Whether at a land-based or online casino, the game of
craps offers one of the best bets in the House. Craps may
seem intimidating at times, especially in land-based
gambling destinations, yet it is well worth any gamblers
effort to take the time to learn the rules of this
entertaining and financially rewarding game.
If you are
like most gamblers who have shied away from the craps
table in the past, the prospects of taking advantage of
its inherent low House Edge is certainly a tempting one.
Despite this temptation, however, the large crowds and
looming layout of the craps table often has the final say
in keeping players at bay. This does not have to be the
case though. In actuality, with all the different types of
bets on the
craps table, the best one offering the lowest
Casinos Edge is not even posted on the layout. It is
called the free odds bet, or, backing the odds.
In some
ways, backing the odds is not a bet at all (thus
explaining why it is not on the layout), but is
essentially the act of adding more stake to a previously
made passline bet. What gives this bet its advantage is
that it is has no Casinos Edge and is paid true odds. The
bet can only be made after first making a passline bet,
for which the point number must be established. A passline
bet wins on the comeout roll when the dice produce a 7 or
11 and loses on a 2, 3 or 12. Therefore, free odds will
never be on any of these numbers. 4, 5, 6, 8, 9 and 10 are
eligible to become point numbers and be backed with free
odds.
Most online casinos will allow players to back passline bets with single or double odds, while it is not
uncommon to find greater odds bets (up to 100x) at
land-based casino destinations. What this means is that if
you put down an initial $5 bet on the passline wager, you
could put down and additional $5 (single odds) or $10
(double odds) on the free odds bet. A single odds bet
brings down the House Edge to .85% and a double odds bet
brings down the edge to .61%.
The true odds payout on the
free odds bet will vary depending on the point number. For
a point number of 4 or 10, the odds paid are 2 to 1. For a
point number of 5 or 9, the odds paid are 3 to 2. For a
point number of 6 or 8, the odds paid are 6 to 5.
If you
decide to play craps, it is imperative you use free odds
to your advantage whenever the opportunity arises. You
won't win every bet, but will certainly get the House Edge
down. Just be sure you have enough bankroll to get you
through the larger bets.
