Baccarat is one of the world’s most beloved casino games. Dating back centuries, its long history and association with luxury and extravagance make it a classic casino choice.
Baccarat first originated in Italy and spread throughout France through soldiers returning from Italy’s 1490s conflicts. Baccarat quickly gained favor with France’s nobility, eventually becoming their favorite game.
Origins
Baccarat first made its debut in Italy during the 1400s. It quickly gained popularity amongst nobility and the wealthy due to not requiring too much skill like poker or blackjack do. Later it found its way to France in the 1800s where King Charles VIII himself would regularly play it, leading to it eventually being known as Chemin de Fer before eventually evolving into the familiar name baccarat we know today.
Baccarat first gained widespread acclaim in America during the 1950s when its banker-versus-player action began thrilling casino gamblers in Sin City casinos. Unfortunately, its introduction was short lived; instead it disappeared from casino floors until its revival as an alternative to poker in casinos across America during the 1970s.
Rules
Baccarat is a straightforward game where players bet on whether the Player Hand or Banker Hand will win; the winning hand being defined as the one closest to 9 points. Furthermore, there’s the option for bets on a tie outcome as well.
As soon as Europeans became familiar with the game, many were instantly entranced. Soon thereafter it quickly became a fixture at high-end gambling houses and even reached its zenith during Victorian England when Queen Victoria herself is reported to have played.
France made it illegal, yet when reinstated in the 1920s it quickly became a sensation and groups of gamblers became obsessed with perfecting their strategy – such as the Greek Syndicate which used mathematical odds and card counting techniques to dominate. Over time however, rules were refined further until modern baccarat emerged.
Payouts
Baccarat is a game of chance, so there is no surefire strategy that guarantees consistent wins. But understanding the odds and payouts can help players make wiser bets.
No matter whether you are playing Punto Banco, Baccarat Chemin de Fer, or Banque (aka “a deux Tableaux”) the rules remain relatively consistent and aim to predict which hand will have a total closer to nine than the other one.
A croupier will distribute two cards to each box and the hand that scores closest to 9 wins. However, should both Banker and Player hands tie with equal values (called a tie), both bettors will receive their initial wager back – making this an effective strategy to avoid losing your money! However, be mindful that tie betting provides only limited returns; for this reason it may be wiser to forgoing this type of bet altogether.
Variations
Baccarat is a intricate casino game with many variants, each offering different payouts and rules. Its widespread appeal among high rollers may be attributable to its straightforward gameplay or James Bond association; but more importantly, baccarat offers low house edge and high profit potential.
Some scholars speculate that this game was inspired by ancient Roman vestal virgins who used dice to determine their fates; those throwing eight or nines could become priestesses; anything less meant losing religious status.
Chemin de Fer, which first gained popularity in France during the late 19th century and remains the dominant form of baccarat today in America, spread via Cuba from Europe to Las Vegas during the 1950s – eventually adopted by gamblers seeking something different to challenge themselves with. Francis “Tommy” Renzoni is often credited with introducing Punto Banco (our beloved version of baccarat) into Las Vegas at this point.
