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Table Games New to table games, got a few questions specifically about Baccarat and Roulette

Discussion in 'Table Games' started by JewishGambler, Dec 16, 2016.

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  1. JewishGambler

    JewishGambler Tourist

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    I'm headed to Vegas in about a month. Staying at Bally's. Have never played a table game in my life. Always stuck to slots. I guess I find them intimidating. I really want to try Baccarat and Roulette this trip. I've watched some YouTube videos and understand those games. I have some questions: Thanks!

    -Do dealers get annoyed if you're a newbie? I also don't want to annoy other players.

    - I've never held a casino chip in my life. Can you get different denominations at the table? Like if I buy in for $500, does the Baccarat dealer ask me what I want? I don't even know what denominations chips come in lol.

    - If a Baccarat game is a $25 minimum bet, do I ever have to go over that?

    - I know Roulette dealers give you special chips to play with, do they ask your choice of denominations?

    -What's the most number of players that can be at a Roulette wheel and a Baccarat table at one time?

    -Are there places on the strip that have low Baccarat minimums?
     
  2. jacmrose

    jacmrose Low-Roller

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    If you buy in for $500 you can get any combination of $100 (black) $25(green) $5 (red) or $1 (white). You can bet anywhere in between the minimum and the maximum bet. At roulette only the dealer will give you all the same color chip and you tell the dealer how much you want each chip to be worth, usually $1 or $5. For lowest Baccarat minimums I would stick to lower end strip properties or downtown.
     
  3. harley777

    harley777 Low-Roller

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    Most dealers in Vegas are very friendly and will help you out. If they don't move on to a friendly table. Downtown I think they tend to be more friendly. Look for a table that is not to busy.
    You can ask for any denomination chip that you would like. $1 white $5 red $25 green $100 black $1000 I believe purple $5000 not sure and up...
    No. Unless you would like to.
    Yes. You will usually be able to pick what color is available (I like green or brown) and the denomination.
    Roulette usually I think six or seven. Baccarat I am not sure. I will guess six.
    Last question not sure about...
     
  4. blackjacker2

    blackjacker2 Never ever play 6:5, it is not blackjack

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    Many casinos free instruction on their table games at quiet times. This is great way to learn the basics at no financial risk. You can learn the bets, the etiquette and the hand signals. I'd be amazed if Bally's did not offer this. It's all very confusing at first to us all, so stick with it, you will, have fun.
     
  5. Scottndindy

    Scottndindy High-Roller

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    Not sure if Ballys has baccarat. I believe the closest would be Paris next door.
     
  6. topcard

    topcard Here's to $10 3:2 two-deck, $5 Craps, and $5 UTH!

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    Typically, dealers are very gracious to new players... just say something like, "Be gentle with me - I'm new to table games.", or something like that.
    As for players? Most are the same way...so long as you have a rudimentary understanding of the game, you'll be fine.

    Depends on the table minimum & whether or not there's a carnival side-bet at the table. Let's say you're buying in at a $25-min table with $500... you'll probably get something like $300 in green & 2 blacks...unless you tell them something like "all green, please" or "3 blacks, please". With roulette, you will be buying table-specific roulette chips...you will get your own color, so you get to set what denomination that color is at the time of your buy-in. So, let's say you buy-in for $500 at a $10-min roulette table - you could ask for $10 denomination, or higher up for your color...They will mark that color of chip with a disk that states the value... but I haven't played roulette in decades, so perhaps more experienced players will chime in if things don't work like that anymore.

    No. The minimum is the minimum. For some games, like UTH, the "minimum" is for the ante-bet...but since you're required to bet the ante AND the "blind", the actual minimum is effectively twice what the table placard says. IF you don't fold, it is at least 3 times what the placard says. Baccarat is more like blackjack. A $25 minimum table will never require you to bet more than that.

    Good luck & have fun!
     
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  7. JewishGambler

    JewishGambler Tourist

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    Thanks for the advice everyone. Seems like if I admit I'm a newbie dealers won't have any issues. I also want to try BJ too. I know to look for 3/2. Do any casinos on the strip offer anything less than $25 minimums for BJ or would I have to head downtown for that?
     
