Lots of players ask about the game of Punto Banco. The game is common enough to ring a bell, but not quite common enough to guarantee its presence at every Online Casino. But we’re here to let you in on a little secret. If you’ve played Baccarat at any point in your life, you’ve probably played Punto Banco. Despite what it sounds like, I’m not trying to be cryptic. In this article, we’ll clear up any confusion once and for all.
First things first. How familiar are you with this card game? If you’ve played before then you’re going to get to the bottom of this post in a heartbeat. But for players who are new to this, get started with Baccarat with us.
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Punto Banco – the aim of the game
Before you take a seat at the table, whether that’s a general Baccarat table or a Punto Banco table, you need to be clear on the rules. Understand that in most cases, to know the rules of Baccarat is pretty much equivalent to knowing the rules of Puno Banco.
In either case, your job is to bet on the likelihood of either the Banker or a Player getting a score as close to nine as possible. The total of each hand is calculated on the value of each card.
There are three possible bets you can place:
- The Banker
- The Player
- A Tie
How to play Baccarat (and Punto Banco)
Aces are worth one point, and cards numbered two to nine correspond to their face value in points, but the King, the Queen. Jack and the number 10 have zero points. If the total sum of the cards exceeds nine points, the value is reduced by 10, and the outcome is taken as the total.
The highest payoff comes from betting on a Tie between the Banker and the House. You’ll get a chunky odds of 8:1 for that one. Betting on the player’s game yields a 1:1 payoff while betting on the banker yields a 5% deduction because in most cases the house always wins.
Once all bets have been placed, the cards are first dealt face-down to the players and lastly the banker. This is done again for two cards each in the first round. The cards are then turned face-up, and the dealer counts the points and announces the totals garnered by each player. If anyone has a total of eight or nine in the first round, no more cards are dealt with the players, and the highest score wins the game.
If no one has a total of eight or nine, the game continues. A score of 0 to 5 means that players get to draw one more card. However, if you land a score of between six and seven, then you have to stand. The Banker draws according to his hand too and will always draw if his score sits between zero and two. When the Banker’s hand is valued at three, he’ll draw again against players who have a hand value of anything between zero and nine.
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What are the odds with Baccarat and Punto Banco?
The exciting reality is that Punto Banco has one of the lowest house advantages among most casino games. This means you have a decent chance of walking away with a chunk of change. Keep in mind that it’s still a casino game, which means you could come out on the rather less exciting losing side.
The Banker pays a 5% commission to the house on all winning bets. The Player attracts a house edge of just 1.24% while the Banco (or Banker) has an advantage of 1.06%. In the event that you bet on a tie, you attract the highest house advantage of 14.44 %. It is unwise to bet on a tie because this is rarely ever the outcome in a game.
You have very limited options in terms of strategy in Baccarat, but it’s still really important that you understand what those options are. Depending on where you place your bets, the house edge will shift, determining the likelihood of your success.
The different faces of Baccarat
Think of the name Baccarat as the widely understood and accepted name for multiple varieties that sit under the same hood. Punto Banco is just one of these variations, and it also happens to be the most popular one. These days, most games labelled ‘Baccarat’ are in fact Punto Banco.
Aside from Punto Banco, you might also know the game of Baccarat by its other names, Chemin and Baccarat Banque. In these versions, players don’t just bet against the Bank, but also against one another. We won’t get into detail about the varieties of each, that’s information for another day and another article.
While scrolling through a list of different Baccarat options, you might even find that you can opt to play full-scale Baccarat or mini-Baccarat. Both of these are common enough, but they do continue to add unnecessary layers of complexity to understanding this great game. We’ve covered the differences in our article about how to play Baccarat.
Play Baccarat for real money
So what have we learned? What it all boils down to is that the rules of the game that no matter which style of Baccarat you choose, the basic rules remain the same. Punto Banco is the most simplified version of Baccarat, which is what makes it the most popular. In fact, if you click to play a generic Baccarat game, more often than not you’ll be playing Punto Banco style.
In Punto Banco, every player can bet on Banker, Tie or Player. This is unlike Chemin de Fer and Baccarat Banque, where the player must always bet on the player’. Punto banco has standardised rules, which are similar almost everywhere, while the other versions can differ in each casino.
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