Atlassino Academy · Baccarat · Lesson 1
Counting a baccarat hand, and where you bet
A punto y banca hand is worth only the last digit of its cards, and at most tables the rules, not the players, decide every third card. Here is how to count a hand, where the bet goes and how the deal runs.
One hand at a punto y banca table holds a seven and a nine. What is that hand worth?
The short answer
The hand is worth 6: a seven and a nine make 16, and a punto y banca hand keeps only the last digit of its cards. Every card counts the number printed on it, except the ten, the jack, the queen and the king, which count 0, and the ace, which counts 1. At punto y banca, midi and mini punto y banca nobody at the table chooses anything after the bet: an 8 or a 9 on the first two cards ends the deal; otherwise the Player hand draws a third card on 0 to 5 and stands on 6 or 7, and the Banker hand then follows rules of its own. The one exception in Chile’s catalogue of games is the modality it calls Baccarat or Chemin de Fer, where a Player hand on 5 is the choice of the largest bet on it.
A seven and a nine add up to 16, and the hand keeps only the last digit of that sum: 6.
Leoformer dealer · rules and maths
I dealt baccarat for a long time before I taught it, and what surprises people most is how little punto y banca asks of the person holding the chips. You choose your bet before the cards come out, and from then on the cards and a handful of rules play the hand out to the end.
The only arithmetic at the table is the count, and the count has one twist: a hand is worth only the last digit of its cards. Learn the count and the Player hand’s rule, and you can check every total the croupier calls and follow the Player hand’s rule on every hand.
What each card counts, and why only the last digit stays
Punto y banca deals two hands, the Player hand and the Banker hand, and you bet on which of the two hands comes closest to nine, or on the two hands finishing level. Chile’s catalogue of games calls the two hands punto and banca, and every player may bet for the banca hand or against it: whichever seat you sit in, you can put your bet on either hand.
To count a hand, add up its cards and keep only the last digit of the sum. A hand can therefore be worth anything from 0 to 9 and never more, however high its cards run, and two picture cards together are worth 0.
| The cards in the hand | The cards added up | What the hand is worth |
|---|---|---|
| A seven and a nine | 16 | 6 |
| Two fives | 10 | 0 |
| A king and an eight | 8 | 8 |
| An ace and a nine | 10 | 0 |
| A six, a seven and a nine | 22 | 2 |
Three betting areas, and when the chips go down
The felt has betting areas for three bets: the Player hand, the Banker hand and a tie. Your chips go into the betting areas; the cards never go there. The cards go into two boxes across the table, one for the Player hand and one for the Banker hand.
Every bet goes down before the first card is dealt. Under Chile’s catalogue of games, before any card is dealt the croupier invites the players to bet, and the players put their chips on the betting areas marked on the felt. A bet the croupier turns away after the call of no more bets counts for nothing, whatever its size.
Four cards, and the natural that ends the hand
The first four cards go out one at a time and alternate between the two hands: the first card to the Player hand, the second card to the Banker hand, the third card to the Player hand and the fourth card to the Banker hand.
- First
cardto the Player hand - Second
cardto the Banker hand - Third
cardto the Player hand - Fourth
cardto the Banker hand
Who deals those four cards depends on the table. At punto y banca the shoe starts with the player in seat 1, or the lowest-numbered seat taken, and goes round the table in turn; that player deals two cards face up to each hand. At midi and mini punto y banca the croupier deals two covered cards to each hand and keeps the shoe throughout. Either way, the croupier then calls the total of each hand. The Player hand is played out first: the Player hand takes its third card, when it takes one, before the Banker hand does.
Before any third card, both two-card totals are checked for a natural. A hand worth 8 or 9 on its first two cards is a natural, and when either hand has a natural, no further card is dealt to either hand.
The Player hand: draw on 0 to 5, stand on 6 or 7
Without a natural, the Player hand acts first, and its rule is short: on a two-card total of 0 to 5 the Player hand draws a third card, and on 6 or 7 the Player hand stands. The catalogue writes the 5 in a row of its own: at punto y banca, midi and mini punto y banca a Player hand on 5 must take a third card.
