Baccarat scorecards are essential for running a successful game
Asian players love to “ squeeze ” the cards imagining they can add or attract a spot or two
How Has The Game of Baccarat Changed ?
What has changed in baccarat with the switch in the cultural market from primarily Latin American to overwhelmingly Asian ? Since many Asian customers are more superstitious than their predecessors , the casino must take certain factors into consideration .
First , Asian gamblers find certain numbers lucky and others unlucky . For example , the numbers 4 and 14 are considered extremely unlucky . In the Cantonese language , the word for the number “ four ” sounds similar to the word for “ death .” The wise casino executive needs to remember this fact and remove “ 4 ” and “ 14 ” from the table layout .
The number 8 in the Chinese and Southeast Asian cultures represents “ luck .” On a seven-spot baccarat layout , the “ 4 ” can be removed and an eighth position added after the seventh position , which will accommodate both the unlucky and lucky numerical situations nicely .
Management may also consider Asian number preferences when making change for currency of higher-denomination casino chips . Breaking a $ 100 chip or bill should not be done by giving the player four $ 25 chips , but by giving the player eight chips — three $ 25 chips and five $ 5 chips . This number preference can also be done when changing $ 500 . The customer is given four $ 100 chips and four $ 25 chips . There are several other superstitious issues that need to be taken into consideration by management .
Note : It is important to accommodate the Asian customer ’ s superstitious habits , but that does not mean that management needs to always make changes to baccarat and its established procedures . In some instances , the customer will use the casino ’ s willingness to change procedure to gain the customer an advantage over the house . Sometimes it is best just to say “ No .”
Following are some other changes to the game of baccarat that have been made to accommodate the shift in the baccarat market .
Condition Of “ Squeezed ” Cards In Baccarat
In the beginning , “ big table ” players would touch the cards . It was standard procedure for the customers wagering to handle the dealing shoe and with instruction from the “ stick ” baccarat dealer , draw cards from the shoe . Few baccarat customers bent or twisted the playing cards .
Occasionally , a customer would blame his or her cards for a losing outcome and crumple or rip the cards in half . This was usually followed by a stern reprimand from the baccarat supervisor . It was standard practice to reuse the playing cards over and over again unless the cards showed obvious wear or the cards appeared to have been marked .
Asian customers on a baccarat “ squeeze ” game generally treat the playing
cards much differently . When peeking the result of the two-card hand , the player will roll the corners and side of each card looking to identify the value of the card based on the spot configuration . Once the customer has peeked the cards in this manner , reusing the cards in any future rounds is out of the question . Today , it is standard baccarat procedure to immediately replace all eight decks at the end of the shoe .
Why Pre-Shuffled Cards ?
Primarily , pre-shuffled playing cards used in baccarat are vital for speeding up the introduction of new decks onto the game . When introducing eight new decks of cards , standard procedure is to have each deck inspected , backs and faces , by both the floor supervisor and the dealer , and then scrambled or “ washed ” together before the cards are inserted into a shuffling machine or manually shuffled .
This process is extremely time-consuming , considering that most baccarat games utilize a batch-type shuffling machine that requires the use of two eight-deck sets of cards . Pre-shuffled cards , on the other hand , can be introduced immediately into the game without the time-wasting inspection process .
Regulators in most gambling jurisdictions have approved the use of pre-shuffled playing cards when taken directly out of their packaging at the table . Pre-shuffled cards come with an additional cost , but this cost , usually a few cents , is easily recovered by the speed of getting the packaged cards on the table and in action .
In some instances , casinos have brought the process in-house , and have a dedicated “ card control ” room and staff manually prepare the eight-deck batch . The staff opens the decks , removes the joker and blank cards , washes the eight decks together , and places them through a shuffling machine . Once the machine shuffle is completed , the eight decks are run through a deck-checking machine and scanned for completeness .
Next , the eight decks are placed into a transparent carrier that is sealed with a security strap . This strap is removed only when the carrier reaches the table . Several casinos that have gone to this process eventually reverted to the manufactured pre-shuffled decks due to cost of card control labor and added security the factory-packaged playing cards provide .
To further enhance their baccarat game safety , many casino executives have elected to use a shuffling machine in conjunction with pre-shuffled playing cards . This process , even though more time-costly than immediately cutting and dealing the pre-shuffled cards , has eliminated several game protection issues by adding a final machine shuffle .
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