First Craps game played!

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cyclinggimpe

Well-Known Member
I just finished my first session of Craps at my local casino and they may have me hooked for awhile. I started with $35 and cashed out at $400. I would have had $600 if I stopped earlier but I was having so much fun I kept going. I may try it again next weekend. One of the dealers (or whatever you call those guys) gave me some pointers with betting strategies that he uses and it worked well for me today. He and the others also helped me with the rules, since I had no idea how to play the game.

Any other craps players here? Any pointers?
 
Yeah, Craps is a fun game. It is probably the most exciting thing going on in the casino. The key is to have sufficient bankroll and patience to last until that hot roll comes along and restocks your rack with chips.

It is also a contradictory game. Some of the absolute best bets in the house are on the craps table and right next to them are some of the absolute worst bets in the house. If you can force yourself to stay away from the prop bets and some of the higher house advantage place bets, you have a good chance of being successful.
 
I played again on the weekend and didn't do so well. I blew $200 so fast. Oh well, I have to learn the ups and downs. There weren't a lot of players and most of us rolled a seven way too fast. Not enough time to make money in the round. I think I'll see how people are rolling before I join the table next time. And I'll go when it's busier.

I only bet on the "place bets" numbers and once or twice I tried the "come" bet. I see people bet on the "Hard" bets but they lose their money fast.

I may try Texas Shootout this week sometime (if I can muster up the nerve to). I don't know if the house edge is high like in 3 card poker.
 
cyclinggimpe said:
I played again on the weekend and didn't do so well. I blew $200 so fast. Oh well, I have to learn the ups and downs. There weren't a lot of players and most of us rolled a seven way too fast. Not enough time to make money in the round. I think I'll see how people are rolling before I join the table next time. And I'll go when it's busier.

I only bet on the "place bets" numbers and once or twice I tried the "come" bet. I see people bet on the "Hard" bets but they lose their money fast.

I may try Texas Shootout this week sometime (if I can muster up the nerve to). I don't know if the house edge is high like in 3 card poker.
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I see a lot of players on that Texas Shootout table and get really mixed reports about it both from the players and from the Blackjack dealers. I think it's one of those games where you do not win often but when you do, it's a big win. That would mean a lot of attrition.
 
Mikeaber said:
I see a lot of players on that Texas Shootout table and get really mixed reports about it both from the players and from the Blackjack dealers. I think it's one of those games where you do not win often but when you do, it's a big win. That would mean a lot of attrition.
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That's the same with 3 card poker. A lot of times you don't win but when you do, you can get quite a bit. I had one $5 chip on the Ante and one on the "Pairs Plus" bet and finally got a Straight Flush and won over $250 dollars. I was on a roll that day and walked out with +$500. I haven't been able to keep my start money since then, so I'm holding off on that game until my winnings increase again (I took a major hit this past weekend). I finally got my Pair of Queen of Hearts in BJ on Sunday but the dealer didn't get a blackjack (she almost did though; she had an Ace showing); so, I'll stick to BJ again for awhile.
 
Cyclingimpie:

I have played only one side bet on Blackjack and I think I've described it before so won't go into a lot of detail. It is one where you can place money on the possibility of either you, the dealer or both getting "20's" on the first two cards. I don't bet it all the time, but when the count is high, it is not a bad bet.

As for the other table games....I'm not tempted to play them. I've very tunnelvisioned when it comes to my gambling. About the only deviation from Blackjack for me is video poker, and that only seldom.

