Players can bet with or against the person controlling the dice, thus giving players the advantage to bet with the casino.  A player throws two dice to start the game. If a number 7 or 11 appears the game is over, they win what is call the pass line bet, they made one successful pass of the dice.  However, if they roll a 2, 3 or 12, on the first throw of the dice, they call this craps and they lose their pass line bet, and they start a new game with a new come out roll, the dice do not pass to the next player.  If the player does not roll a 2, 3, 7, 11, 12, the remaining numbers if rolled on the first roll of the dice become the "Point."  If a remaining number, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10 are rolled the player continues throwing the dice until they roll either a 7, in which case they would lose or the "point" number, in which case they would win.  When the player rolls the "point" number before rolling the number 7, this would be another successful pass, winning the pass line bet and then a new game would start.

Synopsis:
Beginners need to concentrate more on the basic bets rather than all the possible ways in which a player can place additional money on a crap table.  We design this page of information to give a novice or beginning player a fundamental look at the game.  They have written hundreds of books on this subject and we are not going to answer all questions in one page of information. As a player, we recommend knowing a few basic terms, such as:

Pass Line:
As explained briefly in the Overview, this is the basic beginning of the game. A player can place wagers on the Pass Line and receive even money should the person throwing the dice make a successful pass, a winning 7 or 11 on the first roll or repeating the Point number before throwing a 7.  The pass line bet should only be made before the first roll of the dice.  However, if a Point number is established, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, they allow the player to place another bet behind the original pass line bet, they call this taking the Odds on the Pass Line bet. (See Odds) The payoff varies depending on which number has been established as the Point and the casino in which you are gambling.

Odds - Pass Line:
As unusual as this may sound, craps offers the player the only casino game where they can make a bet and neither the casino nor the player has an advantage.  The Odds bet is nothing more than a second bet after they have established the Point number.  This second bet allows the player an additional way of placing more money in the game, called laying Odds. The second bet, or taking the odds, pays a higher ration than the original Pass Line bet because the player has less than a 50% chance of having a 7 appear before rolling the "point" number to win the Pass Line bet.

Some casinos will allow the player to bet up to 100 times their original Pass Line bet.  The casino has an advantage of only 1.41% when a player bets on the Pass Line.  If the Point is a 6 or 8 the Odds pay 6:5, if the Point is a 5 or 9 the Odds pay 3:2, and if the Point is a 4 or 10 the Odds pay 2:1.  The more Odds allowed bet helps reduce the overall house advantage for the combined two bets, Pass Line and Odds on Pass Line.

Below is a table showing how the Odds bet can help lower the 1.52% advantage the casino enjoys from the original Pass Line bet.  It is in the economic best interest of the player to take full Odds.  This chart deals in fractions of a decimal point, but is very important when that winning casino decimal point is multiplied against Your money!

Don't Pass:
Just as the name suggests, this is the opposite of the Pass Line bet.  When betting the Don’t Pass line, on the first roll of the dice a 2 or 3 gives the Don’t Pass bettor a win and they lose on a 7 or 11.   The number 12 is a "push," neither the casino nor the Don’t Pass bettor changes any money.  The overall concept is 180 degrees from the Pass Line Bettor.  If they do not roll a 2, 3, 7, 11 on the first roll, they establish a Point number and the game continues until they roll the number 7 or the point number.   Don’t Pass bettor wins if a 7 appears before they roll the point number.

This is a perfectly legal way to bet, but remember most of the table will be betting on the Pass Line.  Therefore, what makes a Don’t Pass bettor a winner, makes the entire crap table a loser.   Quietly pick up your winnings and continue, crap tables can get very verbal.   The casino advantage when a player bets the Don't Pass is 1.40%.

Odds - Don't Pass Line:
If a player bets on the Don't Pass Line, they may take the Don't Odds if a point is established.  Casino advantage of the Don't Pass Odds bet is 0%.  Opposite of laying odds on the Pass Line Bet, the Don't Pass Odds are betting on rolling a 7 before the point in rolled.    These Odds pay different amount depending on what number is the Point.

Come:
Never wanting a gambler to become bored by waiting for the Point number to be rolled or a 7, this game has other avenues a player can bet on while the first part of the game continues.  The Come bet functions on the same principles as the Pass Line Bet, except it is not on the first roll of the dice.   After a Point has been established, a player can place a bet on the Come.   Once again, 2, 3 12, they will lose, 7 or 11 and they will win an amount equal to their bet.

However, if a 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10 is rolled your Come bet is moved to that number and you can lay Odds on this bet just like a Pass Line Bet.   This bet works like a separate Pass Line bet in that it remains in play until the number is rolled again or a 7.  Should the original Pass Line bet win, by rolling the Point number again, Come bettors have a decision to make at this time.   They can make the Odds part of the Come bet active or not.  Since these Come Bets act similar to Pass Line Bets, a new throw of the dice can cause the Come Bet to win or lose also.  Come Odds bets give the casino an advantage of 1.41%.

Don't Come:
As you may have guessed, Don't Come bet is the Opposite of the Come bet.  This is similar to the Don't Pass Line bet with the continuation of a Come bet.

Other Bets:
Yes, a player has a few other options that they can bet on during the crap game, such as Hard Ways, Placed Numbers, Big 6, Big 8, Field Bets, Hopper Bets, Proposition Bets, to name a few.  Depending on what expert you converse with, these bets are usually considered either wasted money, useless, or a place where foolish money puts their money before the casino ends up with it all.    If you would like to learn more about craps, as mentioned previously, literally hundreds of books have been written on the subject of craps.

Our research results suggest before you adventure further with your money, stick with the basics described above.  For example, the casino advantage on the popular Hard Ways bet is as follows.

Reason many people play craps is to play a high percentage chance of winning against a game that the casino is not favored so heavily.  Considering casino advantages of  9.09% and 11.11% on Hardways and some Proposition bets have a casino advantage of more than 16% advantage -- these obviously s are not good bets.  In conclusion, if you want to learn additional ways to lose money, please find that information at other web sites.   We hope you come to Las Vegas and have a fighting chance of winning, not wasting your time on low percentage bets.