Home > Gambling Guide > Casino > Craps > Strategy

Craps – Hints and Tips

Craps is a vibrant and energetic game, and on a good craps table, commonly known as a “hot” table you can walk away with a lot of money in a very short space off time. However, on a "cold" craps table you may end up losing a lot, if not all of your money.

When you stand or go online at a craps table for the first time, you may feel overwhelmed by all the fast-moving bets. But it is not at all complicated, just remember that the objective of playing craps is for the shooter to establish a "point" number from the value of the two dice and then roll that number again (called making the point) before rolling a 7 (craps).

Before the different craps strategies are discussed it is very important to become familiar with the specifics of craps – the craps table, craps odds, dice probabilities, and payouts. These will help you in understanding the different craps instructions.

The Craps Table Layout

The craps table can accommodate up to about 20 players, who each get a round of throws of the dice. If you don't want to throw the dice, you can still bet on the thrower or shooter. Several types of craps bets can be made on the table.

The craps layout looks confusing because there are many different bets that can be made, and because each side area is the mirror reflection of the other (to allow more players at one table.) Each side contains the following craps betting areas: Pass and Don't Pass line bets, Come and Don't Come bets, Odds bet, Place bets and Field bets. The centre area contains the Proposition bets.

The section How to Play Craps describes the basic concepts of the game of craps. There are a variety of other craps bets you can make. Some of them you can make at any time and others, only after come-out roll. It is very important to realise that those bets are more than just the numbers on the table layout; they are the possible outcomes of the throw of the dice that carry different house advantages against a player. To understand those bets we first need to understand the basic fundamentals of the game - the die combinations, craps odds and the house payouts.

Craps Payouts and Odds

Knowing the mathematical odds of the craps dice achieving a certain outcome is the essence of the game.

In craps, winning or losing depends on a variety of different possible outcomes on any roll of the dice. The two dice can produce 36 different number combinations; some can be made several ways, others only one way. A total roll of 7 is the most common combination because there are six ways to roll a 7, making it the most likely number to come up.

The following tables show the true odds for the specified outcome of the dice.

The further away from seven a number is, the fewer combinations there are that add up to it - so the odds of winning with that number decreases. You can see that a point of 6 or 8 gives you the best odds of winning.

Once you understand the odds and probabilities of the dice, you are on your way to mastering the game of craps.

The following table lists the different bets found on craps tables.

Don't get too bogged down with craps payouts at the beginning. In a real casino, the table crew will be there to help you, so don't hesitate to ask them questions and online some casinos will have demonstrations and games where you can play and learn for free.

Craps Strategies

All winning craps payouts are determined by the frequency in which a two-dice combination can be rolled. Generally, the harder the combination is to roll, the more it will pay, and vice versa. Playing craps involves using your skill and judgement on selecting the best bets to make. For that reason, craps is not for the idle gambler, and a thorough understanding of the game including an awareness of the existing craps strategies will stand you in good stead. Knowing which of the many craps betting options to take is a skill that can be mastered with patience and practice. Even expert casino craps players can make wrong choices.

There are countless craps strategies and craps systems available. These are described in many different websites, each one claiming to be the “winning” strategy. However, these craps strategies should not be relied upon as a guarantee as they are merely based upon probability, and consist simply of diverse arrangements of bets. However misleading, some players still choose to follow a craps strategy because it offers them confidence and makes them feel more optimistic about their chances of winning.

Here are a two such craps strategies:

Craps Strategy 1- Reducing the Odds

Smart betting can reduce the house edge to a very small percentage. This craps system reduces the house edge to 0.848%.

Place the minimum bet for the table on the Pass Line before a Come Out throw. If the shooter throws a natural or shoots craps, bet on the Pass Line again. If a point number is thrown, place another bet on the point number. For the next roll of the dice bet on a Come and if a point is thrown place a bet on the point number. You'll get correct odds on the point number because the casino gives true odds when you bet on a Come or Pass at the same time.

Craps Strategy 2 - Dice Control

In the casino, there are some craps players who believe that learning how to control the dice is a guaranteed method to win craps. They believe there are principles behind the controlled throw of the dice, and principles behind the correct movements of the different parts of our body used to execute a controlled throw. The strategy of Dice Control is based upon executing perfect throws by the careful utilisation of the body parts involved in the throwing motion. It is also about honing a dice pick-up technique, dice in-hand arrangement, and having the correct dice grip. However, casinos try to minimise any control by ensuring that the dice hit and bounce off the back wall and that you only use one hand.

In online casinos the dice throw is generated at random.

