Baccarat is actually much older than Blackjack (which originated in France during the 1700's) but has only very recently become popular, especially in the United States. It was said to have been introduced to Charles VIII King of France in the late 1400's from Italy. The premise of the game is very similar: rather than trying to reach a value of 21, you are trying to reach a value of 9 - with a few different twists and betting options.

In fact, Baccarat is probably the simplest casino table game out there today. There are various different kinds of baccarat that exist, depending on what region of the world you are in. They are: Baccarat Chemin De Fer (Europe and France), European Baccarat, Baccarat En Banque, and Punto Banco (North America, Australia, Macau, Sweden). The most commonly played is Punto Banco, from which is derived "mini baccarat" which is the version played in most American casinos. The difference between regular and "mini" baccarat is that minimum bet in regular begins at $100 while "mini" begins around $5.

So the next time you are in any of the world's top casinos: the Monte Carlo Casino in Monaco, Atlantic City (Las Vegas of the East coast), Bellagio or Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas, St. James Club in Antigua, Atlantis Resort in the Bahamas, the Clermont Club in London, Casino Baden-Baden in Germany - don't forget to take with you your Baccarat 101 Guide!

How to Play:

All the cards in the deck are used when playing Baccarat. The cards from the Ace to 9 represent their value (thus, 1 to 9). The 10 card as well as the face cards are worth 0.

To begin the game, all players have to place their bets. Bets can be placed accordingly:

Once all bets have been made, 2 cards are dealt to every player and the dealer. Usually (in Punto Banco Baccarat), you can only get "hit" with one more card. This varies depending on which of the different varieties of Baccarat you are playing.

How to Win:

As in Blackjack, you are playing against the dealer - and so you want to be able to get as close as possible to reaching 9 without going over it. However, what makes Baccarat different from Blackjack - is that you have more options when you are betting.

Basically, you need to bet on the right hand (player, dealer, or tie) during the right round. There is a bit more luck when it comes to Baccarat than Blackjack. Most casinos also play with more than one deck to increase the chances for the dealer (or the house) to win and keep players from card counting (for more on card counting, read our "Blackjack 101: Counting to 21" article).

Learn other games with our Casino Games 101 Series!

> Blackjack 101: Learning to Count to 21

> Slots 101: The Classic One Armed Machines

> Roulette 101: Spin Spin Spin

> Baccarat 101: Counting to 9

> Craps 101: Easier Than You Think!