The same row names the one exception: at the modality the catalogue calls Baccarat or Chemin de Fer, a Player hand on 5 is decided by the player with the largest bet on the Player hand, who chooses whether it takes a third card. The strip above, the practice run and the questions on this page all follow the punto y banca rule.
A hand takes at most one card after its first two, so no hand ever holds more than three cards.
A natural is 8 or 9 on the first two cards only, so a three-card 8 is not a natural.
When the Player hand stands, the Banker hand plays the same rule
If the Player hand stood on 6 or 7, the Banker hand follows the Player hand’s rule exactly: the Banker hand draws a third card on 0 to 5 and stands on 6 or 7.
So when both hands are on 6 or 7 after two cards, neither hand takes another card. The rule never looks at which hand is ahead: a Banker hand on 6 stands even when the Player hand stood on 7.
If the Player hand drew a third card, the Banker hand does not use this rule. The Banker hand then goes by a chart that reads the Player hand’s third card, and the catalogue of games prints that chart as a table of its own.
At punto y banca, midi and mini punto y banca nobody at the table chooses whether a hand takes a card: the catalogue leaves the drawing of cards to the casino, and once the bets are down, the rules play both hands out. What you choose is the bet itself, and you choose it before the first card is dealt.
Mayaformer floor supervisor · manners, money and breaks
Punto y banca leaves you nothing to decide once your chips are down, so a feeling about the shoe changes nothing about the next hand. When you catch yourself wanting to chase a streak, take that as the moment for a break, not the moment for a bigger bet.
Decide before you sit down how much money and how much time the evening gets, and stop when either one runs out. Putting more down to get a loss back only buys more hands, and every one of them is settled by the same rules.
If it stops being fun
If gambling stops being fun, the SCJ self-exclusion applies in every casino in the country. Minimum entry age: 18 (age of majority under Law 19.221; Law 19.995 bars minors from gaming rooms). The casino may ask for an official ID. More on responsible gaming.
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The lesson on one card
That is the lesson. Here it is on one card: print it, or keep it on your phone.
| Card | Ace | Two to nine | Ten, jack, queen, king |
|---|---|---|---|
| Counts | 1 | the number on the card | 0 |
Only the last digit counts: a seven and a nine make 16, worth 6.
Natural: 8 or 9 on the first two cards; neither hand draws. Player hand: draws on 0 to 5, stands on 6 or 7.
18+ across Chile · Set a limit before you sit down · Play responsibly · the regulator’s number is at Gambling helplines
Practice: count the hand, follow the deal
Every hand in the practice run starts from the first four cards on the felt. Level 1 asks what a hand is worth, and whether either hand has a natural. Level 2 asks what the Player hand does. Level 3 has the Player hand standing, and asks what the Banker hand does.
Nothing is bet here. Each hand is a set of cards chosen to show one thing, and the answer comes from playing the hand out by the counting rule and the drawing rules above. Some hands in Level 2 have the Player hand drawing, but nothing here asks what the Banker hand does after the Player hand draws: that chart is a table of its own in the catalogue of games.
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Level 1 · Count the hand
PLAYER
BANKER
What is the Player hand worth?
- 16 That is 16, the two cards added up with nothing dropped. A baccarat hand is never worth more than 9, so only the last digit of 16 stays.
- 1 That keeps the first digit of 16, and the first digit is the one that is dropped. The hand is worth the last digit of the sum.
- 6 A seven counts 7 and a nine counts 9: together 16, and the hand keeps only the last digit, 6.
Add the cards in the hand, then keep only the last digit of the sum. A ten, a jack, a queen and a king count 0, an ace counts 1, and every other card counts the number printed on it.
Level 2 · The Player hand
PLAYER
BANKER
What does the Player hand do?
