If you’re looking to explore new ways of playing and betting online, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed by the huge range of choice that is available. With this in mind, it’s really important to take a step back and consider the basics at every stage. That’s what we’re doing to make sure that what can be a new way to develop an understanding of tactics and strategies doesn’t become something confusing. 

In this guide, we’re going to take a look at some of the basics of two-card baccarat so that you can decide if it is a mode of play that you’re interested in pursuing further. It’s time to take a closer look.

A Game Of Higher Or Lower 

Simply put, you’re betting on which player will have the higher value card, with an ace the lowest and the king being the highest. While there could be side bets for things such as suits and multiple hands, the basics of the game always remain the same. There are also interactive formats based around these fundamentals, such as Dragon Tiger tricks that assign one of nature’s apex predators to each hand so that you have something to back. 

One of the most interesting things here is that a game that is seemingly so simple can quickly generate a whole host of complex strategies. While each has their pros and cons, keeping things as simple as possible to begin with is always the best approach. That way, new players can develop healthy and sustainable playing habits while gaining a greater understanding of the nuances. 

Using 7 As The Reference Point 

7 is in the middle of the 13-card range, and this means that it represents the key reference point in any table game. By understanding the range of card values in this way, you can develop an intuitive understanding of how much space you have to play with. Many players find it helps to picture the 13 cards as a ladder, with the 7 card as the middle rung. They can then quickly calculate how likely the next card is to be higher or lower. 

Rather than adopting complicated betting and staking strategies that add and subtract the size of various stakes based on earlier hands, a flat betting approach built around the number 7 is often a good start. It will simplify things while giving new players a chance to think about how the odds tend to manifest themselves when they work their way through multiple hands. 

Navigating The Tie Outcome 

You don’t have to pick whether one hand will be higher or lower if you think that both hands will have the same value. While the multiplier for this outcome will be higher than a higher or lower wager, it is also a less likely outcome. The important thing to note here is that you can quickly and easily work your way through a variety of different games and hands, giving yourself a better idea of how often a tie occurs. 

Learning to play with virtual money in a free-play mode that doesn’t risk real money is the way to go here because it will give you the freedom to try new things out. By focusing on developing an intuitive feel for the odds, you can decide how comfortable you feel with placing tie bets during extended runs. Players who love higher-risk strategies are likely to bet on the tie bet more often than those who are conservative, and that’s absolutely fine. You’re not so much competing against other players in parallel games here as you are against yourself and your understanding of the odds. 

Adopting Suit-Based Strategies 

Suit-based strategies are often used by players on sites like Bitcasino to assess which cards are more likely to come out of the deck next. While no strategy of this kind will be able to guarantee a win, it can help new players understand how games unfold and the mechanics driving them. The idea is simply to keep a mental count in your head of how many cards from a particular suit have already come out of the deck, allowing you to then come to a judgement about what will be dealt next. As you get more confident and experienced, you could then move to more in-depth strategies that focus on counting cards of specific values. 

This is an example of how simple two-card table games can quickly become challenging tests of mental endurance and memory, as opposed to the pure luck that they first appear to be. That said, it’s also important to avoid falling into the trap of over analyzing what you are seeing as this can quickly lead to unhealthy playing habits.  

The Importance Of Avoiding Patterns 

We have all evolved to identify patterns to ensure survival, but there are times when patterns can actually emerge from nowhere and be of no significance at all. The problem is that if you notice a pattern in a run of games and it allows you to win, you may feel like you have discovered some fundamental property of the game. The truth, however, is that what you are doing is ascribing far too much weight to a randomly distributed series of events. Taking your time and stepping back so that you can maintain perspective is what really matters here. 

Consider Different Betting Strategies 

Many beginners like to start with a flat bet strategy where the size of the bets doesn’t change from one game to the next. This is to simplify things so that they can focus more on learning the mechanics of the game and getting a feel for the way in which the odds tend to unfold. As players become more confident and fluent in the basics, they often look to vary the size of their bets based on the results of early games. 

Martingale betting is a prime example of this and involves placing larger bets after losing hands in an attempt to cover losses. The important point to note here is that this should always be done within pre-defined limits, and with money that a player can afford to lose. Only then will safe and sustainable playing habits be established. 

Conclusion

Simple table games where you play against a dealer and look to see which side will have the higher-value hand can be interesting ways to play. They are simple, easy to understand, and give players the chance to try out a range of new strategies and tactics in a relatively short period of time. That said, it’s important to set reality checks and schedule regular breaks to make sure that sustainable playing habits are formed from day one.