  8. NotFromConcentrate

    NotFromConcentrate It’s a Cassowary :)

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    I'm headed to Vegas in about a month. Staying at Bally's. Have never played a table game in my life. Always stuck to slots. I guess I find them intimidating. I really want to try Baccarat and Roulette this trip. I've watched some YouTube videos and understand those games. I have some questions: Thanks!

    First of all, I want to say congratulations on having the courage to give this a go... and thank you for doing your research in advance! I've gambled all over the world, and I can tell you that I've seen a lot of newbies who don't have a clue what they're doing. While this isn't a bad thing by itself, a preliminary conceptual understanding goes a really long way when it comes to enjoying the game, and smoothly interacting with all of those involved.

    -Do dealers get annoyed if you're a newbie? I also don't want to annoy other players.

    Dealers, not really. As other posters have suggested, it will be best for you to go either during slower times, or during times where lessons are offered. A lot of places do offer gaming lessons, especially for more complicated games like craps. The best thing that you can do to not annoy a dealer is to listen, don't be arrogant/ignorant, and of course, tip!

    Players, in the majority of situations, you won't annoy them as long as you give them the same courtesy as you do the dealer. There are some very touchy degenerates and high-limit players who don't appreciate anything that would distract them or slow them down. I had one guy in a high-limit baccarat room yell at me once just because I was explaining the game to one of my friends. But on regular outside-floor games, you'll have no issues with this. But like I said, be respectful, not arrogant/ignorant, and personable. Everybody is there for the same two reasons; to have fun, and make money. Players are all playing against the house... so consider them to be your team!


    - I've never held a casino chip in my life. Can you get different denominations at the table? Like if I buy in for $500, does the Baccarat dealer ask me what I want? I don't even know what denominations chips come in lol.

    To answer your question, yes, the dealer will (usually) ask you "how do you want it?". Admittedly, there are some "standard" breakdowns of chips. For example, if you lay $200 on a $5 blackjack table, you will, almost without exception, be given 20 $5 chips and four $25 chips (or "a hundred in red, and the rest in green", in casino speak). The denominations you will find the bulk of the time are $1 (usually white or blue), $5 (red), $25 (green), $100 (black), and $500 (purple). At a $25 baccarat table, you will most likely be given all $25 chips without any questions. You may also have to buy chips to pay the 5% banker commission, depending on how you choose to settle these.

    - If a Baccarat game is a $25 minimum bet, do I ever have to go over that?

    I can interpret this in one of two ways.

    1. If you've bet $25, is there ever a situation where you will have to put down more money in the same play? No, there's not. The most notable game where you might have to do this is blackjack, where you'll have to put up an additional bet for splits and double-downs. So, if you bet $25 and decided to double down, you'll have to put up another $25 to make that play. But there's nothing like this in baccarat.

    2. If the minimum is $25, is there a situation where you will have to make an initial wager of more than $25? No, there's not. If the table minimum is $25, you can bet $25 all day long, unless they change the table limit and don't honour your earlier minimum. And of course, you can change your bet right up to the table limit if you so please. That's all up to you.


    - I know Roulette dealers give you special chips to play with, do they ask your choice of denominations?

    Yes, they do. This choice will be subject to the table's total bet minimum, as well as the chip minimum. For instance, at some higher limit tables, the minimum bet might be $50, with a $5 chip minimum. Meaning that no single chip can have a value of less than $5. At most casinos, you'll be able to find $1 chip minimums, with $10 or $15 total bet minimums. There are $5 total bet minimums in some places... and the El Cortez even has $1 total bet minimums, with $0.25 chips. You can change the denomination whenever you want.

    -What's the most number of players that can be at a Roulette wheel and a Baccarat table at one time?

    Roulette, I've seen as many as 10 people at the same table, but don't know if all of them were playing. There's a hard limit to this because there can only be as many players as there are colours of chips. That's the only way to tell who a given wager belongs to.

    Baccarat, the short answer is eight players. At some higher end places, you'll see a "full sized" baccarat table with 15 seats. But you'll be betting in the hundreds at a time to play such a game, so we'll say eight players for the time being.


    -Are there places on the strip that have low Baccarat minimums?