- The Player hand draws a third card The Banker hand is on 8 after two cards, which is a natural, and a natural ends the deal before the Player hand does anything.
- The Player hand stands Standing is what the Player hand does on 6 or 7. Here neither hand acts at all, because the Banker hand has a natural.
- Neither hand takes a card: there is a natural The Banker hand is on 8 after two cards. That is a natural, and a natural stops the deal for both hands, the Player hand included.
A natural ended the hand: no third card.
Level 3 · When the Player stands
PLAYER
BANKER
The Player hand stands. What does the Banker hand do?
- The Banker hand draws a third card The Banker hand is on 6. With the Player hand standing, the Banker hand draws only on 0 to 5, and being behind the Player hand changes nothing.
- The Banker hand stands The Player hand stood, so the Banker hand plays the Player hand’s rule, and on 6 that rule stands, even with the Player hand closer to nine.
- It depends on the Player hand’s third card The Player hand stood on 7, so there is no Player third card to read. The chart that reads the Player hand’s third card is for hands where the Player hand drew, and that chart is a table of its own in the catalogue of games.
Player stood, so Banker follows the same rule: it stands on 6 or 7. The rule looks at the Banker hand’s own two cards, not at which hand is ahead.
Every hand in the practice run is worked out the same way: the four cards on the felt are put through the counting rule and the drawing rules, and the answer comes out of that, not out of anybody’s memory.
How the practice run works
Where the hands come from. Every hand is four cards dealt in the order Player, Banker, Player, Banker, and the answer to every question is worked out when the page is built, by the same baccarat engine that plays a hand out card by card: the engine counts both hands, checks for a natural, applies the Player hand’s rule and, when the Player hand stood, applies the same rule to the Banker hand. The wrong answers are named mistakes: the sum kept whole, the first digit kept instead of the last, a picture card counted as ten, an ace counted as eleven, a natural taken for one hand only, and the Banker chart read when the Player hand never drew.
One strip, and no rounds. Every square on the strip is one hand of this lesson, and all of the squares are there from the start. Your first answer fills the square it belongs to; when the squares of one level are full, the next level begins by itself, with no button in between. Practising a hand you got wrong turns its cross into “fixed in practice” and does not change the count, because only first answers count.
Your progress stays in this browser, and nothing is sent anywhere.
Check yourself
Mayaformer floor supervisor · manners, money and breaks
Five quick ones. Pick an answer, then check it. No timer, no points: just whether it stuck.
Back to the question we opened with. A seven and a nine make 16, and a punto y banca hand keeps only the last digit of its cards, so the hand is worth 6.
Where punto y banca is played, and further reading
18+ across Chile · Play responsibly · self-exclusion and the regulator are further up this page
Further reading
- Catálogo de Juegos (Punto y Banca) · Superintendencia de Casinos de JuegoThe regulator’s rules for punto y banca and baccarat: who deals, the hands, the draw rules and how the commission is set.
- Funcionamiento de los juegos: Juegos de cartas · Superintendencia de Casinos de JuegoThe regulator’s plain-language page on card games.
How it’s worked out
Rules, numbers, sources and hosts
Where this happens. Every table on this page is a live punto y banca table in a room you can walk into, with a croupier running the game. Electronic tables keep their own screen.
Rules. The card values, the order of the deal, the natural and the two drawing rules on this page are the rules of the catalogue of games Superintendencia de Casinos de Juego (SCJ) publishes for every casino in Chile: one set of rules for the whole country rather than a report of what any one room does. The catalogue writes four modalities of the game: punto y banca, Baccarat or Chemin de Fer, midi and mini punto y banca. The drawing rules on this page are the ones it writes for punto y banca, midi and mini punto y banca; at Baccarat or Chemin de Fer a Player hand on 5 is the choice of the largest bet on it, as the section on the Player hand says.
Numbers. Every total on this page is counted from the cards by the same counting function our baccarat engine uses to play a hand out, and our checks recompute each figure from that engine rather than reading it back from this page. The felt is our own plan of one seat, not a copy of any one table’s layout.
