Beginner Craps Strategy

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In this craps 101 rules and strategy primer, we will simplify the complex and varied wagers that can be a lot to digest. Craps wagers are divided into line bets, single-roll bets and multi-roll. Craps Rules: A Beginners Guide to Winning Strategies Craps rules refer to a set of strategies, etiquette, and basic guidelines that you need to keep in mind to successfully play and win at the popular casino dice game of craps.

Beginner Craps Strategy
Craps table. Getty Images
  1. There could be craps for dummies, craps for beginners. Before you start out, know the craps rules for dummies. Below are some mistakes you should avoid. Know the game: It is essential to know how to play craps before jumping in. The advice is not meant to discourage anybody, whether you are playing craps for beginners or craps for dummies.
  2. Betting on the pass line is the simplest craps strategy, and one most bettors make in a land-based casino. The house edge is a low 1.41% and winning pass line bets stand to make even money (1:1). Players can start this craps beginner strategy by betting on the pass line on the comeout roll. If the dice land on 7 or 11, the pass line bet wins.

Craps might seem like one of the most intimidating games in the casino. The chips fly in every direction. Players bark bets–often in a language of their own–at the dealers. It’s fast and overwhelming for a beginner. And the roars. Who can miss the roars?

So how do you play craps? Whether online, or in person, understanding the rules and basic strategy of this wildly entertaining and exciting table game will quickly transform you from a novice to the one leading the cheers you won’t find anywhere else in the casino.

In this craps 101 rules and strategy primer, we will simplify the complex and varied wagers that can be a lot to digest.

Craps wagers are divided into line bets, single-roll bets and multi-roll bets. So how do you get started?

Line Bets

Line bets are the simplest bets in craps, all paying even money. These bets are the pass, don’t pass, come, and don’t come.

The pass bet is placed before the come-out roll and is rooting for the shooter to win. If a 7 or 11 is rolled on the come-out roll, the pass line wins. If the shooter rolls a 2, 3, or 12 come out, the pass line loses. Once the come-out roll lands on 4, 5, 6, 8, 9 or 10, that number is the point. The pass bet wins if the shooter rolls that same number again before rolling a 7. If the shooter rolls 7 before the point, the pass bet loses.

Scenario 1: You place $10 on the pass line. The shooter rolls 7. You win $10, and you keep the same amount on the pass. The shooter rolls 12, and you lose $10 (now you’re even). You reup $10 on the pass and the shooter rolls 6, which is now the point. The shooter rolls 11, 5, 8 and 3 in consecutive rolls, but you had no action on any of those. The next roll is a 6, so you win $10 on your $10 pass bet.

Once you get the hang of the pass bet, you’re home free, and the game starts to slow down and make sense. Just betting the pass line is enough to get comfortable at the table and relish in the excitement. But of course, there are so many more options.

You can be a “wrong bettor” and wager on the don’t pass line, playing against the shooter (and with the house). The don’t pass bet is the opposite of the pass line, in that if a 7 or 11 rolled on the come-out roll the bet loses, and if a 2, 3, or 12 comes out the bet wins. Once the point is established, the don’t pass wins if 7 is rolled before the point.

Pro tip: Be warned that playing the don’t pass may earn you the evil eye in the casino, as you’re betting against most of the other players at the table.

The come bet is the same thing as playing the pass line, except it is placed after the come-out roll. You’ll basically establish your own point and the rules remain the same–you must roll your point before a 7.

Lastly, you guessed it, the don’t come is the opposite of the come bet. The bettor wagers against the shooter on the don’t come bet.

Single-roll Bets

Beginner craps strategy game

Beginner Craps Strategy Guide

Single-roll bets are placed at any time, for one turn. Examples of single-roll bets are any craps (2,3, or 12), which pays 7:1, and any 7, which pays 4:1.

Pro tip: Even though any 7 is a wildly popular craps wager, it’s generally considered a sucker bet because of the high house edge, and should probably be avoided.

Another bet in craps is the field where the bettor wagers on the shooter rolling a 2, 3, 4, 9, 10, 11, or 12. Field bets only pay out 4:1 1:1 but include multiple combinations and gives the player better chances of winning.

More specific rolls in craps can yield much higher payouts if the player is ambitions enough.

The yo bet refers to the 11 and pays out 15:1. A new player may be confused when they hear the common cry of C and E, but it simply stands for craps plus 11, effectively two bets in one. An eleven bet pays out at 15:1 and the craps half of the bet pays out 3:1.

Ace-deuce, otherwise known as three craps, is betting on a 3 roll and pays 15:1. Rolling snake eyes (two 1s) or boxcars (two sixes)—the 2 and the 12 bets–each pay 30:1. There’s also a combination bet–the high-low--that pays 15:1 on either 2 or 12.

Last of the single roll bets is the horn which is a combination of the 2, 3, 11 and 12, which pay the same as if you bet them separately.

Pro tip: The most dizzying time at the table is prior to the come-out roll, where many of these single-roll bets are shouted out and chips are tossed. Plays like the horn-high yo (horn bet, plus a little extra on the 11) and the high-low yo (2, 12, 11) prove there’s virtually no limit to the combination of bets you can place.

Multi-roll Bets

Multi-roll bets are wagers that stand until either your number is called, or the shooter rolls 7.

Big 6and Big 8 are very simple. You’re betting that the dealer will roll 6 or 8 (whichever you’re playing) before rolling a 7. It pays 1:1. Hard way bets are placed on the double combination of the dice (for example, 4-4 is hard 8). Hard way 4 and 10 pay at 7:1, and hard way 6 and 8 both pay out at 9:1.

