Learning how to play craps isn’t as difficult as you might think. People are often steer away from playing the game because they think its too complex, but the only particularly complicated aspect is all the different types of bets that can be placed.
The Any Craps Bet. T he Any Craps is a one-roll bet, which means it doesn’t “stand” for repeated rolls (such as the Pass Line bet). If a craps appears on the roll immediately after making the bet, you win. If a craps doesn’t show, you lose. A “craps” is when the dice show a 2, 3 or 12. Don’t confuse a 7-out with a craps.
Place Bets in Craps Game. These bets are somewhat simple. There are actually two different types of place bets. One is called place bet to win and the other is place bet to lose. Essentially, these are bets. Craps is a dice game in which the players make wagers on the outcome of the roll, or a series of rolls, of a pair of dice. Players may wager money against each other (playing 'street craps') or a bank (playing '.
This is one of the more complicated and interesting bets in craps. First I will start off talking about the buy bet. Basically, players can make a bet on the established point numbers at any time. Players will win if the shooter rolls the point number. For this style of play, these are the best craps bets to make: 1. Pass Line Bet 2. Don't Pass Bet 3. Don't Come Bet 5.
You don’t actually need to learn all of them to start playing and you can just stick to the simplest ones if you like.
You do, however, need to understand how the game is played.
This article will help as we cover everything you need to know to play craps in a live casino or online.
We explain the main objective of the game, the craps table, the betting layout, and the basic rules. We also introduce the different types of bets.
Game Objective in Craps
The main objective in craps is really quite straightforward. Basically you are just betting on the outcome of the roll of two dice.
Craps is pure chance since you can’t affect the outcome in any way, but you do have the choice of several wagers. The majority of these wagers are ultimately based on what combination of dice will be rolled.
The goal in craps is therefore to try to correctly predict which numbers will come up on the next roll. This is, of course, guesswork, but it doesn’t stop the game being a lot of fun.
Craps is played on a specially-designed table that features a betting layout where players can place their wagers. In a live casino, a table would look something like this.The dice are rolled on the table by one of the participating players, referred to as the shooter. Typically, a new player will become the shooter at the end of each round, although one player may remain as the shooter for several in a row.
Anyone at the table, including the shooter, can make wagers by placing their chips in the appropriate spot on the betting layout.
A craps table requires the attention of several casino employees. You’ll usually find the following people running a table.
- Boxman
- Stickman
- Base Dealers
The boxman is in charge of the chips at the table. He (or she) will exchange cash into chips for players and swap them for different denominations if required. He’s also responsible for supervising the dealers and generally ensuring that the game runs smoothly.
The stickman is in charge of the dice. He moves them around the table with the use of a stick (hence the name), passing them to the shooter at the start of each roll. He will also announce the outcome of each roll.
A craps table usually features two base dealers, one standing on either side. They are responsible for collecting losing bets and paying out winners. When requested to do so, they can also place certain bets on behalf of players.
The rules of craps are the same regardless of whether you are playing in a live setting or online. However, things are a lot simpler online. There’s no allocated shooter, as technically you are the shooter every time you play.
The diced are rolled automatically when you press the relevant button, and you place your bets by clicking in the appropriate place on the betting layout.
The following is an example of what an online craps table looks like:
Basic Rules
Each round in craps starts with what is known as the come-out roll. Most casinos will require that the shooter place a bet before making this roll on either the pass line or the don’t pass line.
If the combined value of the two dice on a come-out roll equals 2, 3, or 12, then this is “crapping out” and the round is over. Players will lose pass line bets and win don’t pass bets. If the come-out roll is 7 or 11, the round is also over.
![Craps Bets Explained Craps Bets Explained](https://roadgambler.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/Miragep2thumb.jpg)
Players win pass line bets and lose don’t pass bets.
If any other value is rolled on the come-out roll i.e. 4, 5, 6, 8, 9 or 10, then a point is established, equal to the value rolled, and the round continues into the next stage.
The shooter continues to roll with players betting on the outcome of each, until they roll either a 7 or the point value that has been established.
Following a roll of either 7 or the point value, the round is over and a new come-out roll is required. It’s standard practice for the shooter to pass the dice to another player if a round ends with a 7, and to stay as shooter if the round ends with the point value being rolled.