What is deliberately absent. This page does not work out what each bet pays or what it costs, and it gives no figure for the commission on a bet on the Banker hand: the catalogue leaves that percentage to each casino, approved beforehand by the regulator and shown on a sign in the room. The Banker chart for hands where the Player hand drew is printed in the catalogue, not on this page. How many decks are in the shoe, side bets and how fast the game goes are not covered here either.
Sources. Every rule and every claim on this page carries a button with the sentence it rests on, the publisher who wrote that sentence and the date we read it.
Hosts. Leo and Maya are illustrated characters. Their backstories, a former dealer and a former floor supervisor, are written for the course: neither is a real person, and neither speaks for any casino. The rules and numbers on this page come from the sources it cites, not from their experience.
No promise. Counting a hand and knowing the rules on this page lets you check every total the croupier calls and follow the Player hand’s rule on every hand; nothing on this page changes which hand finishes closer to nine, and nothing here says how an evening at the table would end.
What each card counts
El puntaje depende de los puntos adjudicados a cada carta, que son los que lleva inscritos, salvo el 10 y las figuras, que no tienen ningún valor numérico, y el as, que vale un punto. En la suma de dos cartas se desprecian las decenas y sólo tiene valor, a efectos del juego, la cifra de unidades.Free translation: The score depends on the points assigned to each card, which are those printed on it, except for the 10 and the face cards, which have no numerical value, and the ace, which is worth one point. In the sum of two cards the tens are disregarded and only the units digit has value for the purposes of the game.
Section III.2 Punto y Banca
Card values and the count
El puntaje depende de los puntos adjudicados a cada carta, que son los que lleva inscritos, salvo el 10 y las figuras, que no tienen ningún valor numérico, y el as, que vale un punto. En la suma de dos cartas se desprecian las decenas y sólo tiene valor, a efectos del juego, la cifra de unidades.Free translation: The score depends on the points assigned to each card, which are those printed on it, except for the 10 and the face cards, which have no numerical value, and the ace, which is worth one point. In the sum of two cards the tens are disregarded and only the units digit has value for the purposes of the game.
Section III.2 Punto y Banca
Five on the Player hand at Baccarat or Chemin de Fer
En el caso del Baccarat, si el punto obtiene con sus dos primeras cartas “5”, el jugador que haya efectuado la mayor apuesta al punto, decidirá si se pide o no una tercera carta para el punto.Free translation: In the case of Baccarat, if the punto hand has "5" with its first two cards, the player who has made the largest bet on the punto will decide whether or not a third card is drawn for the punto.
Section III.2 Punto y Banca
No decisions after the bet
El casino se hace cargo de determinar la pedida de cartas.Free translation: The casino is responsible for determining the drawing of cards.
Section III.2 Punto y Banca
A natural
si el resultado de alguna de éstas es 8 ó 9, el juego se da por finalizado, no pudiendo la otra mano solicitar una tercera carta. Esta mano se denomina como natural.Free translation: if the result of either of these is 8 or 9, the game is considered finished, and the other hand may not request a third card. This hand is called a natural.
Section III.2 Punto y Banca
The Banker hand when the Player hand stands
Si la mano del punto se planta cuando tiene 6 o 7 con sus dos primeras cartas, la tabla de pedir de la banca es igual a la tabla de pedir del punto.Free translation: If the punto hand stands when it has 6 or 7 with its first two cards, the banca's drawing table is the same as the punto's drawing table.
Section III.2 Punto y Banca
Bets go down before the deal
invita a los jugadores a apostar. Los jugadores hacen sus apuestas colocando el importe de las mismas en fichas de dinero en los respectivos puntos de apuestas marcados en el paño.Free translation: invites the players to bet. The players make their bets by placing the amount of them in money chips on the respective betting spots marked on the layout.