Place betsare placed on any number—4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10–and their odds differ based on how many combinations can equal the number wagered. Place bets on 6 and 8 pay out at 7:6; the 5 and 9 pay out 7:5; the 4 and 10 pay 9:5.

Summing up

Learning craps can be difficult, but certainly not impossible. Even a novice can get a handle on the game with some effort and repetition starting with the simpler bets and then expanding. Learning and practicing in an online casino is a great way to get comfortable with the rules. Now that you know the basics, go get rolling, and don’t crap out.

Craps – detecting winning streaks strategy

Craps is a very popular casino game and as such, there are many players who are looking for various effective strategies. There are strategies as to the way to bet, the types of bets to use, different betting systems and etc. There are many players who claim or seem to be able to manipulate the roll of the craps dice and this way roll what they want to in order to win (you may also read our dice control article).

By taking a look at the statistics, we will notice that winning streaks really happen in craps and therefore any player would really want to take as much advantage of that as possible. If you notice a shooter that is on a winning streak, no matter if it is superstition or he is manipulating the dice roll, you should stick with him because he is likely to win again. When a player is in a winning streak, this means that he is lucky and the statistics show that the chance for him to win again is good.

Our craps strategy to detect the winning streaks is all about finding the streaks in the game and take advantage of them. You may well take advantage of someone’s losing streak too. Just bet against the craps bet of the unlucky shooter.

Craps tips

Craps is a very popular game among the casino players around the world. Apart from the strategies that you may find on MyCasinoStrategy, you may also read our craps tips, which will make your game more successful. Following our guidelines will be useful to you and your gameplay. The tips which we have gathered for you will help you play this interesting game better and win more.

  1. Always tip the craps dealer!

An important advice for a game of craps is to give tips to the dealer when you are on a winning streak. This will create a pleasant gaming environment and more people will want you to win and will be happy when you win. The environment is very important to somebody who is playing a game with dice. It will give you confidence to take advantage of the game and the winning streaks that are happening.

  1. Always know when to stop playing!

Beginner Craps Strategy Chart

A problem of many players is that they do not know when to stop playing and quit. This may cost you a lot because if you are not in a mood to play, you are upset or angry, your bad session will most probably continue and it may even get worse. Very important advice is never to chase your losses and if you are in a bad session you’d better stop playing craps. Only play when you feel comfortable because that’s when you will have your best game.

  1. Place bets according to your resources!

During a game of craps, it is very important for every player to know what his resources are and how to use them effectively. A player must never place large bets if he or she doesn’t possess enough money to continue the game after that in case of a loss. For example, if you have allocated $1000 for playing craps, you need to place individual bets of not more than $20-$30. This will give you the opportunity to stay in the game for a longer period in case of an unlucky streak. If you’ve got a balance of $100, for example, you should place bets of $2-$3 (for the same reason).

Craps strategies

Craps is a game which has started gaining popularity during the Middle Ages. Throughout this whole time period, the game has been evolving until it becomes the game of craps that we see and play nowadays. It is being played all over the world and is one of the most popular casino games ever. You may easily notice that people playing craps are present in almost every movie in which casinos are involved – Diamonds Are Forever, for example, the famous movie about James Bond.

Due to the popularity of the game, people have always tried to develop different craps strategies, which they’d like to use in order to make the casino edge lower and thus win when playing the game. On MyCasinoStrategy, you may find several strategies, which you may use to make your chances to win better than ever. One of our craps strategies is suitable for beginner players – basic craps strategy. Also we’ve got a strategy which is suitable for experienced players – advanced craps strategy. It is all up to you to choose which one you want to go with.

Basic craps strategy

The simplest and the easiest basic craps strategy for a beginner player is to learn the rules of the game and the types of bets, and make good use of them. There are many types of bets that a player can place during the game, however, the different types of bets have different casino odds. The casino edge may vary depending on the type of bet that you have chosen to place and our basic craps strategy is all about placing the bets with the lowest casino odds. Here are the different types of bets with the corresponding edge of the casino over the players:

  1. Pass Line/Don’t Pass Line/Come/Don’t Come bets – 1.40%
  2. Field Bets – 5.60%
  3. Big 6/Big 8 – 9.10%
  4. Horn – 12.50%
  5. Craps 2/Craps 12 – 13.90%
  6. Any 7 – 16.70%

As you can see, the casino edge is lowest when you place Pass Line, Don’t Pass Line, Come or Don’t Come bets – 1.40%. Therefore, as a beginner player the best strategy for you when playing craps is to place the types of bets with the lowest casino advantage possible.

Advanced craps strategy

Once you have learned how to make a good use of the types of bets where the casino has the lowest advantage possible and you have mastered our basic strategy, you may move forward and learn the advanced craps strategy that we have presented right before you.

Our advanced strategy requires you to place $3 3-way bet together with a Pass Line bet. The Pass Line bet will protect you from 7s. The $3 on 3-way bet, would be for the numbers 12, 3 and 2 ($1 each). The payout for 12 and 2 is 30:1 while for 3 it is 15:1. If 12 or 2 comes out, you will get $30. If 3 comes out, you will get $15.

Beginner Craps Strategy Game

You will bet $40 on Pass Line and 3-way craps bet for $3 ($1 on 12, $1 on 2 and $1 on 3). Along with them you will bet $5 on 4, 5, 9 and 10, and $6 on 6 and 8.

The information on this website may not be accurate and our gambling materials do NOT promise or guarantee winnings in any way. Use the information on this website at your own risk. Gambling with real money poses a great risk and everyone must do it wisely, under his own responsibility and will.