Learning to Play Craps is Worth It!
Shouts, cheers, lots of players, dice, a complicated-looking table - what do these things have in common? You'll find them all in a game of Craps, one of the most exciting casino games around. Craps is a table game filled with fun and friendship, as players root for one another when the dice go rolling.
What's this great game all about? Read on, to find out all you need to know about playing Craps. Be forewarned that the many game components may be unfamiliar, and therefore seem complex. In fact, all it takes to play this game is a little bit of patience and understanding. Once you know the rules, you'll begin to understand why so many people feel Craps is worth learning to play.
Learn the Lingo of Craps
To understand the game of Craps, you must first become familiar with lots of unusual terms. There's the:
Boxman - He's the guy that supervises the game, takes the cash, and puts it into a drop box.
Stickman - This is the guy who calls out the rolls, tells players to put down their bets, and is constantly chattering aloud.
Dealer - Most are familiar with this guy. He's the one who collects and distributes bets.
Shooter - All the players take turns at playing this role. The shooter is the one rolling the dice.
Once you understand who's who in a game of Craps, you can set your sights on the Craps table where the game is played. This table is divided into several parts:
Pass Line: If you are betting with the shooter, you place your bet here.
Don't Pass Line : Place your bet here if you want to bet against the shooter.
Aside from these components, there are sections marked "Come" and "Don't Come", and there are lots of numbers all over the place - more on these parts later.
Learn How to Play Craps
The game starts with the first bets. This is when the players get to place their Pass or Don't Pass bets. As was mentioned before, if you want to bet with the shooter (and usually with the rest of the table) place your bets on the pass line. If you want to bet against him, go for a Don't Pass bet.
The next step is for the shooter to roll the dice. This first roll is known as a "Come Out" roll - kind of like when a debutante makes her first public appearance in a coming-out party.
It's the result of this roll that determines the rest of the game. If the roll is a 7 or an 11, the Pass bets win and the Don't Pass bets lose. If it is a 2, 3, or 12 that's called "Craps." If the Craps is a 2 or a 3, it's a losing roll for the shooter and anyone who bet with him, but a winning roll for the Don't Pass players. If it's a 12, then the Don't Pass players neither win nor lose.
Obviously, there are many other possibilities for the outcome of the Come Out roll. If the dice land on any other number, that number becomes the Point. This Point becomes the reference point for the remainder of the game.
Now, for the Pass bets to win, this Point number must be rolled before a seven is rolled. If a seven is rolled first, then the Don't Pass bets win.
Now that you've got the game basics, you can move on to...
Other Betting Options in Craps Play
If you want to place a bet at some other point in the game (not on the Come Out roll), you can place what is known as a "Field Bet." Place a Field Bet by putting your tokens down on one of the numbers on the table. This is a bet that in the next roll, the number you choose will come up.
Remember those Come and Don't Come boxes mentioned up above? Players can also use these boxes to place bets in the middle of a game. Placing a Come or Don't Come bet is quite similar to a Pass/Don't Pass bet. Come still wins on 7 and 11, while Don't Come wins on a roll of 2 or 3. The primary difference is that instead of the first roll being the Point for your bet, your Point becomes the first number that's rolled once you've made this wager.
Last but not least, before you play a game of Craps you need to know about betting "with odds." Place an odds bet by placing a chip directly behind the Pass wager or by putting the bet on the table and telling the dealer that it's there to back the Come bet. When you win a bet that was placed with odds, you not only get get the Pass or Come wager you placed, you also get paid the true odds of rolling the point number. Betting with odds is the best way to maximize your winnings.
Sounds complicated? Just watch a Craps game in action, or play some practice rounds online. Pretty soon, you'll be shootin' Craps with the best of them.
|