Section III.2 Punto y Banca
What you bet on
El Punto y Banca es un juego de cartas, que tiene como objetivo lograr nueve puntos o una puntuación lo más cercana posible.Free translation: Punto y Banca is a card game whose objective is to reach nine points or a score as close to it as possible.
Gana aquella mano cuya puntuación sea nueve o esté más próxima a dicha cifra.Free translation: The hand whose score is nine or is closest to that figure wins.
Section III.2 Punto y Banca
A bet on either hand
Cada jugador tiene la opción de apostar a favor de la banca (mano banca) o en contra de ella (mano punto).Free translation: Each player has the option of betting in favor of the banca (banca hand) or against it (punto hand).
Section III.2 Punto y Banca
The last digit of the sum
El puntaje depende de los puntos adjudicados a cada carta, que son los que lleva inscritos, salvo el 10 y las figuras, que no tienen ningún valor numérico, y el as, que vale un punto. En la suma de dos cartas se desprecian las decenas y sólo tiene valor, a efectos del juego, la cifra de unidades.Free translation: The score depends on the points assigned to each card, which are those printed on it, except for the 10 and the face cards, which have no numerical value, and the ace, which is worth one point. In the sum of two cards the tens are disregarded and only the units digit has value for the purposes of the game.
Section III.2 Punto y Banca
The three bets
Todo jugador puede apostar a la Banca o al Punto y al Empate (Tie) antes del “no más apuestas”.Free translation: Every player may bet on the Banca or on the Punto and on the Tie (Empate) before the "no more bets" call.
Section III.2 Punto y Banca
Bets go down before the deal
invita a los jugadores a apostar. Los jugadores hacen sus apuestas colocando el importe de las mismas en fichas de dinero en los respectivos puntos de apuestas marcados en el paño.Free translation: invites the players to bet. The players make their bets by placing the amount of them in money chips on the respective betting spots marked on the layout.
Section III.2 Punto y Banca
After no more bets
Antes de que se distribuya carta alguna, el croupier paletero en los casos del Punto y Banca y del Baccarat y el croupier tratándose del Midi y Mini Punto y Banca, invita a los jugadores a apostar.Free translation: Before any card is dealt, the croupier paletero in the cases of Punto y Banca and Baccarat, and the croupier in the case of Midi and Mini Punto y Banca, invites the players to bet.
Las apuestas rechazadas por el croupier, después del “no más apuestas”, no tendrán valor, cualquiera que sea su monto, quedando nulas.Free translation: Bets rejected by the dealer after "no more bets" shall have no value, whatever their amount, and are void.
Section III.2 Punto y Banca
The order of the deal
Inicialmente se entregan dos cartas a cada mano, la primera y tercera cartas corresponden a la mano punto, y la segunda y cuarta carta a la mano bancaFree translation: Initially two cards are dealt to each hand; the first and third cards go to the punto hand, and the second and fourth cards to the banca hand
Section III.2 Punto y Banca
Who deals, and how
En el caso del Punto y Banca, al comienzo del juego le corresponde el sabot o carro y por tanto la distribución, al jugador situado frente al lugar número 1 o el número menor entre los lugares de la mesa que estén ocupados, estableciéndose a partir de aquél, un turno rotatorio.Free translation: In the case of Punto y Banca, at the start of the game the sabot or shoe, and therefore the dealing, goes to the player seated opposite position number 1 or the lowest-numbered occupied position at the table, and a rotating turn is established from that player on.
le solicita el comienzo de la distribución de cartas al jugador que tiene el sabot o carro, para que éste reparta dos cartas, boca arriba, a cada mano.Free translation: asks the player who holds the sabot or shoe to begin dealing the cards, so that this player deals two cards, face up, to each hand.
Asimismo, en los casos del Midi y Mini Punto y Banca, después de dada dicha orden por el croupier, éste reparte dos cartas cubiertas a cada mano, manteniendo siempre el sabot en su poder.Free translation: Likewise, in the cases of Midi and Mini Punto y Banca, after the croupier has given that order, the croupier deals two covered cards to each hand, always keeping the sabot in their possession.
