BACCARAT


CARD SHUFFLING


The first thing you need to know about card shuffling is that from casino to casino, the shuffle will vary.
The procedures used to shuffle the cards are house rules and therefore not standard thought the casino world, although every shuffle must be Gaming Board Approved.


The game of Baccarat uses 6-8 decks of cards and therefore the casino's first objective is to select a shuffle that reduces the time required to complete the shuffle. Once a casino has decided on a particular shuffle, it now becomes standard and every dealer must adhere to the procedures of the shuffle.

Before any shuffle begins the cards must be checked. Then, before the start of play, the Pitt Boss hands the Dealers eight decks of cards. The Dealers then remove the Jokers from the Decks and check that all 52 cards in each deck are present and that all 4 suits are represented.
The Dealers must then check the backs of the Cards to ensure the cards are all the same color and that no cards have a distinguishing mark that would reveal its value to a player. The Pitt Boss must also follow this entire procedure.

Once the Dealers and Pitt Boss are satisfied that all the cards meet the required standard, both parties sign for the cards. Both the dealers and the Pitt Boss are now responsible for all the cards being present at the end of play.
In the event of any missing cards at the finish of play, disciplinary action can be quiet severe. The Dealer on the stick or pallet now spreads the cards face up so that the first player to arrive at the table has the opportunity to check the cards.

Follow up:

The base Dealers will then shuffle 4 decks of cards each ensuring a thorough mix. The Dealer on the stick will then shuffle all eight decks together and will then pass roughly 4 decks back to each base Dealer who will make 2 small stacks and perform a 'one riffle shuffle' until they have one stack each. They will then hand both stacks back to the stickperson.
The stickperson then makes one stack, splits the stack into to separate stacks, takes approximately one deck from each stack, riffles the two decks together three times until he arrives back at one complete stack. The cards are then offered to a player who will cut them.

After the cut, the dealer will then do a cut of his own, taking seven cards off the back of the deck using a second card cutter.
These cards will remain in play and ensure that the dealer does not run out of cards on the last hand.

After the cards have been placed in the shoe the dealer will draw the first card face up and burn face down the amount of cards representing the face up card.


THE PITT BOSS IS RESPONSIBLE FOR MONITORING THIS ENTIRE PROCEDURE.