When you walk past the craps table in any casino, the urge to stop and stare for a moment is only natural.
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The craps pit is reliably one of the most exciting areas on the casino floor, with a dozen people crowding around a large, ornate table. It takes three dealers and stickmen to run the game, and every few minutes the table seems to erupt – either in laughter and cheers, or a collective groan.
Truly, there’s not another game like craps in the casino gambling industry.
The ‘Pass’ bet is essentially a bet.on. the current dice thrower. Winning ‘Pass’ bets are paid off at even money and have a low house edge of 1.41%. So you start this strategy by placing a ‘Pass’ bet on th e ‘come out’ roll. If the shooter rolls a 7 or 11 you win even money. If he rolls a 2,3 or 12 you lose. Basic Strategy for Craps Take the maximum Free Odds allowed The two best bets on the craps table are the Pass Line and Don’t Pass wagers. They offer the lowest house edge, and you can reduce that edge further by takingthe maximum Free Odds allowed by the casino, as shown in the following chart.
Using a basic buy in and common sense, even a rank beginner can quickly see their chip stacks soar, courtesy of craps’ binary base bets (Pass Line and Don’t Pass Line).
And those base bets are supplemented by literally dozens of other “exotic” wagers – on everything from the exact results of a two-dice roll (Hard Eight, etc.) to the Any Craps save.
With odds running as high as 30 to 1, these exotics are capable of turning any roll of the dice into a major windfall – which is why you’ll typically see a craps table covered from corner to corner in chips.
Even for an experienced gambler, taking the dice in your hand and letting them fly – with a table full of fellow players watching intently – is an unbeatable experience. This is gambling as it was meant to be done, offering a refreshing departure from the sanitized, silent table games that have risen to prominence today.
Once you’ve taken the time to learn craps, the urge to improve your skills is only natural. This game just has so much to offer between its base bets and exotic wagers, so it’s important to have a firm grasp of the game’s fundamentals.
This page is here to provide a full primer on improving your dice bona fides, so without further ado, I present seven steps to becoming a better craps player:
1 – Study Before Your First Session
If you’re anything like me, you’ve probably stood and stared at plenty of craps tables before ever summoning the courage to get in the game.
The whole scene is just intimidating to the uninitiated, what with all those players surrounding the table, the constant barking of commands to the dealer staff, and those occasional celebrations punctuating it all. Craps players also tend to be a serious crowd, and they don’t suffer rookie mistakes slowing up their game all that lightly.
If you’ve never played before, walking into that lion’s den can be quite difficult indeed, which is why so many casino gamblers never quite cross craps off their personal bucket list.
For this reason, I recommend using the power of the internet to bring yourself up to speed before ever stepping up to a casino craps table.
Thanks to cool craps simulators – designed by renowned casino games analyst Michael Shackleford of Wizard of Odds fame – players can load up a perfect recreation of the table layout to see how things really work. This simulator allows you to place bets using the actual chip denominations you’d find at a genuine craps table.
Start out with the basic Pass Line bet (more on this down below) on the come-out roll, then click “ROLL” to let the dice fly. Once a point number has been established, you can mess around with the odds bet, come bets, and the various hard way exotics until you get a firm grasp for how they really work.
Beginner Craps Strategy Rules
The simulator includes a running bankroll counter, while also displaying results for each wager, so after a half hour or so playing virtual craps, you should have a much clearer understanding of the game play mechanics.
Keep going though, and challenge yourself to run up a bankroll of virtual chips. Craps isn’t necessarily a skill based game in the purest sense, but savvy players can definitely reduce their variance by sticking to the most favorable bets. Use your judgment – combined with a crash course on basic craps strategy – to get a feel for your personal betting style.
Some players go with the standard Pass Line > Odds Bet > Place Win on 6 and 8 betting structure, while others like to mix in Field bets and the like. The beauty of craps is its diversity, and with so many wagers on board for every roll, you’ll have plenty to choose from.
Taking a whirl on the craps simulator to see what the game is all about really is the best way to prepare yourself for the real deal.
2 – Look, Listen, and Observe
You’ve put in a few hundred simulated craps sessions, and now the time has come to hit the casino and test your newly gained knowledge.
When you get there, I advise taking your time to study the table from afar. You can get close enough to see the action – just don’t crowd the players too much – and from that vantage point the goal should be observation only.
Simulations are all well and good, but they can’t compare to the noise, excitement, and speed of a real table.
To bring yourself up to speed, stand at a distance and simply watch the game unfold.
Based on your simulation studies, you should be able to track a particular player and know what they’re doing. Don’t worry if a few crazy bets get away from you, just focus on the base wagers for now. Watch how they place their initial Pass Line (or Don’t Pass Line) bets, keeping a keen eye on the motions and verbal commands used along the way.
