Do’s and Don’ts in Baccarat Strategy

Baccarat doesn’t seem as familiar to many amateur players as other casino games like poker and slots. If you’re on a vacation to Las Vegas, chances are you’ll stick to the basics. But next time you find yourself at a casino, you should give baccarat a try – chances are, it will become your next favorite game, and here’s why.

At first glance, baccarat can seem pretty complex. But you shouldn’t be intimidated. It’s simpler than you think. 

Many Americans will recognize baccarat as a game that James Bond played. The game was actually a part of the very first Bond film, Dr. No, released in 1962. But despite its short time in the limelight, baccarat didn’t seem to sink its heels into American culture. 

But since baccarat’s not an American stable, you might be wondering: how did it survive as a game? Who plays it? And why?

Its status among the elite is one of the baccarat’s most lasting features. Though it had been found to be popular among 19th-century French nobility, baccarat is speculated to have come from 17th century Asia, if not earlier. 

Currently, baccarat is most popular in Macao. Even in American casinos, the primary baccarat-playing demographic consists of elite Asian gamblers. This is primarily attributed to its appeal to Asian culture.

While there is debate over baccarat’s status as a purely luck-based or combination luck-strategy game, in Asia it is viewed as primarily luck, which they feel is a purer form of gambling than other skill-based games. 

Baccarat is sometimes compared to blackjack. But instead of trying to reach a sum of 21 like in blackjack, in baccarat, the goal is to hit 9. Although it is a simple game, there are some rules to remember.

In baccarat, the cards are specifically assigned values. Cards 2 through 9 have the same value as their face values. An ace is valued at 1, and then the 10, jack, queen, and king have values of 0. 

There are two sets, each consisting of two cards that are drawn: the player side and the banker side. The betters have three betting options: the player, the banker, and a tie. 

Additionally, the player side and banker side have different rules for drawing additional cards. For example, the player can draw an additional card if the total sum of the two cards is less than 5. However, the rules for the banker’s additional draws can vary according to the player’s additional card. 

Although there are other rules besides these, baccarat is known for being a relatively simple game, because there are only three possible bets, and the dealer basically does all the work.

But anyway, if you’re looking to play and want to play well, here are some basic do’s and don’ts for playing baccarat:

  1. DON’T be intimidated. Just try it!

As described previously, baccarat is known for being a game played by professional and elite gamblers. But this isn’t because it’s especially difficult. 

In a story written by Chia-Chia Lin for the New Yorker, she detailed the pressure, the anxiety, and the thrill of sitting at a high-limit table in the V.I.P section for a baccarat game in Macau. Despite being completely out of place, she played the role of a high-roller for her job with a consulting company. 

The way she describes the scene, it seems almost out of an action movie – someone somewhere near could’ve been stealing some prized jewelry or spying on the mafia. Ultimately, she and her coworker ended up winning more money than they could’ve made working for a year! 

These huge wins are part of why so many high-rollers love the game, and why you should think about playing it too. 

Lucian Marinescu, a partner at OnlineCasinoGems, called baccarat a hidden gem. He said, “I’m surprised more people aren’t playing baccarat. I’m sure if people tried it out, they would love it. It’s honestly a hidden gem.”

2. DO keep in mind the house edge – bet more often on the player

As per any casino game, the house edge can vary between casinos and variations of the same game. One of the most appealing aspects of baccarat is its surprisingly low house advantage. According to Forbes, betting on the banker or player has an average house advantage of 1.2 percent.

One temptation that many baccarat players face is the tie bet, which pays off eight to one. But among professional baccarat players, people rarely bet on a tie. Looking at the numbers, ties have a house edge of around 14 percent!

As a rule of thumb, betters like to stick to betting on the player hand. The player typically has a slightly higher house edge, but it pays up a lot more. Winnings from the player double your bet, while winnings from the banker only get you 95 percent of your bet. 

3. DO know when to stop playing

Once again, this applies to many casino games, but especially baccarat. In baccarat, you can win big, but this means you can also lose just as much if not more. 

The New York Times published a piece on ‘advantage players.’ In this, they mentioned the famous Cheung Yin Sun, one of the most elite baccarat players. Sun won over $20 million within five years, but she also lost $20 million, primarily from playing baccarat and slots. 

At one point Sun was even arrested for $93,000 of gambling debt. In the end, she was bailed out of jail and went back to the casinos with a vendetta. And she made back all the money using a method called edge sorting. 

Though she made it all back, edge sorting isn’t the sort of thing that just anyone can do. It took Sun four years to develop these skills. 

The point is baccarat is a wild game. You can win millions and lose millions in a heartbeat. So it’s better to watch out. 

Though baccarat is mostly a luck-based game, these tips will help you make the most out of it. So even if you’re not a high-roller, you can still win at baccarat like in the story by Chia-Chia Lin. 

Baccarat has a long history of being a highly-favored game. Soon enough it could be your favorite too! Once you’ve become familiar with the rules, follow these simple rules to make sure you stay on top of the game.