Craps Possibilities
- May 27, 2019 The Types and Possibilities of Craps Strategies. Everyone who paid a visit to a casino with the intention to learn to play craps saw people cheering around the craps table. The majority of beginners’ first impression is that someone has just won big money. In fact, it’s the game that creates a fun atmosphere.
- If the shooter’s come out roll results in a 2, 3, or 12, referred to as “craps,” the passline bets are lost. In the event that any other number is rolled (1, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10), that number becomes the “point number” and the shooter then hopes to roll that point number again for the win before he rolls a 7.
The essential starting ground for craps odds and probabilities is with the dice roll itself. Since bets are made based on the potential outcome of the dice, knowing how often, or how infrequently a number combination will occur is the foundation for betting odds in craps.
Craps is a dice rolling game in which players make bets/wagers on the outcome of a single roll or a series of dice rolls, usually a pair of dice. Players may wager money against each other or a whats considered as a bank which is also referred to as playing “casino craps”, “table craps”, or “craps”.
In a casino that offers Craps, players make bets using casino chips and bet on a specially made craps table. Each craps table has what is called a “layout”. A layout is a table cloth made of felt that illustrates the various betting possibilities or scenarios which can vary in bet presence, position, and payout depending on the casino you are playing at.
Proposition bets are an additional group of bets is in the middle of the layout and are used for bets by players from both sides of the table.
Typically, the craps table is run and/or managed by a number of casino employees. The first is called a boxman. The boxman is usually seated behind the casino’s bank and typically is the only seated employee. The boxman manages the chips, supervises the dealers and handles exchanging small chip denominations for larger denominations in order to preserve the chips at a table players, which is also known as “coloring up”.
There are also Base Dealers at the table. Base dealers stand to either side of the boxman. They collect and pay bets to players around their half of the table. The stickman, who stands directly across the table from the boxman is the one responsible for taking and paying the bets in the center of the table and announces the results of each roll The stickman is also the one who moves the dice across the layout with an elongated wooden stick, hence the name “stickman”.
Some smaller casinos have introduced “mini-craps” tables which are operated with only two dealers and in this scenario the responsibilities change between the two employees.
When playing, players take turns rolling two dice and whoever is throwing the dice is referred to as the “shooter”. Players can bet by placing chips directly on the appropriately-marked sections of the layout and bet or wager on any possible outcome of the roll.
While acting as the shooter in a given scenario the player must have a bet on the “Pass” line or the “Don’t Pass” line. These lines are also called the “Win” and “Don’t Win” or “Right” and “Wrong” bets. The game is played in rounds and the aforementioned “Pass” and “Don’t Pass” bets are betting on the outcome of a specific individual round with payouts usually outlined by the casino and/or dealer.
Each round has two phases which are known as the “come-out” and the “point”. To start a round, the shooter makes one or more “come-out” rolls. A come-out roll of the number 2, 3 or 12 is called “craps” or also can be called simply “crapping out”. Anyone betting the Pass line loses the bet. A come-out roll of 7 or 11 is called a “natural” and when that occurs the Pass line wins. The other possible numbers are the point numbers and the point numbers are 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.
There are numerous scenarios, possibilities and outcomes when playing craps and can be a very addicting game of chance. This popularity has motivated us to create a craps app for you to take on the go so you can get familiar with this game for next time you visit the casino.
Craps Odds and Probabilities - Calculating Craps Combinations
Calculating craps odds and probability seems hard, but it's not as complicated as one might think. When calculating the probabilities of any gambling activity, the first thing one looks at is the number of potential outcomes. When rolling two six-sided dice, like you in a game of craps, there are 36 possible outcomes. (There are only 11 possible totals, 2 through 12, but there are 36 combinations that can result in those totals.)
Craps Possibilities Game
There is only one way to roll a 2 (or a 12). Roll a 1 on each die (or a 6 on each die.) Since there are 36 possible combinations, and only 1 of those combinations can total 2, the probability of getting a 2 on a roll is 1 out of 36, or 35 to 1, as stated in odds terms. There are 2 ways to roll a 3 though - you can roll a 1 and a 2, or roll a 2 and a 1, so the probability of rolling a 3 is 2 out of 36. 2 out of 36 is the same as 1 out of 18, which stated in odds terms is 17 to 1.
Here's a chart outlining the possible combinations, how many ways each total can be rolled, and what the odds are for each total.
Total | Number of Ways to Roll This Total | Odds | Combinations |
2 | 1 | 35 to 1 | 1,1 |
3 | 2 | 17 to 1 | 1,2 + 2,1 |
4 | 3 | 11 to 1 | 1,3 + 3,1 + 2,2 |
5 | 4 | 8 to 1 | 1,4 + 4,1 + 2,3 + 3,2 |
6 | 5 | 6.2 to 1 | 1,5 + 5,1 + 2,4 + 4,2 + 3,3 |
7 | 6 | 5 to 1 | 1,6 + 6,1 +2,5 + 5,2 + 3,4 + 4,3 |
8 | 5 | 6.2 to 1 | 2,6 + 6,2 + 3,5 + 5,3 +4,4 |
9 | 4 | 8 to 1 | 3,6 + 6,3 + 4,5 +5,4 |
10 | 3 | 11 to 1 | 4,6 + 6,4 + 5,5 |
11 | 2 | 17 to 1 | 5,6 + 6,5 |
12 | 1 | 35 to 1 | 6,6 |
Calculating the Odds in Craps
The formula used to calculate the odds of rolling a specific total in craps is actually pretty simple. Divide 36 by the number of combinations that will make that total. Since there are 6 combinations which will total 7, the probability is 36 divide by 6, or 1 in 6 chance of rolling a 7.
Converting this to odds is easy to. Odds are always stated as the number of possibilities of something not happening versus the number of possibilities of something happening. For every roll of 7 there will be 5 rolls that aren't 7.
Craps Probabilities and the House Edge
The house edge is the difference between what the house pays out on a bet and it's true odds. For example, if a casino pays $30 for a $1 bet that someone will roll a 2, it's making a profit, because the true odds are 35 to 1. To be a break even bet, the casino would need to pay out $35 on that bet. (And return the $1 bet.) But if a casino had nothing but break even bets, it wouldn't make a profit. Without a profit, they'd have no reason to exist, and one wouldn't get to play craps.
Craps -- From Wolfram MathWorld
It's good to understand how probabilities and odds are calculated because not all bets have as high a house edge as other bets. If one understands the math behind the odds, one can then choose the better bets, the ones with the lowest house edge. Choosing the bets with the lowest house edge is just good craps strategy.