However you choose to play; whether you have favourite betting selections, or familiar pattern of play - you need to be sensible and rational, and recognise that there is very little you can do to influence the outcome at craps. Therefore, rather than try to influence or predict the outcome, there are many tips for playing craps that may be useful:

Craps Hints & Tips

Here are 10 tips on playing Craps that should give you a more enjoyable and a better chance of a profitable game, but remember there are no guarantees.

1. Place Come Bets - If you place a Come Bet and establish a Come Point, you essentially have two points "working", your Come Point and the shooter's point (via your Pass Line bet). However, the disadvantage of placing Come Bets is that if a 7 is rolled, you lose both your Pass Line Bet and Come Bet placed on a Come Point. It is advisable to place Come Bets when a table or shooter gets hot and shooters are making point after point without throwing a 7.

2. Place Bets - Just as shooters and tables sometimes get hot, numbers will also get hot. The advantage of Place Bets is that they can be made at any time and on as many of the numbers as you like. Place Bets are a way of betting directly on the Point Numbers (4, 5, 6, 8, 9, and 10). Unfortunately you frequently have to pay a 5% commission just to place the bet because the advantage is so much in your favour.

3. Buy and Lay bets - It is more beneficial for you to Buy the 4 and the 10 than it is to Place those numbers. Conversely, it is better to Place the 5, 6, 8, and 9 than to Buy these numbers. Buy and Lay bets allow you to directly make true-odds bets on each of the six point numbers, without any units at even money. However the house takes 5% commission on these bets, win or lose.

4. Odds bets - Winning Pass Line Bets payout at even-money. Odds Bets payout at the "true odds" of making the current point. As a result, it is better to "put down odds" rather than to simply place a higher Pass Line Bet. Take a look at the above Odds for Bets Table - you'll see that some bets have a significantly greater house edge than others. Many serious gamblers won't make bets with a house edge of greater than 2% against them. This leaves the Pass Line, Don't Pass, Come, Don't Come, and Lay bets on 6 and 8.

5. Your Money - Too little money and you will not be able to take advantage of a "hot roll", too much at any one time on the table could wipe you out quickly. It is important to have an amount that you are comfortable with because you will need to be forceful with your money, and ascertain when you should stop betting and quit the table.

6. If you don’t have much money - Placing a Place Bet on a 6 and 8 is good, as the odds are high (7 to 6). Placing a Place Bet on the 6 and 8 would be better than placing Pass Line Bets with no Odds (as it pays even money)

7. Cold Table - On a cold table put down the maximum Odds bet for points of 6 or 8 because they are the most likely to be made. However, lower the amount based on the odds of making the point.

8. Hot Table - If the table is hot Come Bets with Odds in addition to Pass Line Bets with Odds can make you a lot of money.

9. On the Come Out Roll, place a Pass Line Bet and an equivalent Field Bet, that way if the shooter craps out, you still win in the field, if the shooter wins with 7 or 11 you still break even.

10. There are some bets on a craps table that you should never make because an equivalent bet can be made elsewhere that offers better odds. The Big 6, Big 8 bets should never be used because an equivalent Lay Bet on 6 or 8 pays 7 to 6 instead of 1 to 1. Hardway and Propositional bets have a high house edge and should be avoided if the table is cold.

For novice players, you can learn craps, by using the following tips.

• Stick to the 'pass/don't pass' and 'come/don't come' bets, as these allow you to play longer and enjoy the action.
• Bet more as you win (when the table is 'hot'), less as you lose (when the table is 'cold'). i.e. raise as you win, lower as you lose.
• Give preference to high-odds bets
• Only make bets which give the house (Casino) the least advantage, specifically an edge of less than 1%
• Don't plan to win craps with every roll of the dice.
• Never quit after a win.

This all may seem like a lot to digest all at once, but once you go through a few games you'll find it's really easy. There are probably many more craps tips that expert players can offer you. All in all, an easy way to learn how to play craps is to take advantage of the free casino craps lessons offered by many of the online casinos.

Additional Craps Rules

1. Only use one hand when handling the dice. Throw the dice to the opposite end of the table. The dice must hit the end wall and bounce back in order to be a valid roll. Also, you must have a Pass Line bet down in order to shoot.

2. You exchange money into chips by throwing your money on the table and shouting, "change".

3. No matter what stage the game is in, whether before the "Come Out" roll, or after a point has been established, you can jump in immediately and place any bets. The only exception to this is "Pass Line" bet with odds", which can be made only on the "Come Out" roll.

4. In most casinos you can bet up to three times the amount of your "Pass Line" bet. This is called "taking full odds". Some casinos offer up to 100 times odds. This simply means that you can bet up to 100 times the amount of your "Pass Line" bet once a "Point" has been established.

If you are interested in playing craps at an online casino then visit our Craps – Top Sites page or if you want to know more about playing Craps then visit Craps – How To Play page

Add to del.icio.us