How To Play Craps
Dice have been fascinating people and deciding fates for over 2,000 years. Even the
language of dice games echoes history. When Caesar made his critical decision to take
his victorious army across the Rubicon against the edict of Rome, he took his retort
from the lexicon of the dice player: "lacta alea est." The die is cast.
The most fashionable men of 18th and 19th century England rolled dice in a game
called Hazard in luxurious private gambling houses. The French learned the game from
the English and called it Craps, a corruption of "Crabs," the name for a
pair of ones. When settlers arrived in the New World, they brought their dice with
them. Gradually, as dice were rolled on riverboats, wharfs, and in private houses, a
simplified Americanized version of Craps developed.
The popular game moved west with the frontier, and is played today in homes and
clubs across the country. As many as 30 million Americans play dice every year. And
the stakes can be gigantic. Some years ago, a Detroit businessman broke a casino bank
when he won $300,000 in less than two hours of play.
Craps is fast-paced and fun. Many players consider it the most exciting casino
game.
How To Play
There are several types of bets which can be made.
Pass Line: Winning numbers on the first roll are 7 or 11; losing
numbers are 2, 3, or 12. Any other number that comes up on the first roll is
your "point." If you roll your "point" again before 7 is rolled,
you win. If you roll 7 before the "point" you lose and the dice are passed
to the next player.
Don't Pass: When you bet the Don't Pass, you bet opposite the
pass line. You win if 2 or 3 is rolled. You lose if 7 or 11 is rolled on come out
roll. If a 12 is rolled, it is a "standoff" and no one wins. Any other
number that comes up is the point. You win if 7 is rolled before the point is made.
The bet is for even money.
Come: Bets on Come can be made at any time after the
"point" is established. It is the same as betting on the Pass Line. You can
make a Come bet for even money on any roll of any shooter.
Don't Come: Bets on Don't Come are even money and are the reverse
of Come bets. The winning numbers are 2 or 3. You lose on 7 or 11. A 12 is a
"standoff." You can make a Don't Come bet on any roll of the dice. Any other
number that comes up is the point. You win if 7 is rolled before the particular point
number upon which you have placed your bet.
Odds: You can take Odds on Line Bets and Come Bets. If 6 or 8 is
rolled, you are paid 6 for 5; 5 and 9 pay 7 for 5; 4 and 10 pay 9 for 5. Place Bets
can be placed or removed at any time before a roll.
Buy Bets and Lay Bets: Buy and Lay Bets pay odds without requiring
a flat bet and may be made directly on a 4, 5, 6, 8, 9 or 10 at any time without
waiting for the number to roll the first time. The Buy Bet is a bet that the number
will roll before a 7. A Lay Bet is a bet that a 7 will roll before the number bet. In
either case, the wager is paid according to true odds as shown on the accompanying
table. A 5% commission or "vig" is charged on all Buy and Lay Bets, either
on the amount bet, if it is a Buy Bet, or on the amount that can be won, if it is a
Lay Bet.
Big 6 or 8: You win if a 6 or 8 is rolled before a 7. The bet is
for even money and can be placed or removed at any time. Field The Field is a
one-roll bet that can be placed at any time. Winning numbers are 2, 3, 4, 9, 10, 11
or 12. All but 2 and 12 pay even money; 2 and 12 pay double.
Proposition Bets: These bets are made at the center of the table,
and can be made at any time.
Hard Ways: You win at the odds quoted on the layout (8 for 1, for
4 & 10; and 10 for 1, for 6 & 8) if the exact combination of numbers you bet
on comes up. If the number is rolled in any other combination or a 7 comes up, the
house wins. Hopping Hardway bets are paid 30 for 1 if rolled. All other Hopping bets
are paid 15 for 1.
Any 7: This is a one-roll proposition. You can bet any 7 on any
roll of the dice. If a 7 is rolled, you win 5 for 1.
Any Craps: This is a one-roll proposition. If 2, 3 or 12 rolls,
you win and are paid 8 for 1.
2, 3, 11 or 12 Individually: This is a one-roll bet. The winning
payoff on 2 or 12 is 30 for 1. The winning payoff on 3 or 11 is 15 for 1.
Craps House Rules
- Must be 21 years of age or older to play Craps.
- The player rolling the dice, calted the "Shooter," must make a fair
attempt to reach and hit the wall of the opposite end of the table when shooting.
- Setting of the dice by the "shooter" for the deliberate purpose of
delaying the game is not allowed.
- Floor Persons decisions are final.