Baccarat is a card game in which players wager on either the Player or Banker hand, hoping for the highest total when all pips (clubs, diamonds, hearts and spades) are added together. A staple at casinos worldwide – with James Bond even featured often playing it in movies! – this prestigious version can often be found at high-end casinos.

Traditional games of Poker utilize six decks of cards that are mixed and shuffled together before being distributed randomly to the players around an oval-shaped table. If your bet on the Player hand wins out, your stake pays out 1:1; otherwise a sum equal to your bet plus 5-percent commission may be collected as winning banker bets are won. A third card may be drawn if both first two hands tie. All bets must first have been placed before any third card may be drawn if needed.

Macau has become an epicenter for Baccarat thanks to the presence of celebrity players like Jackie Chan and Jet Li. Additionally, Asian casinos are now regularly hosting Baccarat tournaments; and it has seen tremendous growth internationally as well. Baccarat is considered among the most intricate casino games, popular among high rollers such as Chinese and Southeast Asian players alike.

Before playing baccarat, there are a few key things you should keep in mind. First and foremost, understand that it is a fixed odds game; betting on Banker loses all your money; betting Player doubles them because its house edge is lower.

Tie bets pay 8-to-1 and may seem attractive as an option, but an experienced gambler I consulted advised against this move as it provides no protection against Banker getting nine points.

Not to be forgotten is that baccarat tables are configured such that each box holds two cards, with only three possible outcomes: either player wins, banker wins or tie. When played between banker and player, their aim should be to reach nine as close as possible for optimal player results.

Final consideration should include being aware of the superstitious aspects of Asian baccarat. Numbers 4 and 14 are traditionally unlucky, leading some Asian players to avoid those spots on the table layout. As a casino executive, this should be taken into account when making change for Asian customers with $100 bills or chips; perhaps replacing “4” with 5″ may make your customers more at home when using 100 bills or chips from that culture. You could make other adjustments like this to help Asian customers feel welcome at your establishment as well.