Baccarat is an easy game to play. The rules determine all aspects of play - there is no choices for the player other than where to bet, no strategy and no subtlety. If not for the stakes involved the game would not probably attract much of a following. The stakes can be enormous and it is not unusual for thousands of dollars to be wagered on single hands.

As most people are familiar with the game of Blackjack, some comparisons between the two games can be made:

• Like Blackjack, the object of the game is to get closer to a value than the dealer (banker). In Blackjack the target number is twenty-one, while in Baccarat the target number is nine.
  
  
• Unlike Blackjack, players cannot bust (go over the target value). The game is played modulo 10, that is to say if your hand exceeds 10 then 10 is subtracted from the total to come up with a value between 0 and 9.

Only one player at a time is dealt cards, but any player at the table can bet on the player or the banker to win (or for a tie). Wagers are made by placing chips in the appropriate spot on the Baccarat table.

To start, both the player and the banker receive two cards dealt face down. The player goes first, if they have a natural (8 or 9) the cards are turned up immediately, and the player wins unless the dealer also has an 8 or 9. If both the dealer and the player have the same value a tie is declared and the bets are returned to their owners. If the player doesn't have a natural then the following rules apply.

The bank must beat a natural with the first two cards dealt, the drawing of another card is not allowed. If the player doesn't have a natural the dealer plays depending on the dealer's first two cards plus the third card, if any, of the players hand.

When the banker is finished the two hands are compared and the one closest to nine is the winner. The payoff is even money. If both hands are the same, it is a draw, and no money is exchanged.

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