In Fixed Seven Baccarat, Player’s first card is always a 7. It is printed on the table and never leaves it. Every round the shoe deals only Banker’s first card, Player’s second card and Banker’s second card, then any third cards by the usual rules. Player starts every hand with a head start, so the payouts change around the number 7 to keep the game balanced. Singapore’s Marina Bay Sands deals this game as 7 Up Baccarat.
How to play
Bets. Chips come in 10, 50, 100 and 500. Every spot takes up to 1,000 credits, in steps of 10. No commission is charged.
| Bet | Pays |
|---|---|
| Player | 1 to 1, but a Player win with 7 pays 1 to 2 (half) |
| Banker | 1 to 1, but a Banker win with 7 pays 9 to 5 |
| Tie | 7 to 1, a tie on 7 pays 9 to 1 |
| Super 7’s | by the number of 7s on the table, the fixed 7 included: 2 → 2 to 1, 3 → 5 to 1, 4 → 17 to 1, 5 → 70 to 1, 6 → 700 to 1 |
If the hands tie, Player and Banker bets come back. One 7 (the fixed one alone) loses Super 7’s.
The cards. Aces count 1, 2 to 9 count their pips, and tens and picture cards count 0. Only the last digit of a total matters. With the fixed 7, Player’s two-card total is 7 plus the second card: a 10 or picture card keeps it at 7, a 2 makes a natural 9, an 8 makes 5. A total of 8 or 9 on two cards is a natural and nobody draws. Otherwise Player draws on 0 to 5 and Banker draws by the standard third-card table. The higher total wins.
Why 7 changes everything
Starting on 7 helps Player a lot. A 10-value second card gives Player 7, and 7 is a strong total that stands. So Player wins more often here than at a normal table. The payouts give that back:
- Player’s most common winning total is 7, and those wins pay only half.
- Banker wins with 7 less often than at a normal table, because a Player 7 is so common, so those wins pay 9 to 5.
- Ties are more common than usual and land on 7 most often, so a tie pays 7 or 9 to 1 instead of 8.
What each bet costs
House edge, counted exactly over every possible deal from an eight-deck shoe with the fixed 7:
| Bet | House edge |
|---|---|
| Banker | 2.58% |
| Player | 2.59% |
| Tie | 4.09% |
| Super 7’s | 8.76% |
The casino’s rule sheet uses the standard Punto Banco drawing table, and so do we. Only the deal order changes: Banker’s first card, then Player’s second, then Banker’s second.
Strategy
The Tie is the bet to look at. At most tables the Tie costs 14% or more. Here it costs 4.09%. The fixed 7 makes ties far more common, and a tie on 7 pays 9 to 1.
Player and Banker cost about the same, 2.59% and 2.58%. That’s more than at a classic table, the price of the fixed-7 format.
Super 7’s is a long-shot ladder. Two sevens (the fixed one plus one more) come up fairly often and pay 2 to 1. The big numbers need four or more sevens in one round.
If you enjoy Fixed Seven Baccarat, try Flop Hold’em or Flush Rush next.
