There
is a lot of terminology used in the game of craps
that is confusing for new players. First there
is the advantage, or house edge. If you have played
other casino games, you may be familiar with this
term. It refers to the amount of advantage the
casino has over the player. In all casino games,
the house has some sort of advantage, or edge.
The casino would not offer the game without having
an advantage over the player.
The word craps has two meanings, besides being
the name of the game. The first meaning refers
to rolling a 2, 3 or 12. These numbers are considered
craps. They are non-point numbers. The word craps
or “any craps” is also used to refer
to a bet that the shooter will roll one of the
numbers that is considered craps on the next roll.
The term “any seven” refers to a bet
that the shooter will roll a seven, in any combination
of the dice (1-6, 2-5 or 3-4).
If you have been to the bar or the 12, this means
you are in the don’t pass line and don’t
come box area. Behind the line means a bet made
on the free odds after scoring a point on the
come out roll. Then there is betting left and
betting right. Betting right is betting on the
dice to pass and betting left is betting against
the dice.
When you bet the big 6 or the big 8, you are making
an even-money bet that a six or an eight will
be rolled before a seven is rolled. The box numbers
are the areas surrounding the numbers 4, 5, 6,
8, 9 and 10. Place and lay bets are made in this
area.
Another term is boxcars, which refers to rolling
a twelve. The boxman is the worker who watches
over the craps table. He sits behind the chips
during the game.
When players say to “bring out,” they
are betting on a point. The five percent commission
paid to the casino is referred to as a buy bet.
When a player pays the commission to place a buy
bet, they are paid based on the true odds rather
than the normal payout if they win. Craps bets
found in the center of the layout are called center
bets or proposition bets.
The tokens that are used to place bets are called
chips. These are used instead of money. Cold dice
are dice that don’t pass the line. A color
change refers to chips that change their the
don’t come bet is made by placing chips
in the don’t come box. This bet is made
after the come out roll, which is the first roll
in a round. The don’t pass bet is made at
the don’t pass line.
Double odds are free odds bets made at double
the amount of the bet. The expression easy way
means that you are betting a number 4, 6, 8 or
10 in any of the possible combinations. The hard
way refers to rolling doubles. The payoff on betting
the easy way is an even-money bet.
A field bet is a bet that either a 2, 3, 4, 9,
10, 11 or 12 will be rolled next. The stickman
authorizes player credits and stands behind the
craps tables to oversee everything and make sure
there are no problems.
The house does not have the advantage on a free
odds bet. This can happen on a come, don’t
come or taken pass after the point is established.
The pass line can also be referred to as the front
line.
When someone bets a number the hard way, they
are betting that the number will come up as doubles.
So if someone bets eight the hard way, and the
shooter rolls 5-3, the bet is lost. If the shooter
rolls 4-4, the bet is won. The hard way bet is
also lost if the shooter rolls a seven. If the
shooter rolls any other number, the hard way bet
is left in place for the next roll.
A high roller in craps, as in any other game,
is a player who gambles a large amount of money
at the table. High rollers often bet thousands
of dollars at a time.
A hop bet is a one roll bet on a specific dice
combination, such as 2-3 or 5-5. The bet is paid
at 30 to 1 for hard way bets and 15 to 1 for easy
way bets.
A place bet is a bet on the number 4, 5, 6, 8,
9 or 10. If the number that is bet on comes up
before the seven, then the bet is won. A lay bet
is the opposite of a place bet. The lay bet is
won if the seven comes up before the number does.
The term hot roll refers to the dice being held
by one shooter for a long run before the seven
comes up. Rolling a seven once the number has
been established ends the shooter’s turn. |