This is essentially all there is to the basic rules of craps. What makes the game more complex are all the different bets that can be placed.
The following is a list of the different wagers you can place when playing craps.
- Pass Line
- Don’t Pass
- Come
- Don’t Come
- Pass Line Odds
- Don’t Pass Odds
- Come Odds
- Don’t Come Odds
- Place Win
- Place Lose
- Buy
- Lay
- Big 6
- Big 8
- Hardways
- Field
- Any 7
- Any 11
- Any Craps
- Ace Deuce
- Aces
- Boxcar
As you can see, there are numerous different bets in craps. Please don’t let this steer you away from playing the game as you really don’t need to learn them all.
They are pretty simple overall; it just takes a little time to familiarize yourself with each one.
You can read about all these bets in more detail here.
If you’re ready to put what you’ve learned here into action, you might want to consider trying out an online casino. You can play craps at most of the top online casinos that we recommend. If you want to play for real money, you’ll get a bonus for signing up and making your first deposit. And if you prefer to just play for fun, that’s an option at most places, too. Here are some of the online casinos we recommend playing at.
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Ah, the hops bet. It’s the stuff that dreams and big fish stories are made of.
A single hop on an easy number and suddenly that little $10 bet is $150. Parlay that $160 into another bet, hit that parlay, and what was originally $10 is now $2400.
Some nights, this dream becomes a reality.
That’s why players love the hop bets. It’s one of the few ways where a player can take $100 and leave with $5000.
Some nights, the hops are just…hopping.
WHAT IS A HOP BET?
The simple explanation
For those who are not aware, first, an explanation of the hop bets.
In craps, a hop bet is a one roll bet where the player bets on what they think will appear on the next roll.
Hop bets are always one roll bets.
The rest of this article will go into the technical and detailed explanation of the hop bet. If you want the simple explanation, just skip to the bottom to the TL;DR part.
The technical and unsettled explanation of a hop bet
Craps Table Bets Explained
The technical definition of a hop bet is more debated.
There are some who would argue that, by definition, a hop bet must have either one combination (the hard hop) or two combinations (the easy hop).
For example, is the Big Red (Any 7) or the Any Craps bet considered a hop bet? There are those who would argue that those bets are not hop bets because there are six combinations to win the Big Red bet and four combinations to win the Any Craps bet, those are not hop bets.
Having said the above about the Big Red or Any Craps, if the player threw out $3 and said ‘hopping the sevens’, the dealer or stick would mark the ‘five two’, ‘thirty four’, and ‘sixty one’ combination (those are the most commonly used terms for each combination, as I have never heard the ‘sixty one’ referred to as the ‘sixteen’).
Typically, a hop bet will pay in the neighborhood of either 30 to 1 for hard hops and 15 to 1 for easy hops.
The Hard Hop
An example of one combination is any number where both dice must match exactly, such as ‘hopping hard 8’. If you are hopping hard 8, that means on the next roll, the dice must come up 4 + 4. This can be referred to as ‘hopping forty-four’ or ‘hopping hard 8’.
The payoff for a ‘hard hop’ is usually 30-1, although, this can vary from casino to casino.
Note that hopping a hard 8 is not the same as betting hard 8. When a player throws out a chip and says ‘hard 8’, the dealer will make the hard ways 8 bet, which pays 9-1. The hardways bet is a multi-roll bet and pays 9-1.
Advice:to avoid confusion, when players want to hop, my advice is to always say the word, ‘hopping’ in front of the bet. It would be very disappointing if your intention was to hop a hard 8, but you ended up winning a hard 8 bet instead.
A real-life story…a few months ago, I was standing next to a newbie craps player and he asked me how to bet the 8 that paid 30-1, as he had seen another player win $300 on a $10 bet. I knew he meant that he wanted to hop the hard 8, so I told him, to throw out his $10 and say, ‘hopping hard 8’. He threw out the chip and said, ‘hard 8’. I immediately tried to correct him and told him to say, ‘hopping hard 8’. He was confused but I told him, ‘if you want 30-1, you have to say, hopping hard 8’.
