Things That Everyone Gets Wrong About Baccarat

Getting Angry with the Dealer

Just like when paying any game, there may be frustrating moments. Big losses can easily drive anyone out of their minds. In those moments, many people try to find a target to vent their feelings on. Sometimes they target their cards, saying they have terrible cards and rotten luck.

However, at other times, people do something much worse - get angry with the dealer. The dealer isn't cheating to make you lose. In fact, the dealer doesn't have control over what cards and results you get. He is just a medium between you and the rules of the game, not a villain out to get you.

Therefore, there's no need to blame the dealer, or worse, verbally berate them. Maintaining control, and a cold mind throughout the game - even when through frustrating moments - is of essential importance to make a profit playing Baccarat. Because the moment you lose control of yourself, you might lose control of your plays, and make risky choices that lead you into a spiral of losses.

On top of all of this, don't try to "outsmart" the dealer either. It's basically impossible, and you'll just be losing focus on the things that make you win more - the odds, rules, cards, etc. - and instead, focus on something that won't get you more wins. This split attention can end up being disastrous.

Learn the Rules

Obvious and simple, but it makes a gigantic difference in how well you can play the game. Believe it or not - it's extremely common for people to go into the game without fully understanding the game and the options available to them.

When starting out playing Baccarat it is understandable why someone wouldn't know the complete rules. There are a few rules in Baccarat that take a little time to get to grips with, especially those known as the third card rules. Even if you've fully read the rules back-to-back multiple times, you might still not have a full grasp on them.

So, how can you ensure you know the rules well enough? Simple! Have some trial rounds before playing for real.

Maybe you play without any real money involved, with friends or online. Or maybe you just play for low stakes first. Dipping your toes in can get invaluable in-practice experience that will quickly teach you the ins and outs of Baccarat.

Playing With Too Much Money

Don't ever play with money you cannot afford to lose. An all too common mistake that can suck the life out of the game. It doesn't happen just for beginners either - this happens at all levels of play, and across different Baccarat variants.

Any fun you might've had with the game will rush down the drain as the stress and anxiety of losing a lot of money creeps into your mind. Set a clear budget, and stick to it.

If you are a beginner, it's recommended you start with a small budget, and increase it over time. As you get more skilled at the game, you can increase your likelihood of winning, and therefore the amount of money you should put in.

Believing In Inexistent Patterns

The more you play Baccarat, the more likely it is that you'll notice little patterns happening. Maybe you think you're on a magical lucky streak that can't go wrong, or that after every 2 losing hands you'll get a good hand, or maybe some other sequence of results.

Do not trust these. Your mind is literally playing tricks on you.

Believing that these patterns are real and that they are not just a coincidence that you've recognized, can lead you to make terrible plays that result in massive loss. Because no matter how many times a sequence of events happens in Baccarat - they're not a pattern, they're a coincidence.

Make solid decisions on each round of play, no matter what came before, and refresh your mind for each time you have to make a new decision.

Falling for "Unbeatable Strategies"

Although Baccarat has a wide variety of strategies, theories, and rules of thumb, there is no single strategy that will grant perfect winnings every time.

Even the players that win the most will still have multiple losses along the way, and days they don't make any money. So-called experts that try to convince you of a set of plays or tactics that will 100% guarantee profits are wrong at best and lying at worst.

Because there is no magic potion to instantly make you win every time. In fact, Baccarat is pretty much a game of pure luck and while it may have quite a low house edge, there is nothing that you can ever do to overcome the house edge completely

Not Having a Strategy

On the opposite side to believing in unbeatable strategies that "cheat" the game to win, is not having any strategy at all. While the game is very much about luck, this does not mean that there aren’t some strategies that you can use to give yourself the best possible chance of winning.

For example, one of the first strategic concepts to understand is that Tie Bets have the lowest chance of winning, at 14%, but have the best returns at 8 to 1. Banker bets and Player bets, on the other hand, have a 46% and 44% chance of winning, respectively. Both have a 1-to-1 payout, however.

To make up for Banker bets having a slightly higher winning percentage, they generally have a small commission placed on winning bets, generally of 5%, technically making its payout rate be 0.95 to 1.

However, as the Banker bet does have a better chance of winning, some people will claim that it is the only bet that you should make. This isn’t necessarily true, but it is something that you can explore as you become more familiar with the game.

You should also consider using a betting system. They are far from perfect, but they can have their uses in certain circumstances.

To Conclude

All of the mistakes described above are easily avoided. Just take the time to think when you play and don’t become caught up in the moment. This way you can ensure that you will always have hours of fun playing Baccarat.