How to Play Craps

This article is part 2 of an article on the craps gambling page. Read that page first if you're a beginner.

Craps Betting

So if the shooter doesn't roll craps, and the shooter doesn't roll a 7 or an 11, he's rolled a point number. When he rolls a point number, you should put another small bet behind your original bet. (Roughly twice the original amount would be an appropriate amount to bet.) This extra bet is called a free-odds bet or just an odds bet.

Your original bet (the pass line bet you made) gets paid out as even money if you win. Your odds bet, on the other hand, gets paid out as a true-odds money. So even though you have to put extra money up for this wager, it's a great bet, because the house edge on this bet is exactly 0. (Any time the house pays out money in a true odds fashion, the house edge is exactly 0. Almost all casino game bets pay out at less than their true odds, which is why a casino is a profitable business to run.)

This bet isn't even shown on the layout of the craps table. That's because it's such a great bet for the player, and not such a good bet for the casino.

Free-Odds Bet Payouts

Pass-line point	House Odds	Payout
4 or 10	2 to 1	2 to 1
5 or 9	3 to 2	3 to 2
6 or 8	6 to 5	6 to 5

Playing a pass-line bet and then a free-odds bet if the shooter makes a point is a strategy for playing craps that you can use for your entire time at the craps table with a significant amount of success. It's even more fun when you get to be a shooter, because then you have a lot of other players rooting for your success.

Anyway, to sum it up, bet the pass line. Add odds bets when the shooter rolls a point. You didn't know becoming a craps player was going to be that easy did you?

Actually there are over 120 different kinds of craps bets that you can make, and there will be additional tutorials covering those bets on this site. But if you're a beginning player, the strategy outlined on this page and the home page will get you in on the action really quick, and you should be able to tread water without losing all your money playing craps.

Consider trying craps at an online casino. You can get some realistic practice and maybe even win some money while you play. (Put back on "how to play craps".) Also, you can learn a winning strategy for craps here. Really cool system worth checking out.

USA Casinos - Connecticut Casinos - Foxwoods Resort Casino - Mohegan Sun Casino

This page was last updated on March 12, 2008.

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Some Useful Craps Definitions

Throw: A toss of the dice in craps is called a "throw".
Hand: The number of throws a player gets before passing the dice.
True Odds: The probability that an event will happen, or when you make a bet, and the payoff is equal to the actual odds of the event happening.
Free Odds: A craps bet that offers a true odds payout, with a house edge of 0. A free odds bet is a bet that a player will roll the point before rolling a 7.
Even Money Odds: Bets that pay off at 1 to 1, regardless of the true odds of an event actually occurring. The pass-line bet is an even money bet.

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Other languages: How to Play Craps Español