Craps is a dice game in which players bet on the outcomes of the roll of a pair of dice. Players can wager money against each other (playing "street craps") or against a bank ("casino craps"). Because it requires little equipment, "street craps" can be played in informal settings. While shooting craps, players may use slang terminology to place bets and actions.
Contents
History
Craps developed in the United States from a simplification of the western European game of Hazard, also spelled Hazzard or Hasard. The origins of Hazard are obscure and may date to the Crusades; a detailed description of Hazard was provided by Edmond Hoyle in Hoyle's Games, Improved (1790). At approximately the same time (1788), "Krabs" was documented as a French variation on Hazard.
In aristocratic London, crabs was the epithet for the sum combinations of two and three for two rolled dice, which in Hazard are instant-losing numbers for the first dice roll, regardless of the shooter's selected main number. The name craps is derived from the corruption of this term crabs (or Krabs) to creps and then craps.
According to some accounts, Hazard was brought from London to New Orleans in approximately 1805 by the returning Bernard Xavier Philippe de Marigny de Mandeville, the young gambler and scion of a family of wealthy landowners in colonial Louisiana. Hazard allows the dice shooter to choose any number from five to nine as their "main" number; in a pamphlet published in 1933, Edward Tinker claimed that Marigny simplified the game by making the main always seven, which is the mathematically optimal choice, i.e., the choice with the lowest disadvantage for the shooter. However, more recent research indicates that Marigny played an unmodified version of Hazard, which had been played in the United States since at least the 1600s. Instead, John Scarne credits anonymous Black American inventors with simplifying and streamlining Hazard, increasing the pace of the game and adding a variety of wagers.
Regardless of who deserves credit for simplifying Hazard, the game initially was called Pass from the French word pas (meaning "pace" or "step"), and was popularized by the underclass starting in the early 19th century. Field hands taught their friends and deckhands, who carried the new game up the Mississippi River and its tributaries, although the game was never popular amongst the riverboat gamblers. Marigny gave the name Rue de Craps to a street in his new subdivision in New Orleans; in that city, craps experienced a resurgence of popularity in the late 1830s, but was not played in gaming houses until the 1890s. Budd Theobald credits the cultural exchange between attendants and railroad passengers on Pullman cars for popularizing the game, which eventually spread throughout America by the 1910s, when it was described as "the gambling game of [the country]" in Foster's Complete Hoyle (1914).
Bank craps
Bank craps or casino craps is played by one or more players betting against the casino rather than each other. Both the players and the dealers stand around a large rectangular craps table. Sitting is discouraged by most casinos unless a player has medical reasons for requiring a seat.
The basic flow of a single game is:
The shooter wagers to pass (win) and then makes an initial come-out roll with two six-sided dice.
If the come-out roll is 7 or 11, that is a natural and the shooter has a pass (wins); the game is over.
If the come-out roll is 2, 3, or 12, that is a crap and the shooter has a missout (loses); the game is over.
If the come-out roll is any other number (4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10), that value becomes the shooter's point.
If a point has been set, the shooter continues to roll until either:
A subsequent roll matches the point and the shooter has a pass (wins); or
A subsequent roll is 7 and the shooter has a missout (loses).
Once a point is set and a missout occurs, the dice are passed to the person on the shooter's left, who becomes the new shooter.
Craps table
Players use casino chips rather than cash to bet on the Craps "layout", a fabric surface which displays the various bets. The bets vary somewhat among casinos in availability, locations, and payouts. The tables roughly resemble bathtubs and come in various sizes. In some locations, chips may be called checks, tokens, or plaques.
Against one long side is the casino's table bank: as many as two thousand casino chips in stacks of 20. The opposite long side is usually a long mirror. The U-shaped ends of the table have duplicate layouts and standing room for approximately eight players. In the center of the layout is an additional group of side bets which are used by players from both ends. The vertical walls at each end are usually covered with a rubberized target surface covered with small pyramid shapes to randomize the dice which strike them. The top edges of the table walls have one or two horizontal grooves in which players may store their reserve chips.
The table is run by up to four casino employees: a boxman seated (usually the only seated employee) behind the casino's bank, who manages the chips, supervises the dealers, and handles "coloring up" players (exchanging small chip denominations for larger denominations in order to preserve the chips at a table); two base dealers who stand to either side of the boxman and collect and pay bets to players around their half of the table; and a stickman who stands directly across the table from the boxman, takes and pays (or directs the base dealers to do so) the bets in the center of the table, announces the results of each roll (usually with a distinctive patter), and moves the dice across the layout with an elongated wooden stick.
