People who play online casino games will have noticed a large range of blackjack and poker titles when they play online table games, but there’s a third card game that players can experience as an alternative: bacarrat. Online baccarat is enjoyed by players for its accessibility, fast pace, simplicity, and entertainment value.
Those who’ve compared blackjack and baccarat and play baccarat online and are looking to improve their baccarat skills can do so by taking advantage of a variety of tips.
Understand Baccarat Rules and Variants
The best way to approach baccarat is by first learning how online baccarat works. Once players have an understanding of the most common game rules, players need to learn about the different baccarat variants. Baccarat generally comes in three variations: baccarat banque, chemin de fer (the game played by James Bond in the Ian Fleming novels), and punto banco. Punto banco, the most common variant, is the one players are most likely to come across. Players can take advantage of some general baccarat tips that are applicable to all variants.
5 Tips For Baccarat Players
Here are five tips that an offline and online baccarat player can use to improve their baccarat skills.
1. Have a Strategy and Stick to It
Players should decide on a baccarat strategy before they go into a game and stick to it. While a strategy doesn’t guarantee that a player will win every hand, what a strategy does do is keep the player focused on a single objective, which in turn could maximize their winnings and help them get the most out of the experience.
2. Study Strategy Charts
Baccarat is a game with global appeal and rich traditions. One of the most common traditions is the use of baccarat charts or scoreboards. The colourful tools are covered in extensive detail in the Medium article “Baccarat scoreboards” and are named Bead Plate, Big Road, Big Eye Boy, Small Road, and Cockroach Pig. Each of these scoreboards shows players five unique ways to track the hand history in the shoe.
While these are a great tradition and interesting to learn, players shouldn’t expect these scoreboards to guarantee any wins. These charts aren’t surefire ways to help players win, but they’ll help players identify past patterns that could help them make their next play.
3. Place Banker Bets for the Lowest House Edge
Out of the three standard bets (banker, player, and tie), the banker bet always has the lowest house edge. Normally, it’s around 1.06%, which makes it statistically the safest baccarat bet. Players who are looking for the least risky play should consider this their go-to bet.
4. Side Bets Are High-Risk
There are only three standard betting options in a baccarat game, which could be a little dull for some players. However, there are side bets that players could consider. Player pair, 21+3, banker pair, perfect pairs, big, small, and super 6 are just a few examples of the side bets players might come across.
It’s worth keeping in mind that while the payouts from side bets are way more lucrative, the odds of these side bets aren’t good. This means that these bets are high risk, and while players could win big, their odds of winning are much lower than the three standard bets.
5. Manage Your Bankroll
One of the most underrated forms of success in any casino game is simply good bankroll management. This means players setting a budget based on their disposable income (from money they can afford to lose) and sticking to it. Whether that’s a monthly, weekly, or daily budget, it’s important for players to figure out how they should divide these funds amongst the games they want to play. This will help them avoid chasing their losses and going over their budget.
Some Baccarat Games
If players find the three standard betting options a little repetitive but don’t want to risk wagering on side bets, another way to spice up gameplay is to try different baccarat games that offer something unique and exciting.
Here are some of the baccarat variants that players can find at an online baccarat casino and which offer a twist to the standard baccarat formula:
- Baccarat Squeeze
- First Person Baccarat
- NHL Baccarat
- XXXTreme Lightning Baccarat