Craps is an exciting, loud and fast-paced gambling game of dice. If you are a novice to the game of craps, understanding how to bet the odds can be a very confusing. So, let’s explain how the odds work for numbers, in layman’s terms.

First of all, craps is a two dice game. Each die, of course, has 6 sides. Using basic math, 6×6, the number of possible combinations with each roll is 36. There are 6 possible ways to throwa 7; (1and 6, 2 and 5, 3 and 4, 4 and 3, 5 and 2, 6 and 1) out of the 36 possible combinations, this breaks down to a 30 to 6 chance in rolling that 7, with further division, this computes to a 5-1 odds. There are 4

possible ways to throw a 10; (6 and 4, 5 and 5, 5 and 5, 4 and 6) out of 36 possible combinations is 32-4 or 8-1 odds. Yet, there is only one possibility of throwing a 12 making the odds 36-1.

For the first throw players bet the pass line, wagering whether the shooter will either crap out (roll 2, 3 or 12), win (rolling 7or 11) or roll a point (the number to roll again before a 7 is rolled again. For example, throwing a 10 has odds of 8-1, these odds are decreased when you add in the factor that you have to roll the 10 (4 possible combinations) before you throw a 7 (6 possible combinations). A player wagering against the shooter will have the better odds here.This is what you want to know whether you are the shooter (throwing the dice) or you are betting against the shooter. The first roll has great odds for the shooter, after that, the odds are better for those betting against him or her.

Bets can be made placed on specific numbers also, for instance the hard way bets, like the 4 and 4, 5 and 5, 6 and 6 combinations. Again, the odds of throwing double numbers are much greater, but the pay off is better, too.
Another tidbit to keep in mind is that there are 990 possible decisions on a craps table, and the house odds are 1.41%, meaning that for every $100.00 you wager, you will loss $1.41, but the law of averages cannot dictate when you will lose or win.