Section III.2 Punto y Banca
The totals called
Una vez entregadas las cartas de cada mano al croupier paletero en las modalidades del Punto y Banca y del Baccarat, o colocadas por el croupier las cartas de cada mano enfrente suyo en los casos del Midi y Mini Punto y Banca, éste anuncia la puntuación total de cada mano.Free translation: Once the cards of each hand have been handed to the croupier paletero in the Punto y Banca and Baccarat variants, or placed by the croupier in front of them in the cases of Midi and Mini Punto y Banca, the croupier announces the total score of each hand.
Section III.2 Punto y Banca
The Player hand goes first
Para la mano del punto, que pide en primer lugar su tercera carta.Free translation: For the punto hand, which draws its third card first.
Para la mano de la banca, que pide su tercera carta después de la mano del punto.Free translation: For the banca hand, which draws its third card after the punto hand.
Section III.2 Punto y Banca
A natural
si el resultado de alguna de éstas es 8 ó 9, el juego se da por finalizado, no pudiendo la otra mano solicitar una tercera carta. Esta mano se denomina como natural.Free translation: if the result of either of these is 8 or 9, the game is considered finished, and the other hand may not request a third card. This hand is called a natural.
Section III.2 Punto y Banca
The Player hand’s rule
0, 1, 2, 3, 4 Debe pedir una tercera carta.Free translation: 0, 1, 2, 3, 4 Must draw a third card.
6 ó 7 Debe plantarse, es decir, no pedir cartaFree translation: 6 or 7 Must stand, that is, not draw a card
Section III.2 Punto y Banca
Five on the Player hand
En las modalidades Punto y Banca, Midi y Mini Punto y Banca debe pedir una tercera carta.Free translation: In the Punto y Banca, Midi and Mini Punto y Banca variants, it must draw a third card.
Section III.2 Punto y Banca
Five on the Player hand at Baccarat or Chemin de Fer
En el caso del Baccarat, si el punto obtiene con sus dos primeras cartas “5”, el jugador que haya efectuado la mayor apuesta al punto, decidirá si se pide o no una tercera carta para el punto.Free translation: In the case of Baccarat, if the punto hand has "5" with its first two cards, the player who has made the largest bet on the punto will decide whether or not a third card is drawn for the punto.
Section III.2 Punto y Banca
Three cards at most
Cada mano puede recibir como máximo tres cartas.Free translation: Each hand may receive a maximum of three cards.
Section III.2 Punto y Banca
The Banker hand when the Player hand stands
Si la mano del punto se planta cuando tiene 6 o 7 con sus dos primeras cartas, la tabla de pedir de la banca es igual a la tabla de pedir del punto.Free translation: If the punto hand stands when it has 6 or 7 with its first two cards, the banca's drawing table is the same as the punto's drawing table.
Section III.2 Punto y Banca
Both hands on 6 or 7
6 ó 7 Debe plantarse, es decir, no pedir cartaFree translation: 6 or 7 Must stand, that is, not draw a card
Si la mano del punto se planta cuando tiene 6 o 7 con sus dos primeras cartas, la tabla de pedir de la banca es igual a la tabla de pedir del punto.Free translation: If the punto hand stands when it has 6 or 7 with its first two cards, the banca's drawing table is the same as the punto's drawing table.
Section III.2 Punto y Banca
No decisions after the bet
El casino se hace cargo de determinar la pedida de cartas.Free translation: The casino is responsible for determining the drawing of cards.
Section III.2 Punto y Banca
The commission
El porcentaje de comisión debe ser establecido por el casino y previamente aprobado por la Superintendencia de Casinos de Juego, el cual debe estar indicado en las salas de juego, a través de la señalización correspondiente.Free translation: The commission percentage must be set by the casino and previously approved by the Superintendencia de Casinos de Juego, and it must be indicated in the gaming rooms by means of the corresponding signage.
Section III.2 Punto y Banca