Understanding the Craps Table
If you walk through any major casino, you can always hear a table that is much louder and crazier than the rest. The crowd is going wild while a single player throws two red dice down the green felt. This highly intimidating game is known as Craps. To an absolute novice, the game seems terrifyingly complicated. There are dozens of different betting sections, and the dealers are shouting slang. However, this is actually a massive illusion. Despite its terrifying visual appearance, craps is actually one of the simplest, and best games on the floor. If you just learn the basics, you can confidently roll the dice.
The Pass Line Bet: The Come-Out Roll
The secret to start playing this game is to ignore all the crazy bets in the middle. All those fancy boxes and strange words are designed to steal your money with massive house edges. You only care about one line that borders the felt: the "Pass Line". Placing a chip on the Pass Line is the fundamental core of the entire game. At the start of a round, the player throwing rolls the dice for the first time. If you bet the Pass Line, you win instantly if the dice total 7 or 11. You instantly lose your bet if a 2, 3, or 12 is rolled. It is truly that simple: 7/11 wins, 2/3/12 loses.
Establishing the Point: What Happens on a 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10?
What if they roll a different number? If the shooter rolls any other number a 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10, that specific number officially becomes "The Point". The dealer takes a white puck and flip it to the "ON" side on top of that number. The goal now changes. To win the money, the shooter must roll the dice again and again until that specific number hits. If the Point hits, you win. However, there is a catch: if a 7 appears before they hit the Point, this is a "Seven Out". You lose your bet, the game resets, and the next person shoots. The whole table is basically just a massive group of people hoping the Point hits before the 7.
- The Best Bet in the Casino: When the puck is ON, you can place additional chips directly behind your original Pass Line bet. This is called "Taking Odds," and it is a mathematical anomaly with absolutely zero house edge. The casino makes zero profit on this bet.
- The Villain Bet: You can play the 'Don't Pass' line. You win when others lose, or if the shooter fails. It has a lower house edge, but the other players will hate you because you are betting with the house.
- Avoid the Center of the Table: All the bets in the middle of the table with the pictures of dice have astronomical house edges with huge casino advantages. Never, ever place a chip in the center of the craps table.
The Rules at a Glance: How the Pass Line Works
For a quick reference before you play, to make things easy, memorize this table. It breaks down the math of the fundamental craps bet: how to play the Pass Line.
| Phase of the Game | The Dice Result | What Happens to Your Pass Line Bet |
|---|
| The Start | Shooter rolls a 7 or an 11. | You instantly WIN even money. The round resets. |
| The Start | 2, 3, or 12 | Instant Loss |
| Establishing the Point | Shooter rolls a 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10. | The puck flips ON |
| The Grind | Shooter rolls the exact Point number again BEFORE rolling a 7. | You WIN your Pass Line bet (and any Odds bets). Round resets. |
| Trying to Hit the Point | Rolls a 7 (Seven Out) | Total Loss |
To wrap it up, craps is not a game you should be afraid of. The operators create the board to look incredibly complex and confusing specifically so uneducated tourists will make bad bets. By stepping up to the table, placing your chips exclusively on the Pass Line, taking your odds, and playing smart math, you are playing one of the smartest, most mathematically sound games in the entire casino industry. Roll the dice, and experience the greatest social gambling experience on the floor.
