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Online Baccarat
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We’ve all seen it. The roped off, exclusive section in the casino; home to the
mysterious game of baccarat. One for always wanting to belong, you approach a
casino manager and want to know how you get in the game. The manager smiles
patronizingly at you and replies, "If you have to ask, you don’t belong." And
with that you are suddenly thrown thirty years back to your childhood; the
clubhouse up the block where the neighbors played but ruled you out. But don’t
worry because fortunately baccarat can be played online, in the comfort of your
home.
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Oops, you still need a refresher course on this mystery game so you don't lose
your shirt. Here are the basics. The object of the game is to get a hand of two
or three cards with a point value as close to nine as possible. The perfect
hand is one that totals nine in the first two cards. Eight is the second best
hand and along with nine constitutes the two "natural" hands. The only hand
that will beat a natural eight is a natural nine. If any player's hand or the
bank has a natural eight or nine, the others may not draw a third card. In a
tie, bets are called off. Aces count as one, picture cards count as 10 and the
others as their face value. If your hand total is in double figures, then the
first figure is ignored. So a hand totaling 18 would count as eight.
Somewhat confusing but you are determined to belong in the club. You're
special. You can feel the plush, red carpet squishing under your feet. You
visualize the baccarat wannabes staring longingly at you and your fellow
players, hoping for a chance to get in on the action. Well, shake it off – you
have more to learn.
The player with the most money is usually declared the banker. The banker deals
three hands of two cards each, face down. These hands are for two players, one
to the right and one to the left of the banker, plus his/her own hand. Other
players at the table may bet on either hand or both to beat the banker's hand.
If a player declares "banko" it means they are betting the total value of the
bank’s funds and all other bets are withdrawn.
If either player has a count less than eight or nine he/she may stand saying
“non” or get one more card face up saying "carte". The player must stand on six
or seven and must draw on four or less.
You can feel it now, you belong in the baccarat club. With your hot chocolate
in hand, bunny slippers warming your feet and donning your most comfortable
sweats you log on to a search engine and prepare for a magical night of card
playing and the feeling you only get from being part of the baccarat club.
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