7 Biggest Baccarat Legends

Are you a casino enthusiast? If yes, must have tried your hands at the card game of baccarat at the online casinos UK. It is often referred to as the game reserved for the high rollers. However, the reality is that you do not have to be mega-rich to indulge in the game. In order to be eligible to play the game, all you need to do is have an idea of the baccarat table layouts, baccarat strategy, and baccarat rules chart. Want to know more about the baccarat history and baccarat legends? Read on to find out the details!

The Top Legends of Baccarat 

1. Akio Kashiwagi

When it comes to baccarat legends, Akio Kashiwagi, popular as The Warrior tops the list. He earned his fortune in the 1980s while playing in the Tokyo real estate market. This legend was successful in earning profits of nearly USD 100 million per year. Moreover, the value of his assets was over USD 1 billion. The massive earnings of Akio Kashiwagi enabled him to play the high-stakes games in the Atlantic City and Las Vegas. Eventually, he became popular as one of the biggest whales in the history of gambling. However, in the unfortunate turn of events, Kashiwagi was murdered on January 3, 1992. The incident occurred just one month after his last game.

2. Phil Ivey

Phil Ivey is a gambling legend who is known as one of the best poker players in the world. He has successfully earned 10 WSOP gold bracelets and over USD 38.2 million by participating in poker tournaments. However, he is also a master of several casino games, including baccarat. The legendary run made by Phil Ivey in 2012 enabled him to secure a place in the baccarat hall of fame. He teamed up with “Kelly” Sun to make a fortune by playing the baccarat games in Atlantic City and London. They leveraged edge sorting as the technique to exploit the casinos. However, several casino owners discovered their technique and they were taken to court. They lost the case and were not able to retain their winnings.

3. John W. Gates

John Warne Gates, the famed millionaire, lived from 1855 to 1911. He had a very humble beginning. Gates used to sell firewood to local railroads and homes. Eventually, he became friends with the railroad workers and started playing cards. John W. Gates started enjoying card games and gradually developed an affinity for gambling. He began hosting high-stakes poker and baccarat games at his New York and Chicago homes. Besides baccarat and poker, Gates also placed huge bets on horse races. He was indeed lucky not to lose everything ever.

4. Kerry Packer

Kerry Packer, one of the wealthiest men in Australia is also a baccarat legend. His net worth was about USD 6.6 billion when he died in the year 2005. He enjoyed gambling and placed high-stake bets at the casinos. In one instance, Packer lost nearly USD 13.6 million in a three-day baccarat session. It was one of the biggest losses in Vegas history. However, such losses did not hold him back from playing baccarat or gambling. Besides the extravagant losses, he was successful in making huge amounts of money. During a trip to MGM Grand, he made a profit of about USD 13 million.

5. The Greek Syndicate

The Greek Syndicate is quite different from the other names on the list. Wondering how? Well, most of the baccarat legends present on this list relied on luck to win big in the game of baccarat. However, The Greek Syndicate leveraged their skill to make large sums of money. On the other hand, the other names are individual persons. But this is not a single person. Instead, it is a group consisting of 5 people, including Francois Andre, Nicolas Zographos, Zaret Couyoumdjian, Eli Eliopulo, and Anthanase Vagliano. The main talent of this group was their ability to memorize the hands and cards. As a result, they were able to predict the cards that would come next. The group made a huge fortune by playing baccarat until the time of World War 2.

6. Archie Karas

Archie Karas is one of the well-known baccarat legends. He is quite popular for “The Run”, the greatest gambling run in the history of casinos. It all started when Archie Karas took a loan of USD 10,000 and transformed it into a whopping USD 40 million. While Karas is lauded for pool and poker, he is a legendary of baccarat for all wrong reasons. His lack of complete understanding of the game was one of the main reasons why he incurred huge losses. His tale is a caution that knowing the game well is crucial for success.

7. Tommy Renzoni

The baccarat career of Tommy Renzoni started during the 1950s. He took his talents across America and to Argentina. In Argentina, he spent a lot of time at the punto banco tables and stacked up a lot of cash. He is known to have brought the game of baccarat to the US. Despite the outdated advice, Tommy Renzoni remains an influential person in the history of baccarat.

Conclusion

The baccarat legends have indeed made a great fortune by playing the card game. Today, with the availability of online baccarat, you can enjoy the game from the comfort of your home. Irrespective of the baccarat variations you want to try, choosing a reliable platform is crucial to enjoying the best gaming experience.