The Basics of Baccarat Chemin de Fer

Remember James Bond in the 1953 novel Casino Royale, or in the films Thunder Ball and Dr. No? Before Texas holdem (in the film adaptation of Casino Royale in 2006) there was only one game of choice by James Bond: baccarat chemin de fer.

Baccarat chemin de fer is more popularly played in European casinos. Baccarat chemin de fer uses 6 decks of cards. The players arrange themselves around the table. Yet, if someone questions the arrangement, the players draw lot. The player who gets the first place seats oneself to the immediate right of the croupier.

The croupier then shuffles the cards then hands it to the first player. The players then take turns shuffling the cards. When everyone has taken their turn, the croupier takes the cards then shuffles them again before handing it to the player to their left who'll cut the cards. Then, the dealer takes a quantity of cards from the top, then gives it to the first player to their right who will act as the banker.

The banker places their bet; the punters, too, place their individual bets. The total punter bet must not exceed that banker's bet. If the punter bet exceeds the banker's, the banker has right to decline the bet excess. If the total punter bet is less than the banker's, players standing behind the players may also bet. In baccarat chemin de fer, one player may choose to "go bank" in order to bust the dealer. To go bank, the punter must place a bet amount equaling the banker's stake.

The banker then deals the cards facedown: 1 card to Player hand, 1 to Banker hand, then 1 again to Player hand and 1 to Banker hand. The punter with the highest bet is dealt the Player hand. Both punter and banker then see their hands. If either or both hands get a total of 8 or 9, the hand is turned up and the result is announced.

If neither the Player nor the Banker hand reaches that total, both can decide whether they'd draw a third card or not. The punter with the highest bet decides for the Player hand.

However, if the Player total is less than five and the punter the does not draw a third card, the punter is considered to have breached the observed procedure of the game. Such act could earn one the ire of one's fellow punters. In some circles, the punter is even fined. In the same manner, if the total of the card is 6 or 7 and the punter draws a third card, the punter is also considered to have breached game procedures. But if the total is 5, the punter may decide to draw or not draw and yet will not be blamed for the result.

The banker may then draw or not draw a third card, depending on what the punter believe would be to their advantage.

If the Banker hand loses, the banker role is passed on to the first player to the banker's right. If the Banker hand wins, the banker role will stay with the current banker. The banker role with also remain with the current banker if the punter who challenged the banker loses.

Baccarat chemin de fer is entirely a game between one punter(punter) against other punters. It is even more exciting than North American baccarat because punters and banker can decide when and when not to draw a third card. In short, baccarat chemin de fer requires strategy also. No wonder it was James Bond's game of choice.