Craps Played at the Casino
The craps table is about 14 feet long with a felt surface. It has deep sides, about a foot high, covered in a diamond pyramid rubber bumper. This surface is what the dice are thrown at and the texture gives the dice a random roll. The top rail has chip holders for each player.
The layout will always be similar to most online casinos that you have seen. Notice the ends are almost mirror images, and both have the most common bets. The center bets are shared by players from both ends of the table.
The Personnel
The "shooter" is the person rolling the dice, they start the game when all bets are down and the stick man pushes the dice to him to begin his roll. The shooter throws the dice across the table so they strike the farthest end of the table from where the shooter is standing.
The first roll can have any of the following outcomes; Craps which is a 2,3 or a 12 and a loser, pass which is 7 or 11 and a winner, or a "point" number which can be 4,5,6,8,9,10. When the shooter throws a 2,3 or 12 everyone on the pass line loses, but the shooter may "keep" the dice or continue to roll. If a 7 or 11 is rolled everyone on the pass line wins and the shooter continues to throw.
When a 4,5,6,8,9, or 10 is thrown this becomes the shooters "point" and he continues to roll the dice until he (1) makes the "point" or (2) rolls sevens out whichever comes first. If he makes his point he wins and is allowed to continue to roll the dice. If he rolls a seven while on a point he loses and the dice are passed to the next shooter and the process is repeated.
If you are a new player and are given the dice for the first time, it is best to put just a $5 bet on the pass line, which is the ribbon-like area that runs around the table layout, directly in front of you. This is known as a come-bet. The first throw of the dice is called the come-out roll. When you do this, both you and the shooter will be hoping for a 7 or 11 to roll; if it happens, you win. On the other hand, if a 2, 3, or 12, also known as "craps" comes out, you lose. If any other number, such as a 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10, comes out, a "pass-line point" is established and the shooter hopes that the number will be thrown again before the 7 comes up. If it does, you win, but if the 7 comes first, you lose, and the hand is over and the dice move to the next player.
If the shooter does throw a point number, you should put $10 directly behind your original $5 bet. This additional wager is called a free-odds bet or an "odds bet." The casino will pay you the true-odds money for that number bet when it wins, as opposed to the even-money odds that pay for your original pass line bet. So even though you have to put up additional funds to make this bet, it's an excellent wager because the house edge is zero on this specific bet. The layout doesn't show this bet because it is good for the player and bad for the house.
You can play this way with great success; however, you can also be the shooter and throw the dice yourself. Whether you throw the dice or not, you should still bet the pass line and add odds bets the same way.
The Dice
Each dice has six sides, so there are 36 possible numerical combinations when you throw a pair of dice. While there is only one combination that results in 2 (1 and 1) and one that results in 12 (6 and 6), the number of possible combinations increases as you move forward fro 2 or backward from 12 until you reach 7, which has six possible combinations (1 and 6, 2 and 5, 3 and 4, and so on).
Your odds of rolling a particular number in craps is based entirely on the number of possible ways you can roll that number. For example, to determine your chances of rolling a 4, divide 36 by 3. You use 3 because there are only 3 ways to throw a 4. The result is 12, which means you have a 1 in 12 chance of rolling a 3. In other words, the odds are 11 to 1 against you for rolling a 4. If you compare the following chart with the one following, you will see how the house makes its edge. As stated before, the true odds of rolling a 4 are 12 to 1, but the house pays only 11 to 1, which gives the house an 11.11% advantage. This is how the casino wins even when you win.
Craps Game Myths
When the dice or a die leaves the table, the next roll will be a seven. This might be avoided by making sure that the dealers give you the same dice for your next roll. This is why you'll hear the shooter yell out: "Same dice!"
When the dice hit someone's hand, that roll will be a seven. This is why you'll hear so many people shouting: "Watch your hands!" as the shooter starts to roll. Even the casino crew will shout this out and be careful of where they place their hands. Many a craps player has accused the casino of jinxing the roll by letting the dice hit a dealer's hand.
When a good roll is in progress never throw money on the table to cash in while the shooter is shooting. If the dice hit the new money the next roll will be a seven.
A woman who has never rolled the dice will have a hot roll the first time out. This is the Virgin Principle. Female dice virgins are a much sought after breed. When one appears, the veteran players will sometimes place bets for her to win her and her god's favours.
Men who have never rolled the dice before will have bad rolls. Who said sexism doesn't exist in craps? We prize virginity in our female rollers and despise it in our males. The males must have experience to know how to give a good roll!
Never open a table or be the first or only player at a table. Dice are cold at a new table and have to be handled before they can warm up.
A wrong bettor at a table will increase the likelihood of the seven coming up. And the more wrong bettors at a table, the more the seven will come up.