Casino Games - Craps

Craps Strategy

It's not uncommon to hear that craps is one of the hardest games to get your head around, but it doesn't have to be. Although walking up to a craps table in the casino can be a harrowing experience, with the stickman yelling crazy stuff out that everyone else seems to understand, and the dice flying a mile a minute.

No worries, all that talk is just slang trying to get the high rollers to place more bets and you need not worry about this online. Once you know the basics, craps is much simpler to understand than you might think.

Our craps guide will talk you through the major bets at the table, which are the only ones you're ever going to want to make, because the rest all have a high house edge. In fact, you can learn to play as well as the best at the table in a matter of minutes. The complicated bets and hedging that many craps fans enjoy are not actually advantageous to the bottom line. Playing the pass line bets, along with a small selection of other offerings, are the only smart bets on the board, and learning to stick with them may be the hardest part of learning to play craps.

As you can see from our craps table picture, the middle and one end of the board are the only things which hold any significance. This is because of the fact that a craps table is double the length it needs to be, with each end being a mirror image of the opposite. Craps players stand around the entire table in a land based casino and since everyone can be a shooter, the dice can be thrown from both ends of the table. Online however, craps doesn't need the extra end, which is nice for us because it removes some of the complexity from the board and makes it easier to learn.

Like all good introductory craps instructions we will begin with a look at the fundamental plays and bets in the game, including the come-out roll and the pass line bet.

Pass Line

The pass line bet with odds (sometimes called 'free odds') is the best bet in the casino, not to mention the game of craps. The more money you put down on 'odds', the lower the house edge drops. If the casino you're at lets you put 100 times your original bet down in odds, the house edge drops to an incredible 0.18%. The pass line bet without free odds has a house edge of 1.41%.

The Don't Pass Bet

If you're in a casino and having a good time at the craps table, maybe making a few new friends, then you probably shouldn't bet on the don't pass bet. Essentially it's like betting against the shooter or against the dice, which means you win when everybody else loses. Not that there is anything wrong with that. This may seem generous of the casino to offer an opposite bet of the normal one, wouldn't the house lose their statistical edge? No, sadly on a don't pass bet with odds, the casino pays out pretty low amounts. The odds of a 7 coming out before a 10 are quite good so the casino has to hedge its bet.

The Come Bet

You'll quickly notice the large area of the craps board labeled with 'COME' smack dab in the middle of the playing area. Make sure you have read the section on the Pass bet in our craps rules section, if you know all there is to know about the Pass line bet, then you won?t have any trouble getting your head around the simple 'COME' bet. There is no such thing as a come bet on the come out roll, because it would be exactly the same as a Pass line bet.

The Don't Come Bet

The don't come bet is the opposite of the come bet, much in the same way the don't pass bet is the opposite of the pass bet. The don't come bet must be made after a point is set by the shooter. If a 7 or 11 is rolled you lose, if a 2 or 3 is rolled you win, and a 12 is a standoff. Otherwise a come point is set and you win if a 7 is rolled before the come point is repeated, and lose if the come point is repeated before a 7 is rolled.

Big 6/Big 8 Bets

Little else in the casino is more horrific and is nothing more than a fancy looking poor odds bet. The fact of the matter is the place bet on a six or eight is exactly the same thing as the big 6 (or 8), the only difference is what you get paid. For a place bet on the 6 or 8 you get paid 7 to 6, but for the big 6 / 8 you only get paid even money. Calculating it out this difference in payouts is directly responsible for the house edge of 9.09% on this bet, compared to 1.52 on the place bet.

The Place Bet

The place bet is a variation of betting with a number. You can make a place bet anytime by handing the dealer your bet and saying 'I want to place the 8' or whatever number you want to place bet for. You can make a place bet at any time on any of 4, 5, 6, 8, 9 or 10. If the number you have 'placed' is hit before a 7, you win and you're paid as follows: 4 or 10 placed - 9:5 odds, 5 or 9 placed - 7:5 odds, 6 or 8 placed - 7:6 odds.

Notice the pass line bet offers better odds, so basically you should stick with it over the long run. Although you can technically place a place bet at any time, it is impossible for it to come into effect until the shooters point is set, therefore it is more acceptable to ask for this bet after the come out roll is over.

The Field Bet

The field bet is also among the smarter bets in craps, but doesn't have the great house edge you get with odds on the pass line. The field holds approx a 5.5% house edge. The other handy bit about a field bet is that it can be played on any roll, so it's a very non-threatening move.