Some smaller casinos have introduced "mini-craps" tables which are operated with only two dealers; rather than being two essentially identical sides and the center area, a single set of major bets is presented, split by the center bets. Responsibility of the dealers is adjusted: while the stickman continues to handle the center bets, it is the base dealer who handles all other bets (as well as cash and chip exchanges).
By contrast, in "street craps", there is no marked table and often the game is played with no back-stop against which the dice are to hit. Despite the name "street craps", this game is often played in houses, usually on an un-carpeted garage or kitchen floor. The wagers are made in cash, never in chips, and are usually thrown down onto the ground or floor by the players. There are no attendants, and so the progress of the game, fairness of the throws, and the way that the payouts are made for winning bets are self-policed by the players.
Dice
The dice used at casinos for craps and many other games are sometimes called perfect or gambling house dice. These are generally made from translucent extruded cellulose, with perfectly square edges each 3⁄4 ± 1⁄5000 in (19.0500 ± 0.0051 mm) in length, with pips drilled 17 ± 4 mils (0.43 ± 0.10 mm) deep and filled with opaque paint matching the density of cellulose, which ensures the dice remain balanced. The dice are buffed and polished to a high glossy finish after the pips are set, and the edges usually are left sharp, also called square or razor edge. To discourage cheating and dice substitution, each die carries a serial number and the casino's logo or name. New Jersey specifies the maximum size of the die is 0.775 in (19.7 mm) on a side.
Under New Jersey regulations, the shooter selects two dice from a set of at least five.
Rules of play
Each casino may set which bets are offered and different payouts for them, though a core set of bets and payouts is typical. Players take turns rolling two dice and whoever is throwing the dice is called the "shooter". Players can bet on the various options by placing chips directly on the appropriately-marked sections of the layout, or asking the base dealer or stickman to do so, depending on which bet is being made.
While acting as the shooter, a player must have a bet on either the "Pass" or the "Don't Pass" line or both. "Pass" and "Don't Pass" are sometimes called "Win" and "Lose", "Do" and "Don't", or "Right" and "Wrong". The game is played in rounds and these "Pass" and "Don't Pass" bets are betting on the outcome of a single round. The shooter is presented with multiple dice (typically five) by the "stickman", and must choose two for the round. The remaining dice are returned to the stickman's bowl and are not used.
Each round has two phases: "come-out" and "point". Dice are passed to the left.
To start a round, the shooter makes one or more "come-out" rolls. While the come-out roll may specifically refer to the first roll of a new shooter, any roll where no point is established may be referred to as a come-out. By this definition the start of any new round regardless of whether it is the shooter's first toss can be referred to as a come-out roll. The shooter must shoot toward the farther back wall and is generally required to hit the farther back wall with both dice. Casinos may allow a few warnings before enforcing the dice to hit the back wall and are generally lenient if at least one die hits the back wall. Both dice must be tossed in one throw. If only one die is thrown the shot is invalid.
A come-out roll of 2, 3, or 12 is called "craps" or "crapping out", and anyone betting the Pass line loses. On the other hand, anyone betting the Don't Pass line on come out wins with a roll of 2 or 3 and ties (pushes) if a 12 is rolled; in some rules, the 2 pushes instead of the 12, in which case the 3 and 12 win a Don't Pass bet. Shooters may keep rolling after crapping out; the dice are only required to be passed if a shooter sevens out (rolls a seven after a point has been established). A come-out roll of 7 or 11 is a "natural"; the Pass line wins and Don't Pass loses. The other possible numbers are the point numbers: 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, and 10. If the shooter rolls one of these numbers on the come-out roll, this establishes the "point" – to "pass" or "win", the point number must be rolled again before a seven.
Joining a game
A player wishing to play craps without being the shooter should approach the craps table and first check to see if the dealer's "On" button is on any of the point numbers.
If the button has been turned to "Off", then the table is in the come-out phase, and a point has not been established.
If the dealer's button is "On", the table is in the point phase where casinos will allow odds behind an existing Pass line to be bet. Some casino do not allow new Pass line bets while a point has been established. Some casinos will place the bet straddling the outer border of the Pass line so as to indicate that it is to be paid the same odds as a place bet, instead of just even money. Other casinos will take the bet on the Pass line after a point has been established, known as put betting, which is a disadvantage to the player (since the seven is the most common roll and likely to happen before the "point").
In either case, all single or multi-roll proposition bets may be placed in either of the two phases.
Between dice rolls there is a period for dealers to make payouts and collect losing bets, after which players can place new bets. The stickman monitors the action at a table and decides when to give the shooter the dice, after which no more betting is allowed.
When joining the game, one should place money on the table rather than passing it directly to a dealer. The dealer's exaggerated movements during the process of "making change" or "change only" (converting currency to an equivalent in casino cheques) are required so that any disputes can be later reviewed against security camera footage.