One of the most difficult aspects of live craps for beginners to grasp is the physical nature of the game. You’ll be rolling dice when your turn as shooter arrives, that’s a given – but in between, you’ll need to handle chips and deploy them across the table by directing the dealer. This can be easier said than done, as craps has a certain slang vernacular all its own.
By staying out of the fray for now, and watching to see how the veteran players do it, you’ll prepare yourself to fit in from the start. Pay attention to the words and phrases players use regularly, along with how the dealer responds.
Eventually, if you’re paying close attention, you’ll develop a natural knack for the flow of craps game play.
And when that knack arrives, it’s time to step up and put your money in play.
3 – Make the Dealer Your Best Bud
This tip is an extension of the second step, with the goal being to get yourself comfortable at the craps table.
That table is huge, offering space for a dozen players to ring around and roll some dice. You’ll see three casino employees handling things from either side of the table, however, setting up a few choice spots that are directly near a dealer.
As a craps newbie, I always preferred to park myself right next to a dealer. I’d immediately make it clear that I was inexperienced, and with a few chips toked their way, I usually had a new friend standing by my side.
Craps dealers can seem surly and brusque, but that’s just because the job requires so much mental exertion. These people have to calculate odds on the fly, for 10 players or more, with dozens of wagers being played on every roll. The task is far from easy, so craps dealers tend to have a look of concentration, or exasperation, etched on their face.
Even so, these are professionals and they know where their bread is buttered. Without new blood entering the games from time to time, a casino’s craps pit would eventually suffer from shrinkage and contraction.
For this reason, most craps dealers in a respectable casino have no problem assisting inexperienced players as the game progresses. That was my personal experience anyhow, and I sincerely hope you find a friendly craps dealer during your first forays to the table.
When you do, the trick is to keep the tips flowing (a $1 toke here and there when they help you out is customary) while picking their brain for basic advice.
If you’re not sure how many chips are required for a Place Win bet, just pick up a few of them and gesture towards the number you’d like to back.
The dealer will recognize what you’re trying to do, and if they’re good at their jobs, they’ll ask you something like “$6 on the 6?” to confirm.
In this fashion, you can slowly expand your knowledge of the craps table’s layout and functionality, all without making mistakes that slow up the game. Soon enough, you’ll be shouting out your bets and splashing chips around the betting area like a consummate craps pro.
4 – Stick with the Pass Line to Start
The prime directive of craps advice goes something like this: bet the Pass Line and the Odds only.
That’s it, and that’s all.
But if the game was so simple, why do you see so many exotic wagers spread across the table?
Well, because the casino likes to take your money, that’s why.
Check out the table below, which lists the various craps bets you can choose from, along with their respective house edge rates:
Bet | House Edge |
Pass Line/Come | 1.41 percent |
Don’t Pass/Don’t Come | 1.36 percent |
Odds — 4 or 10 | 0.00 percent |
Odds — 5 or 9 | 0.00 percent |
Odds — 6 or 8 | 0.00 percent |
Field (2:1 on 12) | 5.56 percent |
Field (3:1 on 12) | 2.78 percent |
Any Craps | 11.11 percent |
Big 6,8 | 9.09 percent |
Hard 4,10 | 11.11 percent |
Hard 6,8 | 9.09 percent |
Place 6,8 | 1.52 percent |
Place 5,9 | 4.00 percent |
Place 4,10 | 6.67 percent |
Place (to lose) 4,10 | 3.03 percent |
2, 12, & All Hard Hops | 13.89 percent |
3, 11, & All Easy Hops | 11.11 percent |
Any Seven | 16.67 percent |
As you can see, craps bets come in all shapes and sizes.
The Odds bet which can be attached to your Pass Line / Don’t Pass Line opener actually offers the house no edge at all, making it a favorite for sharp gamblers.
On the other hand, longshot exotics like the Any Seven can spike the house edge all the way up to 16.67 percent, making it one of the worst wagers in the room.
Wonder woman slot machine. I recommend studying the full table to see how these bets each size up, but pay special attention to the Pass Line and Don’t Pass Line entries. These are the base bets in craps, and if you’ll notice, they’re among the best on the board.
A bet on the Pass Line offers an extremely player friendly house edge rate of just 1.41 percent, which is on par with blackjack and video poker – two skill based games. Aside from the null house edge Odds bets, most of the craps table offers long shot wagers between 5 percent and 16.67 percent house edge.
Obviously, your money will last longer when you avoid the long shots and stick with the Pass Line + Odds combo only.
This is basic common sense, and the Pass Line rule forms the basis of true craps strategy.
