The Excitement of Craps

29 June 2024

By Jerry Stickman

From George in Wisconsin

Hello “Stickman”

I love the game of craps. The action, the excitement, the potential to win big are all major draws for me to the game. There is a certain flow to the game. There are periods where point 7-out follows point 7-out and other periods where the roller has everything going for him (or her).

I have always been a believer that you have to “strike while the iron is hot.” I bet very cautiously when the table is in a down cycle, but quickly switch to getting everything I can from a hot table. By this I mean rapidly pressing bets on a win, and spreading to more numbers as the wins continue. One additional thing I am considering to get more from a hot table is to work all my bets on come-out rolls of a hot shooter. Why win just even money from come bets when you can win on the odds bet also?

I know most of the pundits say to never work come-out bets, but I am only doing this on a hot roller. To quote another saying – “make hay while the sun shines”

Any comments?

George

Hi George,

I do agree with you that craps is an exciting and action-filled game. It is also a very social game. When on a good roll, the entire table is in the shooters corner, cheering for each additional winning roll. It is very hard to top that excitement at any other casino game.

I do have a few comments about your playing methods.

I assume that you are betting on random rollers. That is, rollers who just grab the two dice and toss them down the table. They do not set the dice the same way before each throw, pick up the dice so they are perfectly in line and gently toss them so the dice maintain the exact same rotation in the air. They land softly and gently fall to the table after touching the back wall. Those things are the mark of a shooter practicing dice control.

With a random roller, betting minimally is a good idea – all the time. Here is why.

You are right in stating there are streaks of point 7-out and streaks where everything seems to go perfectly. Betting low when things are going poorly is obviously very good advice. But what about when things start going well?

Betting up into a winning streak does seem to be a good idea. Strike while the iron is hot and make hay while the sun shines are both excellent ideas. This will make you more money – as long as the streak continues.

The problem with a random shooter is … the game is random. By definition, no one knows when the streak is going to end. Pressing your bets too quickly (before you have a profit from the roll) puts you in a vulnerable position. If you have more money on the table than you have collected in winnings from the shooter and the shooter throws a 7, all that money is gone. Even though the shooter may have had a long roll, you are a loser on the roll.

The same is true with working bets on the come-out. With bets working and if by some unforeseen reason the shooter throws a 7 on come-out, you will lose everything you have on the table. With bets turned off on come-out, you will only lose the base portion of your come-bets. The odds will be returned and place bets are untouched. The 7 randomly occurs far too often (once every six rolls on average) to put everything at risk on come-out with a random shooter.

Remember, the casino has an edge on every bet on the craps table (the odds portion of a line or come bet has no edge either way). Unless the shooter can control the dice, in the long run, you will lose a portion of every dollar you bet on the table. Don’t give the casino the opportunity to take more from you than necessary. Don’t work your bet’s on the come-out – regardless of the many streaks that are in progress.

As always, may all your wins be swift and large, and your losses be slow and small.

Jerry “Stickman”

Jerry “Stickman” is an expert in craps, blackjack and video poker and advantage slot machine play. He is a regular contributor to top gaming magazines and 888casino.com. He authored the video poker section of Everything Casino Poker: Get the Edge at Video Poker, Texas Hold'em, Omaha Hi-Lo, and Pai Gow Poker! You can contact Jerry “Stickman” at stickmanjerryg@gmail.com
.