How Do You Play Craps At The Casino

Stick With the Pass, Come, and Free Odds Bets. The pass line bet is the basic bet when playing. How to play casino crapsA player bets on a sequence how to play casino craps of rolls of a pair of dice.

How to play craps in casinoThe house edge is expressed as a percentage, and it’s an estimate of how much you should expect to lose in the long run on a game You how to play craps in casino do, however, need to understand how the game is played. Skip to the content.

I’ve written previous posts in this series about craps — that examined the staff at the craps table and the equipment used to play (the dice and the table). This post is the 1^st one in which I discuss the nuts and bolts of how to play a craps game in a casino.

Part 3 of 6

• 1 The Craps Dealers and Other Staff at the Dice Table: Who’s Who
• 2 How the Craps Table Layout Works and How the Dice Work
• 4 The Best and Worst Craps Bets You Can Make
• 5 Craps Bets Ranked According to House Edge
• 6 How (and Why) to Act Like a Craps Player

I’ve seen other pages that explain how to play craps, and some of them are very good indeed. I hope, though, that this post will include a level of detail heretofore unseen on the internet as it relates to how to play craps.

First Things First

You walk up to a craps table that’s just opened for action. A few other players join you. Maybe a class on how to play craps just finished—casinos usually hold those earlier in the day and then open up a table immediately afterward.

You and your new companions will start by buying in. You’ll put cash on the table and get chips in exchange. Once everyone has bought in, the stickman will give the dice to the player on his left. Dice is like cards, by the way.

If you don’t go broke 1^st, you’ll get a chance to roll the dice, too. Don’t worry about that. You just have to wait your turn.

Also, you and the other players aren’t required to roll the dice. You can always pass on that, for any reason you want to. No one will give you a hard time about it, either.

The player gets to choose 2 dice from the 6 or 8 dice he’s given. Once she picks those dice up, the stickman puts the other dice away until there’s a new shooter. (They go in a dice tray.)

But the game still can’t start, because no one has placed a bet yet. Actually, though, at a real craps table, bets will have been made already. I just haven’t mentioned that yet.

Usually, players will start by making pass bets and don’t pass bets. You’ll see a lot more pass bets than don’t pass bets, too.

In this case, “pass” means for the dice to win. “Don’t pass” means for the dice to lose.

If you read my previous post about the table layout, you’ll already know where those bets go on the table. In fact, those are bets you can place on the table yourself, as opposed to some of the bets where the dealers have to place the bet on your behalf.

But you’re not limited to just those 2 options. You can bet on the field. You can bet on big 6. You can bet on big 8. You can even place a proposition bet in the center of the table.

One Roll Bets

It seems appropriate at this point in the discussion to point out the different kinds of bets available. Bets like pass and don’t pass are multiple roll bets. They stay in action as the dice are rolled repeatedly until they’re resolved.

The proposition bets, and some of the other bets, like the field bet, are one roll bets. These are bets made on the outcome of the very next roll. They win or lose based on what happens on that roll. They don’t stay on the table.

The Come Out Roll Is When the Action Starts

The 1^st roll a new shooter makes is called “the come out roll.” If she rolls a 7 or an 11 on the come out roll, the dice win. Anyone who placed a bet on the pass line gets paid off at even money. Anyone who bet on don’t pass loses their bet, and their money gets collected.

But if the shooter rolls a 2, 3, or 12 on the come out roll, the pass line bet is an immediate loser. This is called “crapping out.” Those totals—2, 3, and 12—are “craps.” The don’t pass line, though, MIGHT be a winner.

Remember when I discussed the layout and how the don’t pass bet includes the words “bar 12” or “bar 2?”

This means that if the shooter rolls a 12 (or a 2, depending on what the layout says), the don’t pass bet doesn’t win any money. Instead, it’s treated as a “push” or a “tie.” You get your money back, but you don’t get any winnings with it.

Any other total sets a point. The possible points are 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10.

If the shooter doesn’t set a point, she gets to keep the dice and continue to roll. It doesn’t matter if the dice won or lost on the come out roll. And any time the shooter hasn’t set a point, the next roll is always a new come out roll.

But if a point number has been rolled, the shooter keeps rolling until she either:

• Rolls the point number again. (In which case, the dice win.)
• Rolls a 7. (In which case, the dice lose.)

If the dice win, the shooter keeps the dice and continues to shoot. Also, the pass line bets pay off at even money.

If the dice lose, the next person to the left of the shooter gets a turn as shooter. Also, the don’t pass bets pay off at even money.

After this action is completed, there’s a new come out roll, regardless of whether or not there’s a new shooter.