I took $200 to a casino this past Saturday, bought in for $100 and played for 12 hours with only a 1 hour break for a comp'd meal. I never got ahead during that play. Once I was down to my last red chip and won back up to the original $100 and then lost it all and bought in for another $100. When I colored up, I was mildly surprised to discover that I was only down $40 for the long session. This play was on a 6-deck shoe that was shuffled by Shuffle Master. The rules were H17's, DOA, DAS, RSA and blackjacks were 3:2. Both times I lost big, it was in just over one shoe. Very fast. The wins were much slower in that I had to deal with several "break even" shoes before hitting one where I actually came out ahead and it took a bunch of "ahead" shoes to recover my loses. I will cash in my comps on my next trip to Kansas City and should have enough to get enough fudge from the bakery to constitute part of our Christmas presents <LOL>
 
cycling,

yes craps is one of the most exciting games in the casino and if you learn the basics and stay away from the sucker bets you can last with very little bank for a long time. you will always feel that camraderie with the other players, especially when you have that long roll of the dice and then finally make the point. you can drink all night for free(unless you're driving) because unlike blackjack it doesn't require your brain......... I learned craps before the internet became popular so I don't know of any sites except for http://www.wizardofodds.com. it has a very good section on craps and it explains the basics and of course the odds of each bet. so for a good understanding I would start there before you go back and play. basically learn to play the pass line and take the odds on your point. the come line that you mentioned is the same thing, only it's a game within a game. if you only make one bet at a time then I would suggest betting on the pass line and leaving the come line for when you have a larger bankroll and want to put more money on the table. the reason being because craps is a game thats enjoyable partly because most of the time everyone is hoping for the same outcome, the tension builds with each roll of the dice, as you probably have experienced already. when a point is finally made the whole table can go crazy. you feel like you're on a team with the other players. if your only bet is on the come line you are going to miss out on all that excitement since you are more than likely looking for another point. ..........any bet in the middle of the board and the corner bets of big 6/8 are all sucker bets. place bets are not as bad as middle of the board bets but if you play the pass line and take odds you get a better deal.
for all of the games that "can't be beat", craps is one of the best deals if you play it correctly. enjoy your drinks and get loud.
 
lagavulin62: I went to the casino when the craps table opened and the dealers ( what do you call those guys?) explained the rules to me. As I was playing I would ask questions and they explained the different bets. I played the "hard" bets once in awhile when my bankroll went past $200. I played the come line only a few times to see how it would go; but, I would still play the "place bets" and "Pass Line".

One strategy I was told was to play your Pass line bet and when the number is rolled/picked, place a bet on the 6 and 8 first since they are the commonly rolled numbers and behind the pass line. Then when/if you win on those numbers, bet on 5 or 9 next with your winnings (4 and 10 should be bet last since they are harder to roll). Keep placing bets with your winnings until all the Place bets are covered and then if the guy is still rolling well after about 5 rolls start pressing (increasing; I'm learning the terms also) your place bets. Sometimes I veered from this betting progression if the shooter was rolling a 10 or 4 a lot; I would place my bet on those numbers before the 5 or 9. How does this strategy sound?

My big mistake last weekend was to stay in the game when all of us shooters rolled a seven quickly. The next time I'll stop and watch when 7's come up often. I find Craps is more fun than BJ if you get good people at the table. You get to throw the dice whereas at BJ you just sit there. Some people are just too serious and superstitous at craps though. Once one dice fell off the table when I rolled and a guy at the other end yelled at me "same dice!!!". At the time I didn't know what he was going on about (it was my first time at the table). The next time I asked the dealer what he was going on about. She said that since I was rolling long/well, that he wanted me to use the same dice. I could have asked them to give me the dice that fell on the floor. I didn't know that then but do now. I noticed the guy was complaining to the dealer about me and then he left. Oh well; I didn't let it bother me though; I was winning that day.
 