    I've seen some $10 baccarat games at the strip, specifically at the NYNY. If my memory is doing me any good, I've also seen $10 baccarat at Treasure Island. But most places are at least $25. The lowest baccarat limit I've ever seen in Vegas is $5 at the El Cortez during the day, Monday through Friday. That goes up to $10 otherwise.

    Hope this helps!
     
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  9. NotFromConcentrate

    NotFromConcentrate It’s a Cassowary :)

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    And to this question... you might... and I put great emphasis on "might", find a $15 or possibly even a $10 3:2 game on the strip. But to give you an idea of the rarity, even the MGM Grand even has only three 3:2 tables. Yes, that means that $25 6:5 exists... and people play it!

    I do remember playing a $10 3:2 game at Bally's my last time down. It was a table facing the cashier's cage, right near the walkway to Paris. So you may want to give that a go as well. But for blackjack, you're best advised to look downtown if you want sub-$25 3:2.
     
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  10. JewishGambler

    JewishGambler Tourist

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    Thank you again for all the great tips and advice! A couple more:

    -Is there a proper etiquette for leaving a table? Or I just get up and leave? What about bathroom breaks?

    -For roulette, do I place the chips on the table myself? Are any low limit roulette options on the strip or am I better off heading downtown for that?

    Thanks again!
     
  11. blackjacker2

    blackjacker2 Never ever play 6:5, it is not blackjack

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    You can leave whenever you want (some people leave without saying anything which for me is rude). If it's a toilet break just ask the dealer to guard your chips, in some places they have a see through plastic box to help protect them. Yes you can place the chips on a roulette table yourself, but it it is crowded or it is out of your reach you can ask the dealer to do it for you. You never actually hand the chips too the dealer, they must me placed on the table somewhere independent and you can just ask for the numbers you want. On a quiet table you would normally just do it yourself, that is half the fun!
     
  12. Jaygee77

    Jaygee77 Low-Roller

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    Correct me if I'm wrong, but even at a $10 minimum table, you can still request $1 or $5 chips, as long as your combination of bets on each spin satisfies the table minimum. Certain outside bets may have different minimums, as well.

    Keep me honest here. I'm not a roulette player either.
     
  13. blackjacker2

    blackjacker2 Never ever play 6:5, it is not blackjack

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    You are correct.
     
  14. topcard

    topcard Here's to $10 3:2 two-deck, $5 Craps, and $5 UTH!

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    I just remember buying in many years ago at a $5 min. table, and all of my chips (they were yellow-green, with no denomination on them) were $1 chips, as told to me by the 'dealer'. He put a disk labeled "$1" on his multi-stack of yellow-green chips, establishing the value. No other player had my color. As I recall, there were about 10 different colors, as well as normal, standard casino chips (red-green-black).
    The reasoning (which made sense to me), was that if multiple players were all using standard chips, the "who-made-what-bet" problems would be too chaotic. So, everyone got their own color - and the denomination of that color was established at the time of buy-in.

    Anyway...I was required to bet at least $5 inside (or nothing), and if I wanted to make an outside bet, I could do it with a standard $5 red chip, or with 5 of my yellow-green chips.
     
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  15. WHU66

    WHU66 High-Roller

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    Not a 'major player' but the Cromwell had a $10 table everyday when I was there over Halloween, really friendly dealers, great drinks service and relatively quiet so easy to learn the game better when I was there....either late (2am or past) or early (between 8 and 10am). Had a great time, not too expensive on the pocket and a few drinks. One of the best ways to have fun in Vegas to my simple way of thinking!
     
  16. rob889

    rob889 High-Roller

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    Just remember the table minimums at roulette are for the inside and out and are considered separate.
    For example, at a $5 table you could bet five $1 chips on different numbers inside but if you wanted to also bet even, black, etc. those bets will also require $5 each so if you want all those bets you'll have to have at least $15 total bet on that spin.
    Betting $3 straight up on a number and $2 on black doesn't meet the $5 table minimum.
     
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  17. MikeOPensacola

    MikeOPensacola El Jefe

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    For table games always place your money on the table wen buying chips. If you try to directly hand money to the dealer they will tell you to place it on the table. This is for security purposes so that casino surveillance can make sure the dealer is following their prescribed security procedures.

    Have fun at the tables!!!

    :peace: :beer:
     
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