That’s the basics of craps right there—the come out roll and whether the dice win or lose. Sometimes they win or lose on the first roll; sometimes there are subsequent throws which determine whether they win or lose.

But the other bets are whether the casino really cleans up.

Summarizing the Action

It helps to think of craps as being a game played in rounds. Each round starts with a come out roll.

The dice can win or lose immediately on the come out roll. If you roll a 7 or an 11, that’s an immediate win. If you roll a 2, 3, or 12, that’s an immediate loss.

Any other number sets a point. In that case, the shooter continues rolling the dice until she either rolls a 7 or the point again. If she rolls a 7 before rolling the point, the dice lose. If she rolls the point before rolling the 7, the dice win.

The pass bet pays off at even money when the dice win.

The don’t pass bet pays off even money (or pushes) when the dice lose. The only time it’s a push is when a 12 is rolled on the come out roll. (Or if a 2 is roller in a casino that says “Bar 2” instead of “Bar 12.”)

And that’s it.

Craps is a much simpler game than you expected, isn’t it?

The real wrinkles start when you look at the dizzying arrays of bets that are available to be made in the game besides the pass and don’t pass bets.

I’ll look at the available bets in the next post.

Conclusion

A craps game starts when players buy in, place bets, a shooter is chosen, and then that shooter rolls the dice. The most basics bets in the game (the pass and don’t pass bets) pay off based on whether the dice win or lose, respectively.

You do, of course, have multiple other bets available on the table. Some of them are one roll bets, like proposition bets, while others are determined after multiple rolls.

This is the 3^rd post in my series about playing craps. My next post will include details about how the other bets on the craps table work.

Craps is my favorite game in the casino, and if you learn how to play, it will be one of your favorites, too. I’ve written multiple posts explaining how to play.

In this post, I want to do something a little different.

I want to offer you the best tips for playing craps WELL.

If you want to do well at the craps table, these are the only 11 tips you’ll ever need.

1 – Stick With the Pass, Come, and Free Odds Bets

The pass line bet is the basic bet when playing craps for real money. It’s a bet that the shooter will roll a 7 or an 11 on his come-out roll, or that the shooter will roll a point number and subsequently hit that point number again before rolling a 7. The pass line bet loses if the shooter rolls a 2, 3, or 12 on the come-out roll.

The come bet is just like the pass bet, but it treats a roll after the come-out roll as if it were a new come-out roll.

And the free odds bet is only available if you’ve made a pass or come bet, and the shooter has set a point. The odds bet pays off at the true odds of rolling the point again before rolling a 7.

If you stick with those bets, you’ll be playing the most exciting game in the casino and facing terrific odds. These bets make craps almost as attractive a game as blackjack.

2 – Most of the Bets at the Craps Table Offer Lousy Odds

One of the great things about craps is that it’s easy to learn how to make the best bets and avoid the lousy ones. That’s because the only good bets at the table are these:

• Pass
• Don’t pass
• Come
• Don’t come
• Free odds
• Place 6
• Place 8

You literally have dozens of bets to choose from at the craps table, but the house edge on the bets listed above are all less than 1.5%.

3 – Here’s What You Should Do If You’re a Beginner

If you’re a beginner craps player, stick with the pass line bet. Don’t start making a lot of come bets until you’re comfortable with what’s happening with the pass line bet.

It might be a good idea to take one of the free casino game classes where they’ll teach you how to play.

Once you’re comfortable with the pass line bet, expand your repertoire by making occasional come bets, too.

Try not to have more than two or three numbers working at one time. Any more than that, and you might be devastated by a big loss you’re not expecting.

4 – Understand the House Edge in Craps

The house edge represents the difference between the odds of winning and the payout odds for the game. Craps, like every other casino game, pays out less than the odds of winning. The difference is where the casino makes its profit.

The house edge is expressed as a percentage, and it’s an estimate of how much you should expect to lose in the long run on a game.

In the case of craps, the house edge for the pass and come bets is the same – 1.41%.

The house edge for the don’t pass and don’t come bets is 1.36%.

The great thing is the house edge for the free odds bet. It’s called “free” odds because it carries no house edge. The payout for this bet is the same as the odds of winning it.

By taking or laying odds on top of your pass, don’t pass, come, or don’t come bets, you’re effectively reducing the house edge for the game even further.

How To Play Craps Table

5 – Pick Your Wins Up From the Table

It’s your responsibility to pick up any money you win from the table. If you just leave those chips on the table, they’re considered new bets, and they stay in action.

