How to Play Craps
Craps is a game that has an abundance of tradition in the online world of gambling. It originates from the original game of ‘Hazard’ from the 14th century. In craps, the aim of the game is to cast a set of die and hope that your cast is going to pay out. Have a read through this article to learn how to play craps.
An Introduction
Craps is a casino game that is played with dice and originates from England. It was developed on the game ‘Hazard’ from the 14th century. The game itself has been played for centuries and especially became popular after the second world war. Continue reading to learn the rules of craps and how you could potentially win big prizes from rewarding payouts. There are other jackpot games that you can play, in case you prefer not to read the rules of craps.
How to Play Craps
There are two types of craps. One of them is called ‘street craps’, in which players wager money against other players. The other version is ‘casino craps’, in which players play against the bank.
Casino craps is played by one or more players against the casino. It is set on a large rectangular craps table. In brick-and-mortar casinos, sitting at a craps table is against the etiquette of the table, as it is an interactive and lively game.
Craps is a dice game that is played with two dice. They are cast by a person, called the “shooter”. Before the dice are rolled, players can bet on a variety of different outcomes by placing bets in the betting area on the table.
Before the shooter rolls, players must have a bet on the “Pass” line and/or the “Don’t Pass” line. Sometimes, these are called the ‘Win’ and ‘Don’t Win’ bets. The initial Pass and Don’t Pass bets are won or lost depending on the result of the rolled dice.
A round of craps has two phases, known as the “Come Out” and “Point” phase. The Come Out phase refers to the initial cast by the shooter. As for the Point phase, it refers to a point that is set aside and can potentially win on the corresponding rolls.
Once the shooter casts the dice (at the same time) the result is determined by the outcome. If the Come Out roll is a 2, 3 or 12, it is known as craps. Players that bet on the Pass line lose if the sum of the dice is one of those. However, players that bet on the Don’t Pass line will win if a 2 or 3 is rolled (the bet is pushed if a 12 is rolled).
Shooter Bet Loses
Even if the shooter has lost their bet, they must continue rolling. If the shooter rolls a 7 or 11, the Pass bet wins and the Don’t Pass bet loses. If a 4, 5, 6, 8, 9 or 10 is cast on the Come Out roll, a point is set.
If the point number is set, the second phase of the round begins. This is known as the Point phase and continues on the initial bet. If the shooter rolls the same point number (regardless of how it is formed), before a seven is rolled, the Pass bet wins and the Don’t Pass bet loses. However, if a seven is rolled before the point number is, the Pass bet loses and the Don’t Pass bet wins.
Set Point
Once a point is set, any multi-roll bet is unaffected by the 2, 3, 11 or 12 numbers that previously affected the round. The only way to determine the outcome of the round is whether the point number is rolled again or whether a seven is rolled beforehand.
If no point is set from a Come Out roll, the round ends with either the Pass or Don’t Pass bets winning. Thus, there are many rounds that do not even have a point phase of play.
It is possible to bet on Pass or Don’t Pass as long as a point has not been established. Once a point has been set, players can bet on the ‘Come’ or ‘Don’t Come’ lines. Essentially, the Come bet is the same as the Pass bet (it wins if the point number is rolled before a seven) whilst the Don’t Come bet is the same as the Don’t Pass bet (it wins if a seven is cast before the point number is rolled). The difference is that the Pass and Don’t Pass refer to before a point is set and the Come and Don’t Come refer to after the point is set.
Types of Bets in Craps
Now that we have established the general gameplay of craps, it is important to learn the different types of bets that can be placed, their odds of winning and how they pay out. Craps has a variety of different bets in addition to the basic gameplay ones.
Pass Bet – it wins on the come out roll if a 7 or 11 is rolled and loses if a 2, 3 or 12 is cast. If a point is set, it wins if the number is repeated before a 7 is rolled. It has a house edge of 1.41% and pays 1:1.
Don’t Pass Bet – it wins on the come out roll is a 2, 3 is rolled (push on a 12) and loses if a 7 or 11 is cast. If a point is set, it wins if a 7 is rolled before the point number. It has a house edge of 1.36% and pays 1:1.
Come Bet – it is the same as a Pass bet but can only be played once a point has been set. It wins if the point number is rolled before a 7 is rolled. It pays 1:1.
Don’t Come Bet – it is the same as a Don’t Pass bet but is played after a point has been set. It wins if a 7 is rolled before the point number is rerolled. It pays 1:1.
Other Bets
Place Bets – it is a bet that is placed after a point is made. It wins if a 4, 5, 6, 8, 9 or 10 is rolled before a 7, in which case, it loses. It pays 9:5 for a 4 and 10, 7:5 for a 5 and 9 and 7:6 for a 6 and 8.
Field Bet – it is a bet that allows players to wager on a range of numbers. If a 2, 3, 4, 9, 10, 11 or 12 is rolled, you win. Otherwise, if any other number is rolled, the field bet loses. It pays 1:1 for a 3, 4, 9, 10 or 11, it pays 2:1 if a 2 is rolled, 3:1 if a 12 is rolled. It loses if a 5, 6, 7 or 8 is cast.
More Bets
These are the basic bets in craps, however, there are plenty of other bets that can pay more rewardingly, as seen below:
Any 7 – it is a one roll bet that pays 4:1 if a 7 is cast on the roll.
Any 11 – it is a one roll bet that pays 15:1 if an 11 is cast on the roll.
Hard Way – it is a bet that wins if a hard 4, 6, 8 or 10 is cast. A Hard Way bet means the number must be formed from a pair (2-2 for 4, 3-3 for 6, 4-4 for 8 and 5-5 for 10). It loses if one of the numbers is formed in any easy way (for instance 1-3) or if a 7 is rolled before. It pays 8:1 for a hard four and hard ten and 10:1 for a hard six and hard eight.
