CRAPS – Playing Guide and Rules to Playing Craps
Craps Strategy Guide and Game Rules – How to Play Craps Online or at Land Casinos: Craps is one of the most popular games in any casino. The table, or felt, as well as the rules are the same when playing online or offline for a single player. The table and all of the betting options put some people off the game, thinking it is too complicated. But there really isn’t a simpler game to learn and master once you decide to focus on a good starting bet like the Pass Line. Pass Line bets have a low House Edge of 1.41% making this not only one of the most fun games to play, but one of the best in terms of your chance to make a profit.
The Pass Line is directly in front of you on the table. If you see a black marker at the top of the table labeled, “OFF” you may place a bet within the table limits shown on the felt.
Now roll the dice for your ‘come out’ roll. The Marker will change to white and say, “ON”. If the combined total of the two die is 2, 3, or 12 you lose your wager. If it is 7 or 11 you win. If any other number comes up nothing happens except that that number becomes the Point.
If the Point is set, roll the dice again. You will roll until the dice either total the Point in which case you win, or 7 in which case you lose.
That is the most basic wager to make in Craps and how the game is played. But assuming you haven’t rolled a 7 and lost your wager there are other bets you can place now. One of them is to take the Odds. You will leave your current bet on the Pass Line and add an additional wager. Place the bet on the edge of the table directly in front of you outside the Pass Line.
The game progresses as before so if a 7 is rolled you lose, and if the Point is hit you will win. But now that you have an additional wager on “Odds” you stand to win more when the Point is hit. If the Point is 4 or 11 your Odds wager will pay 2 to 1 meaning you double your money on that bet and collect your Pass Line winnings too. If the Point was 5 or 9 this wager pays 3 to 2, and if it was 6 or 8 you will be paid 6 to 5. And like before until the Point or 7 is rolled the dice are rolled again until one of these numbers comes up.
The “Odds” bet has virtually no house edge. This is the only wager in a casino other than double or nothing on Video Poker that is a 50/50 proposition. Please keep in mind that you must have a Pass Line bet in place in order to make the Odds bet.
If you are the sort of gambler that likes to have a lot of things going on at once you may want to consider a “Place” bet. Before the Come Out, or before any roll during the game, you can place a wager on one of the numbers at the top of the table. These numbers are 4-10 each with varying odds and paybacks. The lowest risk and returns are 6 & 8 with the highest being 4 & 10. The game is played as before and you only lose if a 7 is rolled.
There are dozens of other potential wagers that you are sure to try as your confidence in the game increases (along with your bankroll). Some bets pay as high as 33x your wager, and some pay even money so it’s possible to bet part of the table with a high risk/high reward strategy and level the risk out a bit with a Pass Line and Odds. Any way you shake it, Craps is a game of fun and chance and if you follow our simple introduction you are sure to find yourself a new favorite that in time will become an old friend.