Baccarat is played with eight or six complete decks of cards. The cards are shuffled by the dealer, and then placed in a special box called the "shoe."The deal rotates among the players by passing the shoe counterclockwise around the table, and each "Player" alternate being the "Banker". This rules may be intimidating at first, but there are always "Callers" at the table to assist you, and if you do not want to deal, you may pass the shoe to the next player. The same person will keep dealing as long as the "banker" hand keeps winning.The player with the shoe represents the banker-hand, although the player takes no additional risk and the casino remains the banker. Even though the player dealing is acting as the Banker, he is not obligated to bet on the Banker's hand.Four cards are dealt face-down:

1. First card to the player's hand. The dealer takes a card from the"dealing player" and passes it to the player who wagered the largest amount on "player's hand".
2. Second card to the banker's hand - placed next to the shoe.
3. Third card to the player's hand.
4. The fourths - to the banker's hand

Street Bet or Three Number

Also called a street bet or a stream bet. This is when you are betting that one of threenumbers hits on the roulette wheel. The payoff for a bet like this is 11 to 1. So ifyou bet $10 and bet on either 13, 14, or 15 to hit, you would win $110 if any of thethree hit.


Square Bet

Otherwise known as a Four-Number bet. Like a three number bet, this is whenyou are hoping that one of 4 numbers that you bet on hits. The payoff on a betlike this is 8 to 1. For example, if you bet $4 on the numbers 22, 23, 24 and 25,then you would win $32 if the roulette ball landed on any of the four numbers.

Five-Number Bet

This is betting that one of these 5 numbers will hit: 0, 00, 1, 2 or 3. The payofffor this bet is 6 to 1, and can only be played on an American wheel. So if youbet $6 and one of them hit, you would win $36. This is a very poor bet andshould be avoided at all costs.

Outside Bets

These are bets that are placed outside the number grid, for instance,betting onRed or Black. You will find these bets on the part of the table closest to theplayer.

Red

Simply betting that the next spin lands on a red-colored number. The payoff forthis bet is 1-1, so if you bet $10 on red and the ball lands on a red number, youwould win your original $10 back, plus an additional $10 in winnings.

There are historical debates concerning the exact source of the game, although many feel it is Italian in origin, while others claim the French invented it. Wherever it was invented, baccara (Italian) or baccarat (French) both translate to "zero" in English. The importance of this name is borne out by the tens and face cards, the majority of the cards in the deck, sharing that value. There are numerous varieties of the game played throughout the world. Chemin de fer and straight baccarat were both brought to America and introduced at the racetrack and spa at Saratoga and the ritzy Palm Beach resort in 1911. Each was met with shrugs from the nouveau riche. Both games lapsed in popularity in America due to a distinct lack of interest.The game remains most popular in Europe and Asia. In the European versions, a player or group of players "bank" the game, with other players involved getting paid by or directly paying the game's backers and the House taking a percentage or cut. The most common contemporary American version, in which the House provides the financial backing for the game owes its immediate lineage to George Raft's Capri Casino in Havana, Cuba dating from pre-Castro days. There is a debate as to the exact time and place in which the American version was re-introduced. It came about in Las Vegas in either 1959 or 1960 at the Dunes or the Sands casino. Its originator Tommy Renzoni, stated in his (out-of-print) book , Renzoni on Baccarat, that Punto-Banco as it was called in Cuba, was brought to Las Vegas by him in the late 1950s, as Castro was about to take possession of the island.Renzoni wrote that his game owed it roots to European chemin de fer via ArgentinaHe claimed that the night of the game's first modern American play, the Sandslost $250,000. While still carrying the status of the casino's most exclusive game, baccarat is offered in at least two or more different varieties, making it accessible to almost anyone who wants to play.