If you’re on a winning streak, that’s cool. You’ll just win that much more money. In fact, win three or four times in a row by letting your winnings ride can net you a lot of cash fast.

But if you’re a more conservative player, pick the chips you’ve won up off the table after you win.

6 – Ignore Dealers at the Craps Table That Recommend a Bet

One of the dealers at the craps table is comparable to the ringmaster in a circus. He’s the stickman, and part of his job is to sell you on the idea of making bets in the middle of the table.

The house edge on those bets is terrible, and when I say terrible, I mean over 9%.

Would you rather lose an average of 9% on each bet or an average of 1.5% on each bet?

It’s the difference between losing $15/hour and losing $90/hour.

7 – Don’t Use Betting Systems at the Craps Table

Any game with bets that offer even money payouts is ripe for betting system players. Craps is no exception. In fact, you’ll have no trouble finding a Martingale or Paroli system player at the craps table.

These two systems work in precisely the opposite way, but both systems also don’t do anything to help you win the game. A negative expectation bet is a negative expectation, no matter what.

The Martingale System and the Paroli System are examples of positive and negative progression systems. You raise and lower the size of your bets based on whether you won or lose previous bets.

How Do I Play Craps At The Casino

Here’s an example of the Martingale in action at the craps table:

You bet $5 on the pass line, and you lose when the shooter 7s out. Now you bet $10 on the pass line, and if you win, you’ve won back your $5 loss along with a $5 profit.

But if you lose, you have to bet $20 on your next bet, and so on.

Eventually, you’ll run into a losing streak that’s so long that it will be impossible to place the next bet in your progression.

With the Paroli System, you’ll let your winnings ride until you’ve had a specific, arbitrary number of wins in a row.

For example, you might set a goal of winning 3 times in a row. You bet $5 on pass, win, and bet $10 on the 2^nd round, and win again. Now you bet $20. If you win all 3 bets, you’ve won $35 over 3 rounds of the game.

But this approach doesn’t work, either, in the long run.

8 – Don’t Try to Become a Craps Professional

Contrary to what you might read and what some people might tell you, it’s not possible to get an edge at craps in the long run. Without being able to get a mathematical edge, you can’t possibly play craps for a living.

Even the odds bets, which have no house edge, can only be made when you’ve made an initial bet with a negative expectation.

On top of the negative expectation, you have a highly volatile game. Just because the house edge on the odds bets is 0% doesn’t mean those bets pay off often. They still lose most of the time.

It’s just that, theoretically, in the long run, you’ll win as much money as you lose on such bets.

If you want to be a professional gambler, learn to count cards in blackjack, or handicap sports with a high degree of accuracy, or play poker at a pro-level.

But stay away from craps if you want to gamble professionally.

9 – Skip Don’t Pass and Don’t Come Bets If You’re New

You might think that don’t pass and don’t come are the best bets at the craps table. And since the house edge for these bets is 1.36% instead of 1.41%, that’s true.

But that doesn’t mean you should place these bets.

In fact, if you’re new, I suggest avoiding them.

Here’s why:

Most of the other players are betting with the shooter. It’s fun to root for a shooter to win, and it’s fun to have a sense of teamwork and camaraderie at the craps table.

If you’re betting against everyone at the table, you’ll probably have less fun.

Unless you just have one of those personalities.

10 – Take as Big an Odds Bet as Possible While Still Being Comfortable

Let’s say you’re at a craps table where the minimum bet is $5 and the maximum bet is $500. And the maximum amount of odds this casino will let you take is 2X your bet.

Don’t bet $15 on the pass line and ignore the odds bet.

And don’t bet $15 on the pass line and then put $30 on the odds bet.

In one case, you’re letting the house have a more significant edge than you need to.

In the other case, you’re putting more money into action on a single roll of the dice than you’re comfortable with.

Neither of these situations is good.

11 – Free Casino Classes Are Great – Except for the Strategy Advice

Craps, more than most casino games, is a good one to learn via the free casino classes that most gambling halls offer during their slow periods. You can get an excellent feel for how the game plays and how the betting works. Most real money online casinos will also allow you to play for free and practice before you’re ready for the real thing.

Just ignore any strategy advice that live casino dealers offer. Sometimes the dealers don’t know anything about the math behind the game and give what they think is good advice. Other times, the dealers are just rooting for you to lose.

Conclusion

With a basic understanding of how to play craps, you can have more fun in the casino than most. And you’ll stand a good chance of having some big winning sessions.

It’s just as important to play smart at the craps table as it is at any other casino game.

Thinking about these 11 craps tips will keep you on the side of the gambling angels.