Rolling
The dealers will insist that the shooter roll with one hand and that the dice bounce off the far wall surrounding the table. These requirements are meant to keep the game fair (preventing switching the dice or making a "controlled shot"). If a die leaves the table, the shooter will usually be asked to select another die from the remaining three but can request permission to use the same die if it passes the boxman's inspection. This requirement exists to keep the game fair and reduce the chance of loaded dice.
Names of rolls
There are many local variants of the calls made by the stickman for rolls during a craps game. These frequently incorporate a reminder to the dealers as to which bets to pay or collect.
Two — "Snake Eyes", "Two Craps Two", "Double Aces", "Loose Deuce", "Snickies"
The two ones that compose it look like a pair of small, beady eyes. During actual play, more common terms are "two craps two" during the comeout roll because the Pass line bet is lost on a comeout crap roll and / or because a bet on any craps would win. "Aces; double the field" would be a more common call when not on the comeout roll to remind the dealers to pay double on the field bets and encourage the field bettor to place subsequent bets and / or when no crap bets have been placed. Another name for the two is "loose deuce" or "Snickies" due to it sounding like "Snake eyes" but spoken with an accent.
Three — "Three Craps Three", "Ace Deuce", "Tracy", "Acey Deucy"
Typically called as "three craps three" during the comeout roll, or "three, ace deuce, come away single" when not on the comeout to signify the come bet has been lost and to pay single to any field bettors. Three may also be referred to as "ace caught a deuce", "Tracy", or even less often "acey deucey".
Four (hard) — "Little Joe", "Joe", "Little Dick", "Little Joe from Kokomo", "Little Joe on the Front Row", "Ballerina"
usually hard, is sometimes referred to as "Little Joe from Kokomo" or "Little Joe on the front row" or just "Little Joe". A hard four can be called a "ballerina" because it is two-two ("tutu").
Five — "Phoebe", "Fever in the South", "West Kentucky", "No Field Five", "Fever"
is frequently called "no field five" in casinos in which five is not one of the field rolls and thus not paid in the field bets. Other names for a five are "fever" and "little Phoebe".
Bet odds and summary
Note: Individual casinos may pay some of these bets at different payout ratios than those listed below. Some bets are listed more than once below – the most common payout in North American casinos is listed first, followed by other known variants.
Note: "True Odds" do not vary.
The probability of dice combinations determine the odds of the payout. There are a total of 36 (6 × 6) possible combinations when rolling two dice. The following chart shows the dice combinations needed to roll each number. The two and twelve are the hardest to roll since only one combination of dice is possible. The game of craps is built around the dice roll of seven, since it is the most easily rolled dice combination.
Viewed another way:
The expected value of all bets is usually negative, such that the average player will always lose money. This is because the house always sets the paid odds to below the actual odds. The only exception is the "odds" bet that the player is allowed to make after a point is established on a pass / come Don't Pass / Don't Come bet (the odds portion of the bet has a long-term expected value of 0). However, this "free odds" bet cannot be made independently, so the expected value of the entire bet, including odds, is still negative. Since there is no correlation between die rolls, there is normally no possible long-term winning strategy in craps.
There are occasional promotional variants that provide either no house edge or even a player edge. One example is a field bet that pays 3:1 on 12 and 2:1 on either 3 or 11. Overall, given the 5:4 true odds of this bet, and the weighted average paid odds of approximately 7:5, the player has a 5% advantage on this bet. This is sometimes seen at casinos running limited-time incentives, in jurisdictions or gaming houses that require the game to be fair, or in layouts for use in informal settings using play money. No casino currently runs a craps table with a bet that yields a player edge full-time.
Maximizing the size of the odds bet in relation to the line bet will reduce, but never eliminate the house edge, and will increase variance. Most casinos have a limit on how large the odds bet can be in relation to the line bet, with single, double, and five times odds common. Some casinos offer 3–4–5 odds, referring to the maximum multiple of the line bet a player can place in odds for the points of 4 and 10, 5 and 9, and 6 and 8, respectively. During promotional periods, a casino may even offer 100× odds bets, which reduces the house edge to almost nothing, but dramatically increases variance, as the player will be betting in large betting units.
Types of wagers
Line bets
The shooter is required to make either a Pass line bet or a Don't Pass bet if he wants to shoot. On the come out roll each player may only make one bet on the Pass or Don't Pass, but may bet both if desired. The Pass Line and Don't Pass bet is optional for any player not shooting. In rare cases, some casinos require all players to make a minimum Pass Line or Don't Pass bet (if they want to make any other bet), whether they are currently shooting or not.
