Best Online Baccarat Casinos
Online Baccarat enjoys a level of mysteriousness that most casino games will never know. It's the favourite game of James Bond and real-world high rollers alike. Behind all of this intrigue, though, its history is fairly well known and its rules are surprisingly simple. This classic dice game is one of the oldest games on the modern casino floor. We know the French nobility were enjoying as far back as 1490, and maybe even earlier. It slowly gained popularity in European casinos over the centuries, but it wasn't until after the closing of the Havana casinos in the 1950's that casino baccarat finally became entrenched in Las Vegas. Now, you can enjoy this elegant thrill of baccarat from Australia or anywhere in the world (literally) by playing online baccarat! Read on to learn how to play and to discover the best online baccarat casinos.
How to Play Baccarat Online
The best Australian online baccarat players don't even start to play until they know exactly what they're doing. The good news, though, is that this game is much easier than the general perception; it seems to be the most esoteric game on the casino floor, but it's so simple. You have to bet on one of two hands (each starting with two cards) - punto or banco. The highest hand wins but the hand values are calculated in a very unique way. Take the sum of the values of the two cards and, if this number has two digits, drop the first one. A face card is worth ten, which essentially means that it is worth zero. A pair of sixes, for example, is worth two (6+6=12). Obviously, then, the highest possible online baccarat hand value is nine. In some cases, a third card may be dealt to one or both hands. Also, note that the banco hand has a slight mathematical advantage in casino baccarat, so you'll have to pay a 5% commission to play it.
Between the two bets, everyone agrees that you want to play the banco bet, even in spite of the commission. Banco's advantage is based on the way the online casino decides whether or not to give one hand or the other an additional, third card. The punto and banco hands are handled differently to give the house an advantage and a quick look at the numbers confirms this. A casino baccarat bet on punto has a 1.36% house edge, which is pretty reasonable, but even after accounting for the commission, the banco wager comes out ahead with a significantly lower 1.17% house edge. Keep this simple fact in mind whether you choose to play baccarat online or in a land based casino.
Where to Play Online Baccarat
It's time to put this valuable knowledge to use and you don't have to go to a casino to do it! Just go to any of our recommended online baccarat casinos within the comfort of your home. These sites let Australian players safely step up to the baccarat tables, where you can practice the game, experiment with new strategies, and win lots of real money. We had our reviewers find the best online baccarat sites and now we want to show you what they found. These places have bonuses galore and baccarat tables that really do the game justice. Start playing now and, if you want something different, you can always try one of the other top baccarat casinos. There is no commitment!
