Tag Archives: 4
Craps Terms – Part Two
Today, we continue our Craps Terms series with more terms. We stopped off at “for the boys” last session. Today, we pick it up with an animal-the Buffalo. Let’s get started.
Buffalo: Okay, it’s not an animal. When you make a buffalo wager, you’re betting on each of the Hardways and Any Seven. If you want to mix it up, you can make a Buffalo-Yo wager, which is all of the Hardways and a Yo (eleven) bet.
Buy: When you place a number, you can buy it. When you buy the number, you’re paying a 5% commission for true odds. You’ll rarely see the 5,6,8 or 9 bought. It’s almost always the 4 and 10. Why? Well, when you buy the 4 and 10 you get 2 for 1 odds rather than 9 for 5. Imagine you bought the 4 for $25. Each time the 4 hits, you would be paid $50. Your commission would be $1. The commission is off the bet not the win. Also, the commission is rounded down, as most Craps tables don’t have 25-cent cheques.
C and E: This is an extremely common wager on the come out roll. When you make a C and E wager, you’re betting on Any Craps and Eleven (Yo). It’s a one-roll wager. You can make this bet any time, but most people do it on the come out roll to protect their Pass Line bets.
Charting: If you go to the casinos in Downtown Las Vegas, you’re likely to see a charter. Charting is when you record the action of a table. Usually this is done on a notepad. Why chart a table? Many people who do it believe there are patterns in the dice-not true. Others do it on a person by person basis, because they believe people have certain patterns. If you play online, you can do this easily and without standing out like you would at a real table.
Change Only: IMPORTANT! If you do nothing else, remember this command. When you are at a real Craps table and you throw money down, it plays where it stays unless you say “Change Only.” Many unsuspecting people have thrown their money down expecting change only to see it gobbled up after it lost. Now, if you want the money to be a bet, just don’t say another word or say “Money Plays.” That’s the command for letting the money sit and play. The dealer shouldn’t touch the money.
Cheques: This is the official term for what many call chips. Let’s say you have a $100 cheque and you want a stack of $5 cheques, you would put down your cheque in the Come area and say “Cheque Change.” That’s the dealer’s cue that you don’t want it to play and that you want smaller cheques/chips.
That ends today’s Craps terms session. Next time we’ll pick it up with terms like cocked dice, cold table, coloring up, come out roll and many more.
Craps Bets: Learn the House Advantage for Each
Be smart, play smart, and learn how to play craps the right way!
Knowing the house advantage for each craps bet does more for your bankroll and playing enjoyment than anything else. Based on house advantages, some bets are considered “good” (they have a relatively low house advantage) and others are considered “bad” (they have a relatively high house advantage). So, which craps bets are considered “good” and “bad” for the player? The various craps bets with their house advantages are summarized below. I consider bets with house advantages of 2% or less as “good,” those with house advantages greater than 4% as “bad,” and those with house advantages between 2% and 4% as “maybe.” I usually dont make any of the “maybe” bets, but if you do, you wont be giving up too much. Note: “HA” stands for “house advantage.”
Dont Pass, Dont Come (with single Odds), HA 0.69% = Good bet.
Pass Line, Come (with single Odds), HA 0.85% = Good bet.
Dont Pass, Dont Come, HA 1.40% = Good bet.
Pass Line, Come, HA 1.41% = Good bet.
Place 6 or 8, HA 1.52% = Good bet.
Buy 4 or 10 (pay vigorish on win), HA 1.64% = Good bet.
Lay 4 or 10 (pay vig on win), HA 1.64% = Good bet.
Buy 5 or 9 (pay vig on win), HA 1.96% = Good bet.
Lay 5 or 9 (pay vig on win), HA 1.96% = Good bet.
Buy 6 or 8 (pay vig on win), HA 2.22% = Maybe bet.
Lay 6 or 8 (pay vig on win), HA 2.22% = Maybe bet.
Lay 4 or 10 (pay vig up front), HA 2.44% = Maybe bet.
Field (triple for 12 or 2), HA 2.78% = Maybe bet.
Lay 5 or 9 (pay vigorish up front), HA 3.23% = Maybe bet.
Lay 6 or 8 (pay vig up front), HA 4.00% = Maybe bet.
Place 5 or 9, HA 4.00% = Maybe bet.
Buy 4 or 10 (pay vig up front), HA 4.76% = Bad bet.
Buy 5 or 9 (pay vig up front), HA 4.76% = Bad bet.
Buy 6 or 8 (pay vig up front), HA 4.76% = Bad bet.
Field (double for 2 and 12), HA 5.55% = Bad bet.
Place 4 or 10, HA 6.67% = Bad bet.
Big 6 or Big 8, HA 9.09% = Bad bet.
Hard 6 or Hard 8, HA 9.09% = Bad bet.
Any Craps, HA 11.10% = Terrible bet.
3 or 11, HA 11.10% = Terrible bet.
C & E, HA 11.10% = Terrible bet.
Hard 4 or Hard 10, HA 11.10% = Terrible bet.
Hop two ways, HA 11.10% = Terrible bet.
Horn, HA 12.50% = Really stupid bet.
Whirl (World), HA 13.33% = Really stupid bet.
2 or 12, HA 13.89% = Really stupid bet.
Hop one way, HA 13.89% = Really stupid bet.
Any 7, HA 16.67% = Total sucker bet (stop throwing your money away!).
Over 7 or Under 7, HA 16.67% = Total sucker bet (stop throwing your money away!).
Its important to remember that whether a bet is deemed “good” or “bad” is based on many rolls over time. In the relatively short blip of time that you stand at the craps table on any particular day, you may experience a hiccup in the normal distribution where even the worst bets hit one right after the other. For example, suppose you walk up to the table and play your usual conservative game. The table is ice cold at that specific moment and 10 shooters in a row 7-out. The whole time youre losing with your conservative “good” bets, the drunk next to you keeps hitting his “bad” $5 Field bet that only pays double for the 2 and 12. Be assured, this guys hot streak will soon end and then hell lose all his money. You can be sure that time is against him and hell most certainly lose. Maybe not today or tomorrow, but certainly over the next few days. Always give yourself the best chance of winning by making bets with the lowest house advantage.
Now you know! Remember, learn how to play craps the right way.