Lesser Known Casino Games: Faro
The American Old West is filled with images of cowboys, Indians, and poker games in saloons. Well, the cowboys and Indians thing is true, but the poker thing is a bit misleading. Yes, poker was played a lot, but the real card game of the Old West was a little game called Faro.
One of the true “fair” card games out there, Faro is a game based around the idea of a card ending in one of two piles. However, since Faro has no significant house edge built in, the casinos generally don’t want it. Despite its current lack of popularity, Faro was popular once and played a large part in European and American history.
Pharaon (eventually shortened to Pharo and then Faro) started in 1700s France. Faro’s name comes from the Egyptian style art common to playing cards of that era. France invented Faro, but the government outlawed the game. Anyone not happy about this got a firsthand look at the French judicial system (errr… ouch!) England (of course) had no issues with Faro, and the game then traveled to America.
As previously mentioned, Faro (not Poker) was the true game of the American Cowboy era. Although Poker was popular, Faro was king. Even Old West icons like Doc Holiday and Wyatt Earp dealt Faro.
In the early 20th century, Faro’s popularity fell until only five Faro tables were left in Nevada during the 1950s. Today, it’s largely a forgotten game, found generally online and at Old West fairs.
If you’re lucky enough to see a Faro table, here’s how you play. The Faro board is laid out in a backwards “C” pattern using 13 cards from ace to king. Cards are protected from the elements (including spilled drinks) and you use the cards as markers for your bet.
The dealer passes out two cards for each round. One goes into the loser pile and the other into the winner pile. Put your chip on the 7, to make a Flat bet. That’s a wager your chosen card will land in the winner pile. If it goes in the loser pile, then you’re a… “Non Winner”. Copper bets are the opposite of Flat bets. Here you’re betting your chosen card will end up in the loser pile.
Make a High Card bet to wager the winning card will be a higher rank. Reverse or Copper the bet to wager the losing card will be of a higher rank than the winning card. Split the bet by putting your chip between two different cards. If you lose, the bank takes one half of the bet.
Call the Turn bets on the order the last three cards. Faro keeps track of the cards dealt so it’s easy to know which three are left. Win and you get a 4 to 1 payout.
If you ever see a Faro table, sit down and play. Chances are you’ll never get an opportunity again.