After all, the goal of any gambling game is to back the bets offering the best odds, which provides the highest expected return over the long run.
But what about that Don’t Pass Line bet, which actually offers a slightly lower house edge rate of 1.36 percent? That would seem to be the best bet on the board, so it would stand to reason that focusing on the Don’t Pass Line really represents optimal strategy.
And it does, but only if you’re comfortable making enemies every night.
Remember, when you bet on the Don’t Pass Line, you’re wager wins when the come-out roll lands on a 2 or 3 – the very same numbers Pass Line bettors are hoping to hit for a quick winner. In other words, Don’t Pass Line players win money when Pass Line players lose.
With this in mind, you’ll have to ask yourself if that 0.05 percent difference in house edge is really worth the hassle. You’ll enjoy almost identical odds by betting on the Pass Line, and you’ll get to cheer along with the rest of the table.
Of course, you’ll encounter your fair share of “dark side” bettors in the craps pit, and these players will tend to be sharp in their action. There’s nothing wrong with their approach, and indeed, Don’t Pass Line strategies play out with the same level of effectiveness as the Pass Line style.
But when you go to the dark side, you’ll be forced to weather withering stares from a table full of players, almost all of whom will be losing chips while you celebrate winners.
Beginner Craps Strategy For Dummies
For my money, I prefer sticking to the “safe” play of the Pass Line, because a craps session is about camaraderie with my fellow players more than anything else.
5 – Don’t Fall for the “System” Scheme
Craps is a beautiful game that has been around for several centuries, and over that span, countless players have attempted to get a leg up on the house.
Despite its status as a pure game of chance – where the roll of the dice cannot be influenced in any way by players – craps has given rise to an endless stream of strategies and systems.
Some players claim to have “dice control” abilities, using subtle placement and movement while rolling to land on their preferred numbers more often than not. Others advise alternating bet patterns, or tracking the previous dice rolls to determine how they’ll land next.
Craps systems are a dime a dozen, but when you really examine them, their internal logic never fails to fall apart.
Unless you possess Professor X like telekinesis, the idea of controlling the dice as a shooter is simply a pipe dream. I’ll admit that perhaps a few genuine dice controllers have mastered some aspect of the technique, but these people are more akin to magicians than gamblers.
Good on them for learning a unique skill, but I have serious doubts that dice control would work in an actual casino setting – where cameras and security abound.
As for the betting sequence systems, unless they’re advising you to bet the Pass Line or (Don’t Pass Line) plus the Odds, the strategy involves nothing more than backing long shot exotics and hoping for the best.
Rules like “only bet the Hard 8 after X” or “hit the Any Craps when Y” may sound fancy and sophisticated, but they’re not based on reality in any way, shape, or form.
Remember one thing – the odds for a craps wager remain fixed at all times, so you’ll never find a “good” time to chase an exotic. They’ll always be long shots, offering significantly worse odds than the game’s base bets.
And if you run into a system which claims the result of one dice roll can affect the next, run for the hills. These systems rely on the dreaded “Gambler’s Fallacy,” which suggests that streaks and other patterns in previous results can influence the future.
Logic and common sense combined should tell you that the next roll – and any roll for that matter – has absolutely nothing to do with previous rolls.
You may see the shooter turn up a Hard 4 on five straight rolls, and while that would be both impressive and improbable, it wouldn’t mean a lick for that sixth roll. The odds of rolling a Hard 4 would remain the same, as the dice don’t know what happened before.
It can be tempting to look into systems and strategies such as these, especially when many casino games like blackjack and video poker actually involve legitimate skill. Craps isn’t one of them, however, and when it comes to this game of chance, the only strategy under the sun that really works involves backing the best bets above all others.
6 – Manage Your Money Well
This one applies to every game on the casino floor, and life in general for that matter, but craps players should take particular care when it comes to money management.
In this game, bets can be left “On” or “Off” following a winning roll. If you’re not careful, even an extended roll which should produce hefty payouts can end with the dealer scooping your chips up in a flash.
Part of craps game play involves tracking your various bets, and their payouts, on the fly. Never hesitate to turn a bet off if you feel it’s the right move, and do your best to avoid getting caught up in the excitement of a prolonged roll.
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As far as off the table money management goes, I like to set a limit on losses before stepping into the casino.
Whatever that limit is should depend on your bankroll flexibility, along with other “real life” factors, but always play with a loss limit in mind.
When that limit has been reached, exercise discipline and walk away from the table. Chasing losses is one of the worst things a casino gambler can do, and I know from experience that craps can get players chasing faster than most games.
If you apply sound money management skills to your craps sessions, you’ll start to see a pattern develop. Winning nights will produce a roller coaster of profitable results – up $250, up $25, up $500, and so on.
