The best and worst of all scenarios comes with the natural draw of an 8 or 9. And, naturally, it all works out if you have bet that side, and doesn't if you haven't. As soon as the Player side, which opens first, draws a 9, the best the Banker side can hope for is to pull another 9 and thus tie or push. In this case, there are no winners or losers as far as Player/Banker goes. The winner here would be the person who bet Tie.Naturally,the worst thing that can happen is to draw a lovely 8 and a face card,only to have the Banker pull a 9 and a face. That is what we call a bad beat.Failing a natural 8 or 9 on the first draw, things get a little trickier, butthey aren't that difficult to figure.First let's look at the card values: Aces=1 (not 1 or 11 as in blackjack)Cards with denominations of 2-9 are equal to their face values.Tens and face cards (the royals, Jack, Queen, King)=0 (baccarat!)Naturals can consist of any combination of cards making 8 or 9, ex. Ace + 7=8;4 + 5=9, etc.Lacking a natural on any draw, there are third card draw rules which are strictlyadhered which offer no options or possibilities of drawing and standing by theplayer on either side. The following rules help give the game its simplicity: On the Player's Side First Two Card Totals Player side must:1,2,3,4,5,10 = Draw6,7 = Stand8,9 = Natural (No draw, Banker cannot draw) On the Banker's Side First Two Card Totals Banker must draw if player shows: Banker does not draw when Player draws:3 = 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,9,10 84 = 2,3,4,5,6,7 1,8,9,105 = 4,5,6.7 1,2,3,8,9,106 = 6,7 1,2,3,4,5,8,9,107 = always stands always stands8,9 = Natural (Player cannot draw) These rules contain one exception: if player takes no card (stands on 6,7), then the banker stands on 6. One thing should be obvious from these hard and fast rules: the Banker has a great deal more options than Player. This translates into a 1.8% advantage for betting Banker, but the casinos, in their infinite search for profits, round this figure off to a full 5%.These commissions are maintained by the dealers and each player is held accountableby the end of play on each shoe, unless previous arrangements have been made.

Roulette is often considered to be one of the easier games to play in the casino. Unfortunately, with that label comes a host of players who think that means they don't need to pay attention at the table! This isn't exactly true, and those players are not employing the best of roulette strategies.Proper roulette strategies are not systems. A system is a methodology for betting which essentially gives you a set of rules to follow as you wager, supposedly (but not likely) altering the edge of the game, increasing the odds of winning. There are literally thousands of systems for roulette being sold around the world, but these should be ignored for the most part, and shouldn't be considered strategies. In general, systems are often faulty or pose potential risks that may not be obvious at first glance.Roulette strategies, as opposed to systems, offer methods by which to play, but simply as a guide, not as steadfast rules. Strategies do not claim to mathematically beat the house at all, they usually offer simpler advice on things like setting win and loss limits. As a smart gambler, one of the best roulette strategies you can employ is one that revolves around bankroll management. Take this example: a player starts with a bankroll of $100. To protect their investment they set a loss limit of $100, their entire session bankroll. This means if the player looses this money in the course of playing, they have set a personal rule to not return to the session after getting more money. The player also sets a win limit of $300, meaning if they manage to go $300 over their original bankroll they will stop playing, and limit the risk of losing those winnings in a downswing. This is as basic as roulette strategies get, but it is extremely effective, if you learn to follow your own rules.Slightly more advanced and protective forms of roulette strategies may involve something like a player starting with the same $100 bankroll, but limiting play to initial luck. This means they play through their $100 until they have either lost it all (same session loss limit) or won a predetermined amount. To keep things simple in this example, let's say the players predetermined amount is also $100. This means if the player wins $100 once they start playing, they will take their original $100 bankroll and put it in their pocket - they will then only be playing with their winnings. The player may choose to set a wins limit on their newly acquired bankroll, but the beauty of the strategy is that they have basically set a loss limit of zero. Once you pocket your original bankroll, even if you lose all you're playing with, you've lost nothing at all.

Tip #1: The one card placed faceup on the table indicates how many cards the dealer will burn. If the card turned up is a four of clubs, the dealer will burn four cards. Tip #2: In baccarat, the casino takes a commission whenever a player wins a bet placed on the banker side. This is because betting on the banker has an inherent 1.06 percent advantage. Bets are paid at 0.95-to-1. Tip #3: Twos through nines are counted at face value; tens and all jacks, queens and kings count as zero; and aces count as one. Suit is irrelevant in baccarat. Tip #4: First and third cards are dealt to the player. Second and fourth cards are dealt to the banker. Tip #5: For any total over nine, only the last digit is taken - for example, a total composed of a six of clubs and a six of diamonds is two. If either the player or the banker has a total of eight or nine, it's called a "natural" and automatically wins - unless the other hand also has a natural, in which case the two hands tie. Tip #6: If the player holds a total of less than six or seven, the player draws. Tip #7: With a total from zero to two the bank always draws; with a total of seven the bank always stands; with a total of three the bank draws, unless the player drew and its third card was an eight; with a total of four the bank draws, unless the player drew and its third card was an eight, nine or ace; with a five the bank draws, unless the player drew a third card outside the range of four through seven; with a six the bank stands, unless the player drew a third card of either a six or a seven.

• Play Carefully - Take your time and make wise decisions. It's you against the machine and there is no need to rush things.
  
  
• Know the Paytables - This is one of, if not the most important keys to success in video poker. You need to understand the paytables for each machine - understanding these will potentially allow you to maximize your winnings.
  
  
• Play each hand like a new game - Since you are playing a machine try and forget about the last hand played. The machine has no memory of the last hand - the random number generator assures this, so don't fret over what happened last hand - focus on the next.
  
  
• Practice makes perfect - the more you play the better you will be. Learning which cards to keep and which cards to discard is very important if you are to take full advantage of the payout tables. If you use your knowledge consistently i.e. utilize a strategy, it will help assure that you will meet the payout percentages of a particular machine.
  
  
• Never keep a kicker with any pair. Holding a kicker to any pair reduces your return by 5%.
  
  
• Never draw four cards if you can draw three to a royal flush.
  
  
• Always keep five card winning pat hands with one exception: if you can, draw one card to a royal.
  
  
• Don't break a flush even if you can draw one to a straight flush, but always break a flush to draw to a royal.
  
  
• Never break a straight to draw to a straight flush.
  
  
• Never draw five if you have a jack or better.
  
  
• Don't keep a ten for a four card draw.