The basic bet in craps is the Pass line bet, which is a bet for the shooter to win. This bet must be at least the table minimum and at most the table maximum.
If the come-out roll is 7 or 11, the bet wins.
If the come-out roll is 2, 3 or 12, the bet loses (known as "crapping out").
If the roll is any other value, it establishes a point.
If, with a point established, that point is rolled again before a 7, the bet wins.
If, with a point established, a 7 is rolled before the point is rolled again ("seven out"), the bet loses.
The Pass line bet pays even money.
The Pass line bet is a contract bet. Once a Pass line bet is made, it is always working and cannot be turned "Off", taken down, or reduced until a decision is reached – the point is made, or the shooter sevens out. A player may increase any corresponding odds (up to the table limit) behind the Pass line at any time after a point is established. Players may only bet the Pass line on the come out roll when no point has been established, unless the casino allows put betting where the player can bet Pass line or increase an existing Pass line bet whenever desired and may take odds immediately if the point is already on.
A Don't Pass bet is a bet for the shooter to lose ("seven out, line away") and is almost the opposite of the Pass line bet. Like the Pass bet, this bet must be at least the table minimum and at most the table maximum.
Multi-roll bets
These are bets that may not be settled on the first roll and may need one or more subsequent rolls before an outcome is determined.
Most multi-roll bets may fall into the situation where a point is made by the shooter before the outcome of the multi-roll bet is decided. These bets are often considered "not working" on the new come-out roll until the next point is established, unless the player calls the bet as "working."
Casino rules vary on this; some of these bets may not be callable, while others may be considered "working" during the come-out. Dealers will usually announce if bets are working unless otherwise called off. If a non-working point number placed, bought or laid becomes the new point as the result of a come-out, the bet is usually refunded, or can be moved to another number for free.
Players can bet any point number (4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10) by placing their wager in the come area and telling the dealer how much and on what number(s), "30 on the 6", "5 on the 5", or "25 on the 10". These are typically "Place Bets to Win". These are bets that the number bet on will be rolled before a 7 is rolled, similar to the Pass odds bets. These bets are considered working bets, and will continue to be paid out each time a shooter rolls the number bet. On a come-out roll, a place bet is considered to be not in effect unless the player who made it specifies otherwise. This bet may be removed or reduced at any time until it loses; in the latter case, the player must abide by any table minimums.
Place bets to win pay out at slightly worse than the true odds: 9-to-5 on points 4 or 10, 7-to-5 on points 5 or 9, and 7-to-6 on points 6 or 8. The place bets on the outside numbers (4,5,9,10) should be made in units of $5, (on a $5 minimum table), in order to receive the correct exact payout of $5 paying $7 or $5 paying $9. The place bets on the 6 & 8 should be made in units of $6, (on a $5 minimum table), in order to receive the correct exact payout of $6 paying $7. For the 4 and 10, it is to the player's advantage to 'buy' the bet (see below).
An alternative form, rarely offered by casinos, is the "place bet to lose." This bet is the opposite of the place bet to win and pays off if a 7 is rolled before the specific point number. The place bet to lose typically carries a lower house edge than a place bet to win. Payouts are 4-to-5 on points 6 or 8, 5-to-8 on 5 or 9, and 5-to-11 on 4 or 10.
Single-roll bets
Single-roll (proposition) bets are resolved in one dice roll by the shooter. Most of these are called "service bets", and they are located at the center of most craps tables. Only the stickman or a dealer can place a service bet. Single-roll bets can be lower than the table minimum, but the maximum bet allowed is also lower than the table maximum. The maximum bet is based on the maximum allowed win from a single roll. The lowest single-roll bet can be a minimum one unit bet. For example, tables with minimums of $5 or $10 generally allow minimum single-roll bets of $1. Single bets are always working by default unless the player specifies otherwise. The bets include:
2 (snake eyes, or Aces)
Wins if shooter rolls a 2.
3 (ace-deuce)
Wins if the shooter rolls a 3.
Yo
Wins if the shooter rolls 11.
12 (boxcars, midnight, or cornrows)
Wins if shooter rolls a 12.
2 or 12 (hi-lo)
Wins if shooter rolls a 2 or 12. The stickman places this bet on the line dividing the 2 and 12 bets.
Any Craps (Three-Way)
Wins if the shooter rolls 2, 3 or 12.