But those inevitable losing nights will be capped, let’s say at $100, each time out. In this fashion, craps players can mitigate the game’s inherent variance, which allows for more play over the long run.
7 – Relax While You Roll
I believe this about all gambling games, but it rings especially true for craps: fun should always be the priority.
Gambling involves money being risked, and I won’t deny that I want to win on every roll, spin, and hand I play. That’s just the competitive side of human nature coming through.
With that said, I know I won’t win all the time. In fact, I know the odds inherent to craps dictate that I’ll lose more often than I win – and that’s definitely true if I’m chasing the exotics.
This knowledge provides valuable peace of mind, because rather than focus solely on profits and losses, I can simply stand back and enjoy the rhythm of the game.
Craps, like any other form of gambling, is a source of entertainment first and foremost. High fives, celebrations, rounds of drinks, and all the rest – that’s why I play craps.
Now, I like winning too, so don’t get me wrong on that account. I play the game to the best of my abilities, and I try my best to make the right play whenever possible. Doing so gives me a better shot to leave the table up, and I know that.
![Beginner craps strategy games Beginner craps strategy games](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/ajogkCom5lY/maxresdefault.jpg)
I also know that, despite my best intentions, the natural variance of craps will cause the house to win more often than not over the long run. By recognizing this inevitability, you’ll be much better prepared to handle downswings when they arrive.
When you can move past the profit chase to make craps fun, you’ll feel like a winner after every session.
Conclusion
Use these 7 steps to becoming a better craps player to improve your chances to win. You can’t beat the house edge at the craps table but you can keep it low.
When you keep it low your bankroll lasts longer and you give yourself the best chance to win a few sessions.
Please enable JavaScript to view the comments powered by Disqus.Craps for Beginners – Essentials of the Classic Casino Dice Game
Although craps is one of the best games you can play at casino – online or brick-and-mortar – many players opt for other games in order to avoid the frightening and frustrating experience. In fact, craps is famous for its player-friendly and fun gameplay as well as good winning odds. So, if your knees are shaking – don’t! Read our ‘craps for beginners’ guide to learn about the features and benefits of this popular game. All you need to do is learn a few terms and types of bets to start rolling the dice. Although the game layout looks complex, it actually offers many different betting options that are rarely used. So, start with this craps for beginners tutorial to stop wasting time and get to the point right now.
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How to Play Craps – Beginners Strategy to Play in Las Vegas Casinos
Before we start, you should familiarize yourself with the game terminology. The player who roll the dice is called the shooter. When you place your bets, you always have to choose between bets on or against the shooter. While playing at brick-and-mortar gambling establishments, you can see several shooters in the game. As for online casinos, the role of the shooter is played by the virtual dealer or yourself. Thus, by providing an opportunity to place bets against yourself, craps is a unique and extraordinary casino game. Here are some important things to know before jumping onto the table:
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- According to craps for beginners guide, you should find out what the first rolls that the shooter in the game makes are called – come-out roll and the point (if 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10 rolls), respectively.
- So, the point is a small button that the dealer in Las Vegas casinos (or software in online casino) marks. Now, the shooter’s task is to rolls it again. While shooter rolls the point before 7 is good.
- If shooter rolls 7 on come-out roll, he won. However, if the point was established, rolling 7 or 11 (natural numbers) means losing.
- Rollin 2, 3, or 12 means ‘Craps’ – the shooter loses.
So, we have three possible outcomes in the game:
- Natural. If the first roll of dice brought 7 or 11, the shooter won.
- Craps. The roll of the dice brought 2,3 or 12 – the shooter loses but gets a chance to roll the dice again. While playing craps, you won’t encounter this game situation often (we’ll talk bout popular bet types later in this craps for beginners guide).
- Point. If the point was established, the shooter rolls the dice several times until the dice show point (win) or 7 (lose).
So, after exploring several types of bets, you will be ready to play.
Craps strategy for Beginners – Bet Types and Other Features
Craps For Beginners Videos
Pass Line is a bet that the shooter wins – this is the best option for you as a beginner to start playing craps immediately. So, if the shooter gets a 7 on the first roll or wins the point, your Pass Line bet wins. In addition, there is a Don’t Pass Line Bet with which you win if the shooter loses.
The Come Bet is the same as the Pass Line, however you can only place this bet after the point was established. As for the Pass Line, you can bet on this before the first roll of the dice. With Don’t Come Bet, which works in the same way as Don’t Pass Line Bet, you get the 4 best bets with max winning odds.
Although the information in this craps for beginners tutorial is enough to start playing, you should learn about some other types of bets – one-roll bets f. e. – so as not to be disconnected from the gameplay throughout the game.