A friendly craps game

7 January 2016

By John Grochowski

When I hear from craps players about friendly – and sometimes less than friendly – jibes directed at a player because of their wagers, it’s usually about a don’t pass/don’t come bettor being taunted by those betting with the shooter.

That’s only to be expected. I personally have no problem with so-called “wrong” bettors, and even cross over to the dark side myself every now and then given that the house edge is slightly lower on the don’t side. But the win-together camaraderie is part of the fun of craps, and some players feel as if don’t bettors are wagering against them personally.

A player named Van had a different kind of experience, with a don’t bettor snapping back after the shooter made a point. Van wrote in response to a recent column on blackjack players who expect others to make bad plays for the same of the “team,” even though there’s no real team unless they’re covering each other’s losses.

“Thought you might be interested in the following anecdote from my experience at the craps tables,” Van wrote. “I am straight out left, shooter is a youngster just around the hook to my right, a 30-something green chipper is next to second base on my left.”

For those not familiar with the patter, “straight out left” and “around the hook” refer to positions where the players are standing around the craps table. A “green chipper” is the same as in any other table game, a player betting green $25 chips.

“It’s a $5 table with 2x odds. With a $5 pass bet, the youngster sets a point of 4 and takes $10 odds. Green chipper, a steady wrongsider, has $25 don't pass and lays $100 odds.”

Aside to those who don’t regularly play craps: 2x odds means a pass bettor can back his wager with a free odds bet of twice his pass bet. The odds bet is paid at true odds, and the true odds against making 4 are 2-1, so the $10 odds bet would pay $20 if the shooter rolled another 4 before the next 7.

Don’t pass bettors lay the odds instead – they spot the house true odds. With laying odds of $100, the pass don’t bettor had the opportunity to win $50 on the odds, along with $25 on his don’t pass bet, if the shooter rolled 7 before the next 4.

“Kid makes the point and cheers, ‘Yes!’ possibly with a fist pump [don't remember].

“Wrongsider says to kid, ‘You realize the house loves you. You just made them $100.’

“I was unable to refrain from commenting to Greenie, ‘Guess he didn't hear you tell him you'd cover his loss.’”

Perhaps the don’t pass bettor had heard one too many remarks about betting against the crowd. Perhaps he was on a losing streak and in a sour mood, or was just always combative type.

But players at a craps table aren’t part of a team joining forces against the house any more than players at a blackjack table are. Card-counting teams are an exception, of course, and casinos are understandably wary of the damage they can do to the bottom line.

For most of us, looking after our own bets is quite enough. Had the young shooter’s enthusiasm for winning been dampened one bit because a player betting the other side wagered more money, it would have been the upset of the day.

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