He hopped the hard 8 and a roll later, won $300. The ‘hard 8’ would have paid $90 (with the caveat that it’s a multi-roll bet).
Oh…I have this on a Real Craps Game video that will appear in the future.
The Easy Hop
![Bets Bets](https://objects.kaxmedia.com/auto/o/1935/a3d54c7a9b.jpeg)
An example of two combinations is any number where both dice can be different, such as hopping easy 8. There are two ways to hop and easy 8: 2+6 and 6+2 and also 3+5 and 5+3.
If you’re still learning hop bets, I know what you’re thinking. I said there are two ways to hop, but I just listed four combinations. That’s because the 2+6 and 6+2 counts as one bet, and the 3+5 and 5+3 counts as another bet. In craps parlance, the player can just combine the two numbers and refer to them as ‘twenty-six’ or ‘sixty-two’. Since the casino does not require the player to specify which individual die will have which number, the terms ‘ twenty-six’ and ‘sixty-two’ refer to the exact same thing.
Similarly, ‘thirty-five’ and ‘fifty-three’ refer to the latter easy 8 combination.
Note that if the player wants to bet an easy hop, the player must specify which easy hop he or she wants to bet. For example, there are two versions of the easy 8: the ‘twenty-six’ combination and the ‘thirty-five’ combination. So if the player wants to bet an easy 8, the player must specify which easy 8 the player wants.
The payoff for an easy hop bet is usually 15-1, although, this, too, can vary from casino to casino.
What numbers can be hopped?
The craps player can hop bet any number: 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, or 12.
Some craps tables have areas marked specifically for hop bets, while some tables do not.
How to hop a number Lucky money rooster.
To hop a number, simply toss out your bet to either the dealer or the stick person and say what combination you want to hop.
My advice is that if you want to hop, say the word, ‘hopping’ or ‘hop’ along with your bet. Otherwise, the dealer or stick person may mark another bet.
You may hop more than one combination. For example, if you threw out $3 and said ‘hopping all the sixes’, the dealer will mark the ‘twenty-four’, ‘fifty one’, and ‘thirty-three’ combinations. If one of those combinations roll, the payout will be dependent upon whether the easy or hard 6 rolled. If the easy 6 rolled, then the payout will be 15-1; whereas if the hard 6 rolled, the payout will be 30-1.
Note that if you win the hop bet, the dealer will pay and automatically leave your hop bet up for the next roll. If you do not want to automatically leave the bet up, you may request that the hop bet be taken down; in which case the dealer will return the hop bet to you.
Also, if you make multiple hops bets – such as the aforementioned $3 hopping all the sixes – on the payout, almost every casino will deduct, from your payout, the amount that it would cost to leave up your multiple bets. For example, if you bet $3 ‘hopping all the sixes’, and the next roll was a winning 5 + 1 roll, you would be entitled to a $15 payout. However, the dealer will only send you $13 because $2 will be taken away to pay for the losing ‘forty-two’ and ‘thirty-three’ combination.
Similarly, if the winning roll is 3 + 3, you would be entitled to $30, but the dealer will send you $28, after deducting $2 to pay for the ‘forty-two’ and ‘fifty-one’ on the next roll.
If you do not want the dealer to deduct the amount and pay for the next roll, just tell the dealer to not deduct the amount. An easy way to say it would be to say, ‘bring my hops down’ (said just like that).
This is an important nuance for bankroll management reasons.
TL;DR
A hop bet is a one roll bet that typically pays 15-1 or 30-1, depending on what the player is betting. Easy hops typically pay 15-1 are hops that have two winning combinations; while hard hops typically pay 30-1 and have one winning combination.
I say ‘typically’ because some casinos will pay 16-1 and 31-1. Note that 16 for 1 and 31 for 1 are the same as 15-1 and 30-1.
To make a hop bet, gently throw your chip to the stick person or dealer and say ‘hopping’ along with what you think will appear. If you make the bet early enough and before the dice are sent out, the dealer or stick will help the player by clarifying which hop the player wants.
That’s the hop bet in a nutshell.
If you have any comments or questions, feel free to leave them below.
Craps Bets Explained
Posted in: Casino, Craps, Gambling