Craps Instructions, Steps 1-3
How to play Craps- The Basics
In this section you will learn what a point is, how to get your odds, and how to play the field
Step 1
The game begins when a player (also called the shooter) is passed five dice and asked to select two. The on/off button is in the OFF position and the player puts a bet on the pass line. The dice are thrown to the other end of the table.
These are the outcomes on the come-out roll:
7 or 11 — all players on the pass line win!
2, 3, or 12 — all players on the pass line loose!
if none of those 5 numbers is rolled then…
The button is turned to the ON position and placed on the number that was rolled by the player. Those numbers are 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10.
Reread the above. This typically takes people 7-10 rolls to understand.
For the sake of this example, let’s assume that the number rolled on the come-out is a 4. The pass line bet then turns into a 4 and is called the point. The number is a 4 because that is the number that was rolled on the come-out. The shooter continues to roll until a 4 or 7 is rolled. If a 4 is rolled first, everyone on the pass line wins; however if a 7 is rolled, then all pass line bets loose.
In short, once a point is established (the button will say whatever the number is) you need that number to roll before a 7.
Step 2
There is one bet in the casino that has no house edge; that is the odds bet in craps. If you bet on the pass line, you should ALWAYS take the odds bet. You are doing yourself a huge disservice by not taking the odds bet. Please note: Only the shooter is required to bet on the pass line. However, most people like to play along with the shooter and bet on the pass line as well.
Let’s stick with the number 4 as the point. To place your odds bet, you put the amount you would like to bet directly behind your pass line bet. Odds bets vary from casino to casino so ask your dealer how much you can bet. The question is “how many times odds can I place?” If the answer is 10 times and you have a $5 bet, you could be up to $50 ($5 X 10). You do not have to take full odds. Most people generally take 2-5 times odds (when available).
Here are all the payouts on the odds bet:
4 and 10 = 2 to 1
5 and 9= 3 to 2
6 and 8 = 6 to 5
***Note when you have a 5 or a 9 as the point, make sure to bet an even amount on the odds bet so you don’t get shorted. ***
Simple rule- always bet in $10 increments and you will never have a problem with deciding how much to put on odds.
In summary, if you play the pass line, always take odds. Pass line always pays even money and the odds bet always pays more.
Step 3
The field bet is an action bet that is very simple to understand. You put your number in the box labeled field and you have a one-roll bet. This is self-service, so make sure you know where your money is. You don’t have to put it on the number you want, you get all the numbers in the field. Numbers in the field are 2, 3, 4, 9, 10, 11, and 12. If one of your numbers comes up, you are paid even money. If a 2 or 12 comes up, you get paid 2-1.
What do you think? Does the field sound like a good bet? There are 16 ways to win in the field and 20 ways to loose. The house edge is approximately 5.5% on field bets.
These are the first 3 steps on how to play craps. Stay tuned next time for Part 2 where we go over place bets, hard ways, yo’s and C&E’s.
