Hey there, card fans! If you love strategies, this article is for you. Also, if you think that you can develop the winning system inside the game of luck, keep on reading. We covered the basics of Baccarat and card counting on our blog. Today we are going a step further. If Baccarat is your game, jump onboard! If not, this may be a good moment to explore the game in depth. There will be some basic math involved, some high alert focus, and proper decision making. What more can a gambler ask for, right? Joking aside, we are here to present the three Baccarat card counting strategies that provenly work.
Edward Thorpe’s Card Counting Strategy
The man we mentioned in one of the previous articles, is also the person behind one of the 3 popular baccarat card counting strategies. As you may already know, he developed the basic strategy which we explored recently in Baccarat Card Counting Tips. That counting system proved to work but had certain flaws. And as both gamblers and mathematicians strive for brilliance and busting the system, he went a step further. Thorpe’s next strategy reportedly worked on bigger number of rounds. So, all persistent and patient players among you will find this strategy appealing. Here it goes.
In its core, the strategy depends on whether you bet on a Player or the Banker.
Betting on a Player
In this situation, Thorpe’s strategy advises to subtract 1 when the cards 2 and 3 come out of the shoe. Contrary, when the cards 7 and 8 come out, you should add 1.
Betting on a Banker
Opposite is what you do when betting on a Banker. Twos, threes, and fours being dealt signify that you should add 1. Subsequently, you should add 2 when fives come out. Contrary to this when you see sixes, eights, and nines coming out you should subtract 1. And lastly, subtract 2 when you see the sevens coming out. Adding zero or basically doing nothing applies when you see tens, face cards, and aces.
Tie Bet Strategy
The name John May relates to tie bet strategy in Baccarat. John May wrote the iconic book “Baccarat for the Clueless”. His work inspired players worldwide to try one of the three popular Baccarat strategies. Namely, he was convinced that the only Baccarat strategy that actually works is the one which applies to tie bet.
It may sound strange, because the widely accepted rule says never to go for the tie bet in Baccarat, because it bears a very high house edge of 14.4%. So, what did John May discover?
In Baccarat, ties are rare and therefore, generous when they happen. It also means larger payouts are within reach when applying this strategy. If you are a true risk-taker, this may interest you. According to John May there is the situation which reportedly gives you as a Player, a 62% advantage. Interested? Keep on reading.
Tie Bet Baccarat Strategy explained
Namely, a rare situation should happen, for the tie bet to work. When there are no odd cards left in the shoes, it means that there are only 5 totals which may happen. Namely, 0, 2, 4, 6, and 8. And at that point, odds of a tie increase significantly, giving you the above-mentioned advantage.
Interestingly, you can also see it coming. For example, let’s say you adopted the counting system in which you add 1 to odd cards. Once this count reaches 160, that’s when the light bubble should turn on signifying the 62% advantage, because of the average distribution of cards.
John May’s system also discusses the best possible bet, meaning the most favourable proportion of risk and returns. Apparently, that’s 7.8% of the bankroll.
EZ Baccarat Tie Bet Strategy
This particular Baccarat card counting strategy applies to EZ Baccarat. Just in case you haven’t come across this game so far, you should know that it is the game which has slightly better odds than the regular Baccarat game. According to Google, it the variation which takes away the odds differential between Player line and the Dealer Line. Instead, it bars the winning Bank hand, which consists of 3 cards having the 7 in total. So, let’s jump quickly to what this particular one out of 3 popular Baccarat card counting strategies implies.
Apart from the one main difference described above, EZ Baccarat allows for the side bet called Dragon 7. In the casino world, where everyone avoids side bets, this one could actually be profitable. How? Well, it pays 40:1 in case of the Banker hand win with the already mentioned 3 cards totalling to 7.
Should the side bet win, the dealer draws the third card. You should know that the Player’s edge increases if you remove the eights and nines from the deck. For players, it is important to see the Banker’s hand getting as closer as possible to 7.
Do you have a strategy in place? Let us know.
