A more
modern variant originated in Italy (Europe) around 1490 and
at the present time it is most popular in European casinos. The
word baccarat is derived from the Italian word baccara, meaning
zero, and refers to the zero value given to all of the face cards
and tens.
In
the 1500s, it was introduced to French aristocrats looking for a
new and exciting game of chance by their Italian counterparts.
They called it "Chemin De Fer," the French term for
railroad. In the 1900s, when the game became fashionable on the
French Riviera (game of choice for the French nobility), players
nicknamed it "Chemmy" or "Shimmy."
Chemin
De Fer traveled from Europe to South America and found a new home
in Argentina. Casinos in Mar Del Plata (Argentina) became a
gambling paradise for wealthy South Americans. When the game
reached Cuba, it underwent a rule change that turned it into
American Baccarat (in American Baccarat each player bets against
the house; in Chemin De Fer, players bet among themselves). In
1958, at Capri Hotel Casino in Havana (Cuba), a young casino
executive named Francis "Tommy" Renzoni, spent countless
hours watching gamblers play baccarat.
When
Renzoni left Cuba and settled in Nevada, he persuaded the owners
of Sands Hotel to open up a baccarat pit. But the game was not an
overnight success in the United States. The separated pit and the
game�s sophisticated aura intimidated American gamblers, who at
this time were mostly craps players who had picked up a liking for
the dice during military service in World War II. During
that time a special
form of Baccarat was introduced in many Las Vegas casinos and the
game has become even more popular. In
this variation of Baccarat the role of banker is usually held
permanently by the House or Casino; only one non-Banker hand is
dealt, and bets may be played either with or against the Banker.
Its popularity increased
steadily in the United States, Australia and England during the
past century. Traditionally, the baccarat pit is set aside
from the main casino area, away from all of the "common"
games, and "common" players.
In
February of 1990, the late Akio Kashiwagi, who at one time was the
world�s highest roller, made history books when he won over $6
million at an Atlantic City baccarat table. Playing in Atlantic
City�s Trump Plaza casino, and betting $200,000 a hand, Mr.
Kashiwagi, also known as "The Warrior," put a
significant dent in the Plaza�s bottom line for the month.
But like all winners, he came back for more. The following May,
after six grueling days of playing, Kashiwagi made the record
books for the second time. Losing close to $10 million, the
Warrior recorded the largest loss at a baccarat table in casino
history.
Now
that the internet is fast evolving into becoming a highly
diversified meeting place and playground, it has grown to include
Online Baccarat. Gambling has now become firmly rooted in the
electronic age, so it was only natural that it should gravitate to
the Internet in the form of online baccarat. The number of
internet users is increasing steadily each week and more money and
resources are being poured into the infrastructure. The resulting
increase in bandwidth will provide support for a high degree of
interaction between users and online baccarat. As this becomes a
reality, online baccarat will take a permanent place amongst
hundreds of other forms of internet based entertainment.
