Craps Facts - The game of craps first began in Roman times but was known as "dice".  The game of craps as we know it today, began in the 18th century by well-to-do Englishmen but was called Hazard.   When the game came to France, the French called it Craps.  It is a derivative of the word "crabs" which means pair of ones.

Craps Purpose & How to Play - In craps, the purpose of the game is to guess whether a "shooter" will roll a winning combination or not.  A shooter is the player that is rolling the dice.  During a game of craps, there are two different stages.  There's the Coming Out stage and the Point stage. 

The first bet for a player is usually the "pass line bet".  It is made by placing your chips in the long strip that runs around the outside of the table with the word PASS in it.  The pass line bet is placed in expectation of what is called the "come out roll".  The come out roll is the first roll and the purpose is to roll a seven or an eleven so that all pass line bets win.  If a 2, 3, or 12 is rolled on the come out roll, called "Crapping Out", the game starts over again and all pass line bets lose.  If a 4, 5, 6, 8, 9 or 10 is rolled, the Point stage has begun.  Similar to a land-based casino craps games, there's always a small round disk on the craps table called a "puck" which has the word "ON" on one side and "OFF" on the opposite site.  You'll know the Point stage has begun when the puck has the ON side facing up.  In the Point stage of the game, the purpose is to roll the same number as the Point, before you roll a seven.

Once the Point has been established, the pass line bets neither win or lose.  These bets stay where they are with their outcome to be resolved later in the stage.  Players usually back-up their pass line bets with an "odds bet" by adding more chips just below the pass line (outside of the boundary outline), behind your initial bet.  The house edge on a pass line bet is really low to start with and gets even lower the more odds you back it with so it makes this bet one of the best in the casino!  When placing an odds bet you must place a negative expectation bet before hand (the pass line), and then back it with odds.  That's why the pass line bet, which already has a high player edge in combination with odds, is frequently thought of as the best bet in the casino.

To finish a round of craps and settle pass line bets, the Shooter must roll either a 7 or the Point after the come out roll.  Pass line bets cannot win until the Point is rolled and cannot lose until 7 is rolled.  Therefore, players need to wait for a roll of a 7 or the Point to find out the outcome of their pass line bets since unsettled pass line bets cannot be taken off.

Types of Craps Bets

Pass Line - A bet that the Shooter will roll a 7 or 11 on the come-out roll, or establish a Point by rolling 4, 5, 6, 8, 9 or 10

Don't Pass - A bet that the Shooter will roll a 2, 3 or 12 on the come-out roll, or establish a Point by rolling 4, 5, 6, 8, 9 or 10

Come - A bet that the Shooter will roll a 7 or 11 on the next roll or make a Point.  This bet is comparable to the Pass Line bet, however it can only be taken after a Point is established.  Also, a Come bet can be made on each roll of the dice but only after the Shooter has established a Point

Don't Come - A bet that the Shooter will roll a 2, 3 or 12 on the next roll or will not make the Point before rolling a 7.  This bet is comparable to the Don't Pass bet, however it can only be taken after a Point is established

Odds - Extra bets made on an established Pass, Don't Pass, Come or Don't Come bet

Place to Win - A bet that the Shooter will roll the number that a Win bet is placed on - 4, 5, 6, 8, 9 or 10, before a 7 is rolled

Place to Lose - A bet that the Shooter will roll a 7, before the number that a Lose bet is placed on - 4, 5, 6, 8, 9 or 10, is rolled

Field - A single roll bet that the Shooter will roll a 2, 3, 4, 9, 10, 11 or 12, on the next roll

Hardways - A bet that the Shooter will roll either a 2, 3, 4 or 5 as a double, before it is thrown in any other combination, or before a 7 is rolled

Any Seven - A bet that the Shooter will roll a 7 on the next roll

Any Craps - A bet that the Shooter will roll a 2, 3 or 12 on the next roll

Any Two - A bet that the Shooter will roll a 2 on the next roll

Craps Twelve - A bet that the Shooter will roll a 12 on the next roll

Craps Three - A bet that the Shooter will roll a 3 on the next roll

Eleven - A bet that the Shooter will roll a 11 on the next roll

Big 8 - A bet that a 8 will be rolled before a 7

Big 6 - A bet that a 6 will be rolled before a 7

C and E - The C is a bet that the Shooter will roll a 2, 3 or 12 on the next roll and the E is a bet that the Shooter will roll a 11 on the next roll

Dice Combination and Probabilities

Craps Strategy

• Know the game and the bets

• Stay with bets like pass line bets backed-up by odds, come bets backed-up by odds and bets on the six or eight.  These have the best player's edge

• Manage your money