsory decisions and therefore automatic. Only on rare occasions a mistake is made:
Player's third-card-rule
- If either the player or the bank have a total of 8 or 9 on the first two cards no further cards are drawn. The resulting hand is called a natural and the hand is over.
- If the player's total is less than or equal to 5 the player's hand draws a third card.
- If the player does not draw a third card, then the bank's hand stands on 6 or more and takes a third card on a total of 5 or less. If the player does take a third card then the Bank's third-card-rule below will determine if the bank takes a third card.
Bank's third-card-rule
- If the bank's total is 2 or less then bank draws a card, regardless of what the players third card is.
- If the banks total is 3 then the bank draws a third card unless the players third card was an 8.
- If the banks total is 4 then the bank draws a third card unless the players third card was a 0, 1, 8, or 9.
- If the banks total is 5 then the bank draws a third card if the players third card was 4, 5, 6, or 7.
- If the banks total is 6 then the bank draws a third card if the players third card was a 6 or 7.
- If the banks total is 7 then the bank stands.
House advantage
Banker (Banco) 1.17%
Player (Punto) 1.36%
Tie (Standoff) 14.12% at 8:1 payout
See Chemin De Fer - A brief description of the French version of Baccarat.
Great gambling information site
Use the 'Main Menu' on the right margin to explore this site. This is a comprehensive great gambling information site with advice on winning, how to gamble, betting strategy, listing the best online casinos and world land-based casinos directory.
Topics covered include game summary, rules, how to play, how to win, game strategy, betting systems, gambling tips, on: Blackjack, Roulette, Poker classic and variants such as Texas Hold'em poker, Craps/Dice, Slots and Videopoker, Baccarat, Keno, Lottery, Powerball, Bingo, Sports betting, Horse racing and Greyhound racing.
Punto Banco Drawing Rules
This is the gambling website with lots of information and resources as well as helpful advice and frequent updates thanks to your helpful feedback.
Baccarat * Rules . Glossary . Tips . Strategy . Books . Links . Extras
Punto Banco Drawing Rules How To Play
Punto wins:
Your bet is doubled when you win. For example, you bet € 100 and get paid out € 200. The odds of Banco winning is 44.62% and the house edge is 1.24%.
Banco wins:
Again your bet is doubled and then 5% tax is deducted from your winnings. For example, if you bet $ 100 you will get paid $ 100 (your bet) and $ 95 ($ 100 profit minus 5%), paid out in total $ 195. Despite this tax, the house advantage at Banco is only 1.06% and therefore smaller than at Punto. This is because the rules make it more likely that Banco will win.
Tie
If you bet on a tie, you win 8 times your bet. This seems nice, but viewed from the probability calculation this is an unfavorable bet. You have a 1 in 10 chance of a draw but you only get paid 8 times. This makes the house edge a whopping 14.36%! In casino terms, this is very high. Of course you can bet on Egalité if you like to take some risk, but it cannot be used in combination with a strategy and you reduce your own chances of winning.
Sidebets:
In addition to these three bets, there are often sidebets at various land-based and online casinos such as betting on two identical cards and the exact number of points that Punto or Banco achieve during a game round. Payouts are correspondingly risk and usually the house edge is very high.
Wagering limits
If you are going to play with real money, you must take into account the betting limits that are used. These are different per casino and often also per gaming table.
The minimum and maximum bets are clearly marked at the gaming table. Are you going to play against the software? Then the minimum bet is usually $0.10 at a regular table and with a high bet Punto Banco variant, the bets start from $5.00. The maximum bets against the software are often between $100 and $500. Playing Punto Banco in the live casino means that the stakes can get a little higher.