C & E
A combined bet, a player is betting half their bet on craps (2,3,12) and the other half on 11 (yo). The combine payout is 3:1 on craps and 7:1 on 11 (yo). Another method of calculating the payout is to divide the total bet in half. The player would receive 7:1 minus half the total bet payout on half the total bet for craps and 15:1 minus half the total bet payout on half the total bet for 11 (yo). For example, using this method if a player were to bet $2 on C & E, $1 would receive 7:1 payout on craps minus $1 for the bet on 11 so the total profit would be $6. If an 11 was rolled the player would receive 15:1 minus $1 for the bet on craps so the player's total profit is $14. Both methods of calculation yield the same result so either method can be used. If a player wishes to take the bet down after a win the player would receive the whole bet not half even though only one of the two bets can win per roll. The minimum bet on C & E is double the lowest unit bet allowed at the table. So if the minimum single roll bet is $1 the lowest C & E bet allowed would be $2. Players are, however, able to make odd number bets larger than $2 if desired. One of the two bets will always lose, the other may win.
Player bets
Fire Bet: Before the shooter begins, some casinos will allow a bet known as a fire bet to be placed. A fire bet is a bet of as little as $1 and generally up to a maximum of $5 to $10 sometimes higher, depending on casino, made in the hope that the next shooter will have a hot streak of setting and getting many points of different values. As different individual points are made by the shooter, they will be marked on the craps layout with a fire symbol.
The first three points will not pay out on the fire bet, but the fourth, fifth, and sixth will pay out at increasing odds. The fourth point pays at 24-to-1, the fifth point pays at 249-to-1, and the 6th point pays at 999-to-1. (The points must all be different numbers for them to count toward the fire bet.) For example, a shooter who successfully hits a point of 10 twice will only garner credit for the first one on the fire bet. Players must hit the established point in order for it to count toward the fire bet. The payout is determine by the number of points which have been established and hit after the shooter sevens out.
Bonus Craps: Prior to the initial "come out roll", players may place an optional wager (usually a $1 minimum to a maximum $25) on one or more of the three Bonus Craps wagers, "All Small", "All Tall", or "All or Nothing at All." For players to win the "All Small" wager, the shooter must hit all five small numbers (2, 3, 4, 5, 6) before a seven is rolled; similarly, "All Tall" wins if all five high numbers (8, 9, 10, 11, 12) are hit before a seven is rolled.
These bets pay 35-for-1, for a house advantage of 7.76%. "All or Nothing at All" wins if the shooter hits all 10 numbers before a seven is rolled. This pays 176-for-1, for a house edge of 7.46%. For all three wagers, the order in which the numbers are hit does not matter. Whenever a seven is hit, including on the come out roll, all bonus bets lose, the bonus board is reset, and new bonus bets may be placed.
Multiple different bets
A player may wish to make multiple different bets. For example, a player may wish to bet $1 on all hard ways and the horn. If one of the bets wins, the dealer may automatically replenish the losing bet with profits from the winning bet. In this example, if the shooter rolls a hard 8 (pays 9:1), the horn loses. The dealer may return $5 to the player and place the other $4 on the horn bet which lost. If the player does not want the bet replenished, they should request any or all bets be taken down.
Working and not working bets
A working bet is a live bet. Bets may also be on the board, but not in play and therefore not working. Pass line and come bets are always working meaning the chips are in play and the player is therefore wagering live money. Other bets may be working or not working depending whether a point has been established or player's choice. Place and buy bets are working by default when a point is established and not working when the point is off unless the player specifies otherwise. Lay bets are always working even if a point has not been established unless the player requests otherwise. At any time, a player may wish to take any bet or bets out of play. The dealer will put an "Off" button on the player's specific bet or bets; this allows the player to keep his chips on the board without a live wager. For example, if a player decides not to wager a place bet mid-roll but wishes to keep the chips on the number, they may request the bet be "not working" or "Off". The chips remain on the table, but the player cannot win from or lose chips which are not working.
The opposite is also allowed. By default place and buy bets are not working without an established point; a player may wish to wager chips before a point has been established. In this case, the player would request the bet be working in which the dealer will place an "On" button on the specified chips.
Betting variants
These variants depend on the casino and the table, and sometimes a casino will have different tables that use or omit these variants and others.
11 is a point number instead of a natural. Rolling an 11 still pays "Yo" center-table bets, but the Pass line does not automatically win (and the Don't Pass line does not automatically lose) when 11 is rolled on the come-out. Making the point pays 3:1 on Pass / Come odds bets (1:3 on Don't Pass / Come odds); all line bets are still even money. This substantially reduces the odds of a natural (from 8 / 36 to 6 / 36) and of making the point in general (since a 3:1 dog is added to the mix). All other things equal, the house edge on the Pass Line and Come bets for this play variation jumps dramatically to 9.75%.
