Good bets when shooting craps

If you’ve spent any time at all looking for sure fire ways to win gambling games, the odds are good that you’ve come across a dozen or so systems that guarantee your long term profits in games like craps.

If this is the first article you’re reading on the subject, that’s good because here’s the truth: casinos/gambling establishments have been in businesses for generations upon generations, and the longevity hasn’t been brought about because they lose a lot of money. In any table game, the casino is always going to have the house edge. In the long run, they will end up with more money off of you than you get off of them, and this is true in online casinos as well as land based ones.

So why do people buy in to all the strategies that you find out there detailing ways to win at virtually every type of casino game? Well, people like to believe that there is some way that they can beat the house and make a living gambling. Now, I’m not dismissing all gambling strategies here; I am just saying that you need to look at the big picture. No strategy is going to mean you always come out on top, as that is impossible. A good understanding of what methods of play limit the house edge a little can help to heighten your odds, though. Here’s a look at some good bets in craps.

Come/don’t come. These bets are placed on actual numbers rolled other than the point number. Once the point number has been rolled, you place your chips on the “Come” area. if the next number that comes up is 7 or 11, you’ll win the bet. If it’s a 2,3, or 12, you lose the bet. If the number is anything else, your chips are moved to that number on the table; in effect, this number is now your own personal point number. If it comes up again before a 7, then you’ll win the bet. A 7 coming up first will mean that you lose.

Don’t come bets work in the opposite way. You win if a 2 or 3 comes up, a 12 will result in a push (bet is returned). You don’t want your point number to come up before the next 7, or you lose.

Pass/don’t pass. The house edge on Pass bets are low, at only 1.41 percent, and even lower on Don’t Pass at an even 1.4. When you place chips on the Pass section during the come out roll, you’ll win if a 7 or 11 is rolled; there are eight possible winning roll combinations for this. The come-out roll has the best odds for the Pass bets to win. If the come-out roll is not a 7 or 11, the money is riding on the point number being rolled again before a 7 or 11.

Don’t Pass bets win if a 2 or 3 is rolled on the come out, so the Don’t Pass option is much more risky during the come out roll. Once a point number has been rolled Don’t Pass bets have a higher chance of winning than Pass bets because a seven has the highest odds of any roll.

There are a lot of betting options in craps, but these two simple bets are the best options for beginners and really long time players. They don’t pay out very high, but the odds are better than on any other type of bet.

Marshall

Published on 07/02/2007