Craps Strategy

As with all casino games the long term odds (over thousands of games) favors the house. With Craps the casino advantage is very small however, so it's possible to turn a nice profit on a lucky day. Most players don't play for the extended periods of time that it takes to establish long term odds, so we will look at short term odds are for winning at Craps.

The game of Craps is played with two six sided dice. This results in 36 number combinations being available. The least likely number combinations total 2 (1,1) and 12 (6,6). The most likely combination total is 7 which can be made 6 ways (1,6), (2,5), (3,4), (4,3), (5,2) and (6,1). The other totals, 3 to 6 and 8 to 11, can be made with more than 1 combination but less than 6 combinations.

A scientific look at the odds of winning would be difficult to explain and take a lot of fun out of the game. However, as most people like to win lets take a quick and simple look at the available wagers and your better chances of winning.

Basic Bets

These are among the best bets for the player.

Pass Line Bets / Come Bets have identical odds.

• For the Come-out roll the odds are in favor of the shooter. He/she has a better chance of throwing a 7 or 11 than a 2, 3 or 12 (22.2% for a 7 or 11 vs. 11.1% for a 2, 3 or 12).
• However, if the Come-out roll results in a Point being made the odds of winning go down. The shooter is more likely to throw a Seven than the Point number, and these are the only numbers that we are interested in, (8% to 14% for a Seven vs. 16.7% for the Point).

Don't Pass Bets / Don't Come Bets have identical odds, and are the opposite of the Pass Line and Come Bets as you are betting against the shooter.

• For the Come-out roll the odds are in favor of the shooter. He/she has a better chance of throwing a 7 or 11 than a 2 or 3, (12 is considered a tie) so your chances of winning are lower (8.3% for a 2 or 3 vs. 22.2% for a 7 or 11).
• However, if the Come-out roll results in a Point being made the odds of winning go up. The shooter is more likely to throw a Seven than the Point number, and these are the only numbers that we are interested in, (16.7% for a Seven vs. 8% to 14% for the Point).

Odds Bets

These are excellent wagers for the player. Because there is no advantage for the casino the player can reduce the casinos small advantage almost in half. By playing odds bets you run the risk of losing faster, but you also increase you winnings.

Pass Line Odds Bets / Come Bet Odds Bet – The odds of throwing the Point or the Seven remain the same, but the payoff increases if you are successful. Assume you have made a $10 Pass Line bet and the shooter throws establishing the Point. If you back up your original wager with another $10 Pass Line odds bet on the Point and are successful your payoff will be $22 to $30 (depending on the Point). This is more than the even money payoff you would have received if you had just made the Pass Line bet however, you have wagered $20 instead of $10.

Don't Pass Odds Bets / Don't Come Odds Bet – These bets are used to increase your winnings when betting against the player. There is a greater likelihood of the shooter throwing a Seven than the Point so the payoff is not as great. Assume you have made a $10 Don't Pass wager and the shooter throws and establishes a Point. If you back up the Don't Pass bet with a Don't Pass odds bet of $6 (multiples of $6 are used to ensure proper payoffs) and a Seven is rolled you collect $13 to $15, depending on the Point.

Place Bets – These bets payoff less than the other bets described so far, but not a lot less.

You are most likely to win with a bet on 6 or 8, this makes 6 and 8 the best numbers to Place, but the payoff is less. If the shooter is hot and you feel lucky then play a different number, the odds are not that bad.

The rest of the bets in Craps are not as advantageous for the player as those described above, but still have a following among some players.

Buy Bets - have the same odds of winning as Place bets and the payoff is higher, but you have the 5% service charge to factor in.

Lay Bets – are the exact opposite of Buy bets, your chances of winning are higher but you have the 5% service charge to factor in.

Big Six or Big Eight Bets – Six or eight can be rolled in 5 ways while seven can be rolled in 6 ways. Thus you have 5 ways to win and 6 ways to lose, but the payoff is only even money. This is not as good a bet as basic bets.

Hard Four or Hard Ten Bets – A Hard Four or Hard Ten can only be rolled one way while seven can be rolled in 6 ways (and 4 and 10 can be rolled two other ways). This totals 1 way to win and 8 ways to lose, but the payoff is only 7 to 1. This is not as good a bet as basic bets.

Hard Six or Hard Eight Bets – A Hard Six or Hard Eight can only be rolled one way while seven can be rolled in 6 ways (and 6 and 8 can be rolled 4 other ways). This totals 1 way to win and 10 ways to lose, but the payoff is only 9 to 1. This is not as good a bet as basic bets.

One Roll Bets

Can be fun to play and can payoff well, but should generally be avoided.

Field Bets are popular. Seven numbers can win while only four can lose. However, the winning numbers can only be rolled 16 ways resulting in a 44.4% chance of winning and a 55.6% chance of losing. The payoff is usually even money although some casinos pay 2 to 1 or even 3 to 1 when a 2 or a 12 is rolled.

Any Seven Bets – You have 6 ways to get seven and win and 30 other combinations that lose. The payoff is 4 to 1, if there was no casino advantage it would pay 5 to 1.

Any Craps Bets – There are 4 ways to roll the dice to win, the other 32 combinations lose for you. The payoff is 7 to 1 but with no casino advantage it would pay 8 to 1.

Two or Twelve Bets – These are separate wagers, but the odds are the same. A two or a twelve can only be rolled one way all other 35 combinations cause you to lose. The payoff is 30 to 1 but with no casino advantage it would be 35 to 1.

Three or Eleven Bets – These are separate wagers, but the odds are the same. A three or an eleven can be rolled two ways, while all other 34 combinations cause you to lose. The payoff is 15 to 1 but with no casino advantage it would be 17 to 1.

Craps Eleven (also called a Horn Bet) – Here you must bet four chips to cover the four numbers so you lose three chips even if you win on one number. This loss of three chips, plus the casino advantage on the winning number make this a bad bet.

• A two or a twelve can only be rolled one way all other 35 combinations cause you to lose. The payoff is 30 to 1 but with no casino advantage it would be 35 to 1
• A three or an eleven can be rolled two way all other 34 combinations cause you to lose. The payoff is 15 to 1 but with no casino advantage it would be 17 to 1.