12 pays 3:1 on the field. This is generally seen in rooms that have two different table minimums, on the tables with the higher minimums. The lower minimum ones will then have 2:1 odds. For example, the Mirage casino in Las Vegas features 3:1 odds.
11 pays 2:1 on the field. This variant is normally used when 12 pays 3:1, and neutralizes the house edge on the field.
Big 6 / 8 are unavailable. These bets are equivalent to placing or buying 6 or 8 as points, which have better payout for the same real odds, so Big 6 / 8 are rarely used and many casinos simply omit them from the layout. Casinos in Atlantic City are even prohibited by law from offering Big 6 / 8 bets.
Optimal betting
When craps is played in a casino, all bets have a house advantage. That is, it can be shown mathematically that a player will (with 100% probability) lose all their money to the casino in the long run, while in the short run the player is more likely to lose money than make money. There may be players who are lucky and get ahead for a period of time, but in the long run these winning streaks are eroded away. One can slow, but not eliminate, one's average losses by only placing bets with the smallest house advantage.
The Pass / Don't Pass line, Come / Don't Come line, place 6, place 8, buy 4 and buy 10 (only under the casino rules where commission is charged only on wins) have the lowest house edge in the casino, and all other bets will, on average, lose money between three and twelve times faster because of the difference in house edges.
The place bets and buy bets differ from the Pass line and come line, in that place bets and buy bets can be removed at any time, since, while they are multi-roll bets, their odds of winning do not change from roll to roll, whereas Pass line bets and come line bets are a combination of different odds on their first roll and subsequent rolls. The first roll of a Pass line bet is 2:1 advantage for the player (8 wins, 4 losses), but it is "paid for" by subsequent rolls that are at the same disadvantage to the player as the Don't Pass bets were at an advantage. As such, they cannot profitably let the player take down the bet after the first roll. Players can bet or lay odds behind an established point depending on whether it was a Pass / Come or Don't Pass / Don't Come to lower house edge by receiving true odds on the point. Casinos which allow put betting allows players to increase or make new pass / come bets after the come-out roll. This bet generally has a higher house edge than place betting, unless the casino offers high odds.
Conversely, a player can take back (pick up) a Don't Pass or Don't Come bet after the first roll, but this cannot be recommended, because they already endured the disadvantaged part of the combination – the first roll. On that come-out roll, they win just 3 times (2 and 3), while losing 8 of them (7 and 11) and pushing one (12) out of the 36 possible rolls. On the other 24 rolls that become a point, their Don't Pass bet is now to their advantage by 6:3 (4 and 10), 6:4 (5 and 9) and 6:5 (6 and 8). If a player chooses to remove the initial Don't Come and / or Don't Pass line bet, they can no longer lay odds behind the bet and cannot re-bet the same Don't Pass and / or Don't Come number (players must make a new Don't Pass or come bets if desired). However, players can still make standard lay bets odds on any of the point numbers (4,5,6,8,9,10).
Table rules
Besides the rules of the game itself, a number of formal and informal rules are commonly applied in the table form of Craps, especially when played in a casino.
To reduce the potential opportunity for switching dice by sleight-of-hand, players are not supposed to handle the dice with more than one hand (such as shaking them in cupped hands before rolling) nor take the dice past the edge of the table. If a player wishes to change shooting hands, they may set the dice on the table, let go, then take them with the other hand.
When throwing the dice, the player is expected to hit the farthest wall at the opposite end of the table (these walls are typically augmented with pyramidal structures to ensure highly unpredictable bouncing after impact). Casinos will sometimes allow a roll that does not hit the opposite wall as long as the dice are thrown past the middle of the table; a very short roll will be nullified as a "no roll". The dice may not be slid across the table and must be tossed. These rules are intended to prevent dexterous players from physically influencing the outcome of the roll.
Players are generally asked not to throw the dice above a certain height (such as the eye level of the dealers). This is both for the safety of those around the table, and to eliminate the potential use of such a throw as a distraction device in order to cheat.
Dice are still considered "in play" if they land on players' bets on the table, the dealer's working stacks, on the marker puck, or with one die resting on top of the other. The roll is invalid if either or both dice land in the boxman's bank, the stickman's bowl (where the extra three dice are kept between rolls), or in the rails around the top of the table where players chips are kept. If one or both dice hits a player or dealer and rolls back onto the table, the roll counts as long as the person being hit did not intentionally interfere with either of the dice, though some casinos will rule "no roll" for this situation. If one or both leave the table, it is also a "no roll", and the dice may either be replaced or examined by the boxman and returned to play.
Shooters may wish to "set" the dice to a particular starting configuration before throwing (such as showing a particular number or combination, stacking the dice, or spacing them to be picked up between different fingers), but if they do, they are often asked to be quick about it so as not to delay the game. Some casinos disallow such rituals to speed up the pace of the game. Some may also discourage or disallow unsanitary practices such as kissing or spitting on the dice.