cycling,

you have the right idea of making most of your betting action geared around the 6 and 8. the true odds of making either the 6 or 8 before the 7 is 6/5. if you make place bets on 6 or 8 they will give you 7/6. not the same but not that big a difference, so not a bad alternative. when you are playing the pass line it's always best to put full odds on the 6 or 8 or at least match your pass line bet and yes stay away from the other points until you have won a few bets and built up some bank. personally I don't like to let a point go without backing it even though I know on the 4 and 10 the odds are against me. so this is the way I handle that problem. say I am playing 5 dollars on the pass line. if the point is either 6/8 I back the odds with multiples of 5, say either a 5 or 10 dollar odds bet. but if the 5/9 or 4/10 come up then I only back them with 2 dollars. on the 4/10 I figure I have probably lost my pass line bet, but another 2 dollars won't killl me and if I am lucky and win, which you will from time to time, I will get paid the 4 dollars on the odds bet plus the pass line. of course the 5/9 odds bet will pay me 3 dollars. on the strategy most books will have you playing the passline, backing the odds, then playing the come line bets and backing them also. this way if you get a long roll you will be collecting on every roll of the dice except when you roll a 7 and you lose all except for your initial come bet which will be your one winner. also you will be paid at true odds for every point winner. you do get your weirdos and voodo freaks at craps, but they're probably no worse than the guys who would never hit a 12 vs a 2 or 3 at blackjack. they just don't know or respect the math. the next time that guy shows up have some fun and ask for new dice midway through your turn. I really enjoy craps but don't play it that much anymore. I like the idea of playing a game where I can have an advantage. so blackjack and card-counting will always be my favorite. but if I have made some money or not lost too much at bj then as long as they have not raised the min bets on craps too high I will often stroll over for a little action. and it is always a good thing if the lady is driving back.
 
lagavulin62 said:
cycling,

you have the right idea of making most of your betting action geared around the 6 and 8. the true odds of making either the 6 or 8 before the 7 is 6/5. if you make place bets on 6 or 8 they will give you 7/6. not the same but not that big a difference, so not a bad alternative. when you are playing the pass line it's always best to put full odds on the 6 or 8 or at least match your pass line bet and yes stay away from the other points until you have won a few bets and built up some bank. personally I don't like to let a point go without backing it even though I know on the 4 and 10 the odds are against me. so this is the way I handle that problem. say I am playing 5 dollars on the pass line. if the point is either 6/8 I back the odds with multiples of 5, say either a 5 or 10 dollar odds bet. but if the 5/9 or 4/10 come up then I only back them with 2 dollars. on the 4/10 I figure I have probably lost my pass line bet, but another 2 dollars won't killl me and if I am lucky and win, which you will from time to time, I will get paid the 4 dollars on the odds bet plus the pass line. of course the 5/9 odds bet will pay me 3 dollars. on the strategy most books will have you playing the passline, backing the odds, then playing the come line bets and backing them also. this way if you get a long roll you will be collecting on every roll of the dice except when you roll a 7 and you lose all except for your initial come bet which will be your one winner. also you will be paid at true odds for every point winner. you do get your weirdos and voodo freaks at craps, but they're probably no worse than the guys who would never hit a 12 vs a 2 or 3 at blackjack. they just don't know or respect the math. the next time that guy shows up have some fun and ask for new dice midway through your turn. I really enjoy craps but don't play it that much anymore. I like the idea of playing a game where I can have an advantage. so blackjack and card-counting will always be my favorite. but if I have made some money or not lost too much at bj then as long as they have not raised the min bets on craps too high I will often stroll over for a little action. and it is always a good thing if the lady is driving back.
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So, do you only play the pass line bet and the odds for the number rolled? You never play the place bet bets? When I played on Sunday, I placed bets on all the place bet numbers and then the shooter would roll the seven and I'd lose my bets and profit. I think this method only works well if the shooters are rolling long. When I won 2 weeks ago, the shooters rolled long so this method worked for me making a hefty profit. Maybe I'll just bet on the 6 and 8 place bet spots until I increase my bankroll the next time I play.
 
yeah thats pretty much how I play it. once in a blue moon I will play the don't pass. the line has always been good to me and the method works well.
 
I tried Craps again and didn't do very well. Also, there was a very high roller playing and it took so long for him to place all his bets (a lot of Hard Way bets) that I started getting bored and not having fun. So, I left down $40 and lost the rest at BJ.

I tried Texas Shootout Poker and had a very good beginners luck day. I came out with +$675. I went back the next day and lost my $200. It seems that I have a very good beginners luck day to reel me into the game and then I can't seem to win again. I'll try this again next weekend and see if I can get some cash back.
 
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