Any Craps – it is a one roll bet that wins if a 2, 3 or 12 is cast on the corresponding roll. It pays 8:1.
Hop Bets – it is a one roll bet that decides the specific dice combination of a roll. If it is the hard way (a matched pair) it pays 30:1. If it is an easy way (unmatched pair) it pays 15:1.
Big 6 or 8 – if you bet on the big 6 or big 8, you win even money if the number selected is rolled before a 7.
Aces or 12 – it is a one roll bet that pays 31:1 if an Ace (2) is rolled or a twelve is cast.
Ace-Deuce or 11 – it is a one roll bet that pays 16:1 if a three (1-2) is rolled or an eleven is cast.
7 – it is a one roll bet that pays 5:1 if a seven is rolled.
Craps Basic Strategy
The fundamental bets in craps are the Pass Bet, Come Bet, Don’t Pass and Don’t Come bets. These are the safest bets with the lowest house edges of 1.41% for Pass and 1.36% for Don’t Pass. These percentages are low compared to other casino games such as European Roulette (2.70%) and American Roulette (5.26%). Betting on 6 or 8 in craps is also advisable with a house edge of only 1.52%, and it pays 7:6.
Increasing Your Chances
If you’re new to craps, the best strategy is to stick to the four main bets. They offer even money payouts with a low house edge. Additionally, Pass/Come and Don’t Pass/Don’t Come bets can be used in combination to potentially lower the house edge further using a method called free odds betting.
Free Odds Bets
After a point has been set, you can double down on your Pass and Don’t Pass bets with Come and Don’t Come bets respectively, thereby reducing the house edge on your second bet. These are also known as free odds bets, which can have a negligible house edge. In many craps games, it is possible to bet up to a 100 times more on your Come and Don’t Come bets than your initial bet. This strategy can potentially reduce the house edge to as little as 0.02%.
Avoid Single-Roll Bets
Avoiding single-roll bets is advisable as they do not offer a good house edge, although they can be very rewarding. Bets with high house edges include:
- Field Bets: The house advantage can be 2.78% to 5.56%.
- Any Craps Bet: The house edge is 11.11%.
- Any 7: The house edge is 16.67%.
Hedging Bets in Craps
Hedging is a popular betting system in craps offering the lowest house edge and the highest chances of beating the casino. This strategy works well for players with a limited bankroll. When placing your pass and free odds bets, consider also placing bets on 6 and/or 8. Here is how you can apply it:
- Place a bet on 6 if the point is 8.
- To place a bet on 8 if the point is 6.
- Place a bet on both 6 and 8 if any other point is rolled.
Most Rewarding Bets in Craps
The most rewarding bets in craps are the Pass, Don’t Pass, Come, and Don’t Come bets due to their low house edges of 1.41% and 1.36% respectively. The Don’t Pass and Don’t Come bets offer slightly better returns but are against the shooter, which may not be popular in a physical casino setting.
Craps Basic Strategy – Back Free Odds on your Point Bet
One strategy to increase your winning chances is to bet as much as possible on the Come or Don’t Come bets once a point is set. This is because casinos pay out the odds at true value once a point is set. As your bet increases, the house advantage decreases. If you match or double your initial pass bet, the house edge can be reduced to 0.8% or 0.6% respectively. If you place a bet 100 times bigger than your initial stake, the house edge could be as low as 0.02% or 0.01% for Don’t Pass and Don’t Come bets. This method of increasing your free odds bet offers reasonable odds with great payouts.
The Big 6 and Big 8
The Big 6 and Big 8 bets also offer decent odds with a house edge of only 1.52% and a payout of 7:6. This is due to the many combinations that can form either 6 or 8.
Bets to be Wary of
Single-roll bets should be approached with caution due to their higher risks and lower odds. These include:
- The Field Bet: The house edge ranges from 2.78% to 5.56%.
- Any Craps Bet: The house edge is 11.11%.
- Any 7: The house edge is 16.67%.
Craps Odds and House Edge Advantage for Bets
Finding bets with a low house edge is the best strategy for craps. Here are various craps bets along with their respective house edges:
- Any 7: 16.67%
- 2 or 12: 13.9%
- 11 or 3: 11.1%
- Hardway 4 or 10: 11.1%
- Hardway 6 or 8: 9.09%
- Any Craps: 11.11%
- Field Bet: Up to 5.56%
- Lay 4 or 10: 2.44%
- Lay 5 or 9: 3.23%
- Lay 6 or 8: 4.76%
- Buy 4 or 10: 4.76%
- Buy 5 or 9: 4.76%
- Buy 6 or 8: 4.76%
- Place 4 and 10: 6.67%
- Place 5 and 9: 4.00%
- Place 6 and 8: 1.52%
- Don’t Come/Don’t Pass 2X Odds: 0.83%
- Pass Line/Come Bet 2X Odds: 0.85%
- Don’t Pass/Come: 1.40%
- Pass Line/Come Bet: 1.41%
How to Play Craps: The Bottom Line
If you have never played craps before, the rules of the game may be rather tricky to grasp at first. However, they are certainly not impossible to learn and the game is incredibly fun to play once you have understood the basics.
For new players, we would recommend sticking to Pass, Don’t Pass, Come and Don’t Come bets to begin with. These are the four main bets in the game and all have a low house edge and pay even money. If you are playing at a land-based casino, you may want to stick to Pass and Come bets only, as this is betting with the shooter and not against them.
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