Etiquette
Craps is among the most social and most superstitious of all gambling games, which leads to an enormous variety of informal rules of etiquette that players may be expected to follow. An exhaustive list of these is beyond the scope of this article, but the guidelines below are most commonly given.
Tips
Tipping the dealers is universal and expected in Craps. As in most other casino games, a player may simply place (or toss) chips onto the table and say, "For the dealers", "For the crew", etc. In craps, it is also common to place a bet for the dealers. This is usually done one of three ways: by placing an ordinary bet and simply declaring it for the dealers, as a "two-way", or "on top". A "Two-Way" is a bet for both parties: for example, a player may toss in two chips and say "Two Way Hard Eight", which will be understood to mean one chip for the player and one chip for the dealers. Players may also place a stack of chips for a bet as usual, but leave the top chip off-center and announce "on top for the dealers". The dealer's portion is often called a "toke" bet, which comes from the practice of using $1 slot machine tokens to place dealer bets in some casinos.
In some cases, players may also tip each other, for example as a show of gratitude to the thrower for a roll on which they win a substantial bet.
Superstition
Craps players routinely practice a wide range of superstitious behaviors, and may expect or demand these from other players as well.
Most prominently, it is universally considered bad luck to say the word "seven" (after the "come-out", a roll of 7 is a loss for "pass" bets). Dealers themselves often make significant efforts to avoid calling out the number. When necessary, participants may refer to seven with a "nickname" such as "Big Red" (or just "Red"), "the S-word", etc.
Dice setting or dice control
An approach to achieving an advantage is to "set" the dice in a particular orientation, and then throw them in such a manner that they do not tumble randomly. The theory is that given exactly the same throw from exactly the same starting configuration, the dice will tumble in the same way and therefore show the same or similar values every time.
Casinos take steps to prevent this. The dice are usually required to hit the back wall of the table, which is normally faced with a jagged angular texture such as pyramids, making controlled spins more difficult. There has been no independent evidence that such methods can be successfully applied in a real casino.
Variants
Bank craps is a variation of the original craps game and is sometimes known as Las Vegas Craps. This variant is quite popular in Nevada gambling houses, and its availability online has now made it a globally played game. Bank craps uses a special table layout and all bets must be made against the house. In Bank Craps, the dice are thrown over a wire or a string that is normally stretched a few inches from the table's surface. The lowest house edge (for the Pass / Don't Pass) in this variation is around 1.4%. Generally, if the word "craps" is used without any modifier, it can be inferred to mean this version of the game, to which most of this article refers.
Crapless craps, also known as bastard craps, is a simple version of the original craps game, and was invented by Bob Stupak at Vegas World in the 1980's. The biggest difference between crapless craps and original craps is that the shooter (person throwing the dice) is at a far greater disadvantage and has a house edge of 5.38%. Another difference is that this is one of the craps games in which a player can bet on rolling a 2, 3, 11 or 12 before a 7 is thrown. In crapless craps, 2 and 12 have odds of 11:2 and have a house edge of 7.143% while 3 and 11 have odds of 11:4 with a house edge of 6.25%.
New York Craps is one of the variations of craps played mostly in the Eastern coast of the US, true to its name. History states that this game was actually found and played in casinos in Yugoslavia, the UK and the Bahamas. In this craps variant, the house edge is greater than Las Vegas Craps or Bank craps. The table layout is also different, and is called a double-end-dealer table. This variation is different from the original craps game in several ways, but the primary difference is that New York craps does not allow Come or Don't Come bets. New York Craps Players bet on box numbers like 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10. The overall house edge in New York craps is 5%.
Card-based variations
In order to get around Californian laws barring the payout of a game being directly related to the roll of dice, Indian reservations have adapted the game to substitute cards for dice.
Cards replacing dice
To replicate the original dice odds exactly without dice or possibility of card-counting, one scheme uses two shuffle machines each with just one deck of Ace through 6 each. Each machine selects one of the 6 cards at random and this is the roll. The selected cards are replaced and the decks are reshuffled for the next roll.
In one variation, two shoes are used, each containing some number of regular card decks that have been stripped down to just the Aces and deuces through sixes. The boxman simply deals one card from each shoe and that is the roll on which bets are settled. Since a card-counting scheme is easily devised to make use of the information of cards that have already been dealt, a relatively small portion (less than 50%) of each shoe is usually dealt in order to protect the house.
