When you walk into a casino, the first thing you’re bound to notice are the tables where everyone is being loud and having a great time. You’ve just happened upon a craps table. Craps is one of the most popular games in a casino because it’s so fun and exciting. No doubt you’ll soon want to join in on the action, but first, a few things you should know…
The game of craps is played with two dice. Therefore, the lowest number that can be rolled is a ‘2’, and the highest is a ‘12’. The entire game is based on odds. There is only one way to roll a 2—two ones. There is also only one way to roll a ‘12’—two sixes. Therefore, these are the most difficult numbers to roll. In contrast, there are six ways to roll a ‘7’, (2-5, 5-2, 3-4, 4-3, 6-1, 1-6) thereby making it the easiest number to roll.
The initial roll of the dice is called the “come-out”. A come-out is rolled at the start of a new game, after a seven or eleven has been rolled on a previous come-out roll, when a shooter craps on a previous roll or repeats a point without rolling a seven, or after a seven-out. The come-out roll is the most important roll in craps because it determines the point that must be repeated before a seven is rolled.
The most popular bet in craps is probably the pass-line bet. It signifies a bet that the dice will “pass”—or that the point number, established in the come-out roll, will repeat. On a come-out roll, a pass-line bet wins on a 7 or 11, and loses on a 2, 3, or 12. If a point number is established in the come-out roll, then the pass-line bet wins if the point is repeated before a ‘7’ is rolled. Once a Point number is established, the pass-line bet cannot be removed until the next come-out roll, but can be increased; pass-line bets pay 1-1.
Bets can also be placed on individual rolls. These bets pay better than other bets because the chances of winning are more slim. An ‘Any Craps’ bet is a bet that the next roll will be a 2, 3, or 12. The bet pays 7 to 1. Bets on ‘Any 2’ or ‘Any 12’ Pay at 30 to 1, while a bet on ‘Any 11’ or any ‘3’ pays at 15 to 1. All of these bets lose only if a ‘7’ is rolled.
The best part of craps is definitely jumping in the fray and meeting new people, so pick up your dice, and have some fun.