In Europe, Baccarat is certainly one of the most popular casino games. This is mainly due to its heritage – the word baccarat is derived from the Italian word Baccara – meaning zero. This refers to the zero value given to all the tens and face cards.
An early version of Baccarat was played with cards from a Tarot deck back in the Middle Ages. Modern baccarat originated in Italy as long a go as 1492, and by the early 1500’s it had become the game of choice for the French nobility. The game then evolved into European Baccarat and the French game Chemin de Fer.American Baccarat originated in England and moved over to the US via South America.
When baccarat was introduced to Nevada in the 1950’s, casinos tried to bring the glamorous style associated with the European game. In most casinos, baccarat is played in a roped off area and is always closely monitered.The following applies:
- Players sit in any of the 14 open seats at the table
- Each seat corresponds to a number on the layout, 1 to 15, excluding a spot numbered 13 to avoid bad luck
- Each table is serviced by 3 dealers
- The dealer standing in the middle is known as the croupier or caller
- The croupier makes the calls on each hand as they are dealy
- The other 2 dealers are responsible for the payoffs.