In a similar variation, cards representing dice are dealt directly from a continuous shuffling machine (CSM). Typically, the CSM will hold approximately 264 cards, or 44 sets of 1 through 6 spot cards. Two cards are dealt from the CSM for each roll. The game is played exactly as regular craps, but the roll distribution of the remaining cards in the CSM is slightly skewed from the normal symmetric distribution of dice.
Even if the dealer were to shuffle each roll back into the CSM, the effect of buffering a number of cards in the chute of the CSM provides information about the skew of the next roll. Analysis shows this type of game is biased towards the Don't Pass and Don't Come bets. A player betting Don't Pass and Don't Come every roll and laying 10x odds receives a 2% profit on the initial Don't Pass / Don't Come bet each roll. Using a counting system allows the player to attain a similar return at lower variance.
Cards mapping physical dice
In this game variation, one red deck and one blue deck of six cards each (A through 6), and a red die and a blue die are used. Each deck is shuffled separately, usually by machine. Each card is then dealt onto the layout, into the 6 red and 6 blue numbered boxes. The shooter then shoots the dice. The red card in the red-numbered box corresponding to the red die, and the blue card in the blue-numbered box corresponding to the blue die are then turned over to form the roll on which bets are settled.
Another variation uses a red and a blue deck of 36 custom playing cards each. Each card has a picture of a two-die roll on it – from one-one to six-six. The shooter shoots what looks like a red and a blue die, called "cubes". They are numbered such that they can never throw a pair, and that the blue one will show a higher value than the red one exactly half the time. One such scheme could be two-two-two-five-five-five on the red die and three-three-three-four-four-four on the blue die.
One card is dealt from the red deck and one is dealt from the blue deck. The shooter throws the "cubes" and the color of the cube that is higher selects the color of the card to be used to settle bets. On one such table, an additional one-roll prop bet was offered: If the card that was turned over for the "roll" was either one-one or six-six, the other card was also turned over. If the other card was the "opposite" (six-six or one-one, respectively) of the first card, the bet paid 500:1 for this 647:1 proposition.
And additional variation uses a single set of 6 cards, and regular dice. The roll of the dice maps to the card in that position, and if a pair is rolled, then the mapped card is used twice, as a pair.
Rules of play against other players ("Street Craps")
Recreational or informal playing of craps outside of a casino is referred to as street craps or private craps. The most notable difference between playing street craps and bank craps is that there is no bank or house to cover bets in street craps. Players must bet against each other by covering or fading each other's bets for the game to be played. If money is used instead of chips and depending on the laws of where it is being played, street craps can be an illegal form of gambling.
There are many variations of street craps. The simplest way is to either agree on or roll a number as the point, then roll the point again before rolling a seven. Unlike more complex proposition bets offered by casinos, street craps has more simplified betting options. The shooter is required to make either a Pass or a Don't Pass bet if he wants to roll the dice. Another player must choose to cover the shooter to create a stake for the game to continue.
If there are several players, the rotation of the player who must cover the shooter may change with the shooter (comparable to a blind in poker). The person covering the shooter will always bet against the shooter. For example, if the shooter made a "Pass" bet, the person covering the shooter would make a "Don't Pass" bet to win. Once the shooter is covered, other players may make Pass / Don't Pass bets, or any other proposition bets, as long as there is another player willing to cover.
In popular culture
Due to the random nature of the game, in popular culture a "crapshoot" is often used to describe an action with an unpredictable outcome.
The prayer or invocation "Baby needs a new pair of shoes!" is associated with shooting craps.
Floating craps
Floating craps is an illegal operation of craps. The term floating refers to the practice of the game's operators using portable tables and equipment to quickly move the game from location to location to stay ahead of the law enforcement authorities. The term may have originated in the 1930s when Benny Binion (later known for founding the downtown Las Vegas hotel Binion's) set up an illegal craps game utilizing tables created from portable crates for the Texas Centennial Exposition.
The 1950 Broadway musical Guys and Dolls features a major plot point revolving around a floating craps game.
In the 1950s and 1960s The Sands Hotel in Las Vegas had a craps table that floated in the swimming pool, as a joke reference to the notoriety of the term.
Records
A Golden Arm is a craps player who rolls the dice for longer than one hour without losing. Likely the first known Golden Arm was Oahu native Stanley Fujitake, who rolled 118 times without sevening out in 3 hours and 6 minutes at the California Hotel and Casino on May 28, 1989.
The current record for length of a "hand" (successive rounds won by the same shooter) is 154 rolls including 25 passes by Patricia DeMauro of New Jersey, lasting 4 hours and 18 minutes, at the Borgata in Atlantic City, New Jersey, on May 23–24, 2009. She bested by over an hour the record held for almost 20 years – that of Fujitake.