Casino Craps Rules (Dice)

Overview

In Craps, a shooter throws a pair of dice to establish a Point - and bets are made as to whether the shooter can repeat the Point before a 7 is rolled.

The series of throws to establish and repeat the Point is called a round . Each round starts on a Come Out roll. This is the roll where the shooter attempts to establish the Point. A pair of dice can make totals ranging from 2 ( ) to 12 ( ), but only totals of 4, 5, 6, 8, 9 or 10 can be the Point. Totals of 2 (snake eyes), 3 (cross eyes) and 12 (box cars) are called craps, but a total of 7 or 11 is called a natural .

During Come Out, rolling craps or a natural will immediately end the round, whereas a total of 4, 5, 6, 8, 9 or 10 establish the Point to keep the round open. If the Point is established, we move into the midgame part of the round and the shooter continues to throw the dice until either the Point is rolled again or a total of 7 is rolled - either of which will end the round.

There can be any number of throws between the Come Out roll and the end of the round. If a 7 comes before the Point, the shooter sevens out and the dice are passed to another player for the start of the next round. On the other hand, if the shooter hits the Point, he or she can elect to keep rolling for the next round. A shooter who rolls a 2, 3 or 12 on the Come Out roll craps out and passes the dice to the next player. Rolling a natural on Come Out (7 or 11) lets the shooter keep the dice for another Come Out roll.

There are a variety of bets that can be made on each throw, some are conditional and some are bets against a specific result. Some bets can stay on the table for the entire round, some bets span rounds and some are only viable for a single throw. All the variability makes craps interesting, fascinating and fun to play.

The best way to start playing Craps is with a Pass Line bet on the Come Out roll. A 7 or 11 on Come Out make it an immediate winner, paying 1-to-1. If a Point is established, then the Pass Line bet will pay 1-to-1 if the Point is repeated before a 7. The next section explains all bet options in detail.