Baccarat (card game)

Baccarat (card game), French card game, dating from the end of the 15th century. The game is a popular form of gambling; one or more decks of cards are used by two or more players, one of whom deals and acts as banker. The players may bet a total of any amount equal to or less than the amount of the bank. The cards count according to the number of marks, with tens and face cards counting zero; the object of the game is to form a combination of two or three cards totaling a count as close as possible to 9 or 19. After the bets are made, the banker deals the cards, one at a time and facedown, until each player has two. The player may ask for another card, which is dealt faceup. After all have been supplied, the cards are faced and the bets are settled, the count nearer to 9 or 19 winning. In case of a tie, the bets are withdrawn. Two varieties of baccarat are played. In chemin de fer, the banker plays individually against each of the other players, or punters, betting on the banker's hand against each of the hands held by the players. The banker retains the bank until losing a bet, and the bank then falls to the winning player. In baccarat banque, the banker plays against only two hands, on which all the other players bet, holding the bank until the banker has lost the original stake or voluntarily resigns.