The best aspect to the field bet has to be its simplicity. It's a one-time bet which states simply: if the shooter throws a 2, 3, 4, 9, 10, 11, or 12 (any of the numbers in the field area) then you win. If a 5, 6, 7, or 8 are thrown then you lose. There is no trick to placing your chips on one of the numbers in the field, it's just anywhere you want and any of those numbers can be hit. If your betting on the field, most casinos also give you a bonus if a 2 or a 12 is thrown (notice the circles on those numbers). Many casinos pay 2x your bet when a 2 or "snake eyes" is thrown and some even pay 3x your bet if a 12 (commonly called a 'midnight') is thrown.

So look at that, even if you're just a beginner you already know exactly how to make a pass bet, a pass bet with odds, and a field bet. Most of the wagering at a craps table revolves around just these betting techniques.

The Lay Bet

An unusual and uncommon fellow, the lay bet resembles the don't pass and don't come bets in that you are playing against the dice.

The lay bet can be made at any time. In essence it's the opposite of the buy bet, and the same as the don't come bet, but with different odds. The lay bets may be placed on 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10. The bet is on the fact that a seven will be rolled before your number. 7 is more likely to come up than any other number so the casino requires you to wager more than you could win. This bet also requires a commission of 5% on average. If the bet is on 4 or 10 you get 1:2 odds, on 5 or 9 2:3 odds, on six or 8 5:6 odds.

Lay bets are usually only made by people who think they understand more about what's going on that is probably possible. I would be surprised if anyone were ever in a position where a lay bet is the best option, I recommend sticking to the basic bets if you're not an expert already.

The Buy Bet

You may find some people who look like they know what they're talking about around the craps table 'buying' instead of 'placing' numbers. What's the difference?

A buy bet decreases the house edge and enables you to win more. The numbers 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10 can all be bought, but usually the 4 or 10 is picked because its pays off better. The buy bet is similar to the place bet in that the number you buy must come up before a 7 does. The odds are higher for a buy bet. 2:1 on a 4 or 10 buy, 3:2 for a 5 or 9, or 6:5 for a 6 or 8. The catch is, you have to pay a 5% commission on any bets you buy (often called a 'vig'). Depending on how much you bet, buying a bet can make you more money in the end even after accounting for the 'vig'. The odds are only in your favor on a buy bet for a 4 or 10, so stick with the place bet on any others.

The Hardway Bet

Named that way because it's a hard way to win, the bet has some pretty horrible odds, so I recommend you stick with pass line bets with odds for the most part the hard version. Two threes is a hard six, but a 4 and a 2 is a soft six.

Odds are not completely consistent from casino to casino on the hardway bets but generally they go like so: a hard 4 pays 7 or 8 to 1, a hard 6 pays 9 or 10 to 1, a hard 8 pays 9 or 10 to 1, and a hard 10 pays 7 or 8 to 1.

Hardway bets are usually placed to add a little spice to the game, not in any effort to win more money. This is emphasized by the fact that the house edge is something atrocious on these bets. For a 4 or 10 the hard way, there is an 11.1% house edge, for a 6 or 8, it's around 9%.

Proposition Bets

Proposition bets are the ones you can make in the middle of the table, and exist only on the 'next roll'. As one roll bets they can be heart racing and exciting, an integral part of the craps experience.

These bets include: "any seven" bet, "snake eyes" bet, "yo eleven" bet, "any craps" bet, "any three" bet, "midnight" 12 bet, "horn" bet.

These bets are all simple to make, and I'll walk you through them so there is no confusion. The previously mentioned hardway bet and field bet are also considered proposition bets, they are separated here as they are much more common. Each and every proposition bet has a pretty nasty house edge, so before you make any of these bets, feel comfortable.

With the "any seven" bet you're betting the shooter will hit a 7 on the next roll. Horrible house edge, never make this bet. With the "snake eyes" bet you're betting the shooter will throw a two on the next roll.

• With the "any eleven" bet you're betting the shooter will hit an 11 on the next roll.



• With the "any craps" bet you're betting the shooter will throw a 2, 3, or 12 on the next roll.



• With the "any three" bet you're betting the shooter will throw a 3 on the next roll.



• With the "midnight" bet you're betting the shooter will throw a 12 on the next roll.



• With the "horn" bet you're combining the snake eyes, 3, yo 11, and midnight bets.