Reputed as being three times better than Roulette, and many times better than Slot Machines because of its player-friendly house edge estimated at measly 1.41%, Craps is easily one of the most easy-to-profit-from and fun-filled casino games you should be adding to your casino gaming experience, if you haven’t done so already.
Basic Guide To Start Playing Craps
What is Craps and How is it Played?
Simply speaking, Craps is a popular and lively casino game played with two dices so that the possible numbers rolled on the table are 2 through 12. Usually, the craps table has a layout that is made such that both ends of the table are exact mirrors of one another. This duplication is mainly done to allow more than one player at one table. Even so, the game’s rules dictate that only one bet can be wagered in basic craps play, with the bet placed on only one area of the table’s layout. The rest of the table’s layout can be ignored, unless other players place multiple bets on different areas of the layout at the same time. In the latter instance where there are several bets, craps play can seem confusing, but that should become pretty easy to understand once you’ve played a couple of games. Plus, the dice in craps is often rolled multiple times before the final outcome is determined, giving you sufficient time to figure out how the game is played and how the wagers are placed.
The most unique aspect of craps—which is coincidentally its biggest advantage—is that the players themselves roll the dice, meaning players determine their fate in regards to whether they win or lose a given bet. Essentially, this is the reason the odds of success in craps are higher than in other games like Roulette.
As a point of caution, though, you must have a formula for picking the best bets, otherwise you’ll easily become one of the many players that don’t understand the game and fall for sucker bets.
How to Bet on Craps
Every player in craps usually takes a turn at rolling the dice. The player who rolls the dice at any given time is known as a Shooter. Everyone participating in the game has to bet on each roll of the dice, whether or not they are the shooter. Usually, the shooter continues to roll the dice until he/she “sevens out” (rolls a seven on the dice at the wrong time). In the instance of a “sevens out, a different player will take the turn of becoming the shooter.
The first roll of a round is known as a Come-Out Roll. Generally, each round can last just one roll of the dice or a whole bunch of rolls, depending on what is rolled by the shooter. When a Come-Out roll is about to start, you will see the dealer turning a little hockey puck on the table to “OFF”, and then he will say, “Coming out!” to signal the start of the new round. You must therefore pay attention to the dealer in order to place your wagers correctly and in a timely way.
Duly note that betting on craps is about intelligence just in the same way it also greatly depends on luck. Since you are usually betting on how the shooter is lucky with the dice, all the players tend to do well when the person rolling the dice is on a good run. The casino (the house), on the other hand, mostly hopes that the person rolling the dice is not so lucky. This, in essence, is the reason you will hear a lot of screaming and yelling in the course of the game, as players hope to cheer their way into some advantage over the house over the rounds of games.
A Pass Line is the basic type of bet placed when playing craps and it pays even money…i.e. you bet $100 to win $100. It is during the Come-Out Roll that you are supposed to put your chip(s) on the layout of the table marked “Pass Line.” Once all bets are placed, the shooter rolls the Come-Out Roll.
During the Come-Out Roll, here are the possible outcomes and their meanings:
- 7 or 11 are automatic Pass Line winners and the series ends. (This is usually a one-roll series).
- 2, 3, or 12 (known as craps) are automatic Pass Line losers and the series ends. (This is also a one-roll series).
- Any other number rolled (4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10) becomes a shooter’s point and the series has to continue.
If the shooter establishes a point, he/she continues to roll the dice because the series has to continue. The objective of the game, at this point, is for the shooter to roll their point number once again before they roll a 7.
- If any number other than a 7 or the point is rolled by the shooter, nothing happens and the shooter has to roll the dice once again.
- If the shooter rolls the point, Pass Line bets win and the series comes to an end.
- If a 7 is rolled, which we earlier defined as “seven out”, then Pass Line bets lose and the series ends.
Final Note
Although you can get a general understanding of the rules and ways of playing craps from the explanation detailed above, your best option for mastering the game is by reading more about in a playing it a couple of times, either via online gaming forums or in brick and mortar casinos.
