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Craps is an
exciting, fast-paced dice game where players can place
several of the best bets in the casino; yet new players are
apt to shy away from the craps table because of the
confusing number of different bets. The strategy to becoming
a good craps player is to:
1. Learn the different bets on the craps table (Lesson 1).
2. Learn the good bets from the bad bets (Lesson 2).
3. Start with a basic beginner strategy (Lesson 3).
The Different Craps Bets
Pass Line A pass line bet is a bet placed before the come
out roll (i.e. the first roll of the dice in a new craps
round). A wager on the pass line wins immediately if the
come out roll is 7 or 11 (naturals), and loses if the come
out roll is 2, 3, or 12 (craps numbers). If any other number
(4,5, 6, 8, 9, or 10) is rolled, that number becomes "the
point." If the shooter rolls the point again before rolling
a 7, your pass line bet wins. If the shooter rolls a 7
before rolling the point again, your pass line bet loses.
Don't Pass Line A don't pass line bet is essentially the
reverse of a pass line bet, and is also placed before the
come out roll. If the shooter rolls 3 or 12 on the come out
roll, a don't pass line bet wins immediately. If, however,
the come out roll is 7 or 11, don't pass line bets lose. If
the come out roll is 2, a don't pass line bet is returned to
the player in a push. If the come out roll is 4, 5, 6, 8, 9,
or 10, that number becomes the point. Once the point has
been established, don't pass line bets win if the shooter
rolls a 7 before rolling the point again. If the shooter
rolls the point again before rolling a 7, don't pass line
bets lose.
Come A come bet is placed before any roll of the dice, once
a point has been established by the come out roll. Come bets
win immediately if the shooter's next roll is 7 or 11, and
lose if the roll is 2, 3, or 12. If the shooter rolls 4, 5,
6, 8, 9, or 10, that number becomes "the come point." If the
shooter rolls the come point again before rolling a 7, the
come bet wins.
Don't Come A don't come bet is essentially the opposite of a
come bet. Don't come bets win immediately when the shooter's
next roll is 3 or 12, and lose if the roll is 7 or 11. If
the shooter rolls a 2, the bet will be returned to the
player in a push. After the come point is established, don't
come bets win if 7 is rolled and lose if the come point is
rolled.
Odds An odds bet is a "back up" bet on an original pass
line, don't pass line, come, or don't come bet. Gold Club
allows odds bets of three times your original bets.
Field A field bet is a bet that the next roll of the dice
will be either 2, 3, 4, 9, 10, 11, or 12.
Big Six and Big Eight A big six bet is a bet that 6 will be
rolled before 7. Likewise, a big eight bet is a bet that 8
will be rolled before 7.
Place Win A place win bet is a bet that either 4, 5, 6, 8,
9, or 10 will be rolled before a seven.
Place Lose A place lose bet is a bet that 7 will be rolled
before either 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10.
Buy A buy bet is a bet that either 4, 6, 8, 9, or 10 will be
rolled before 7. A vigorish (vig.) of 5% is charged when
placing the buy bet.
Lay A lay bet is a bet that 7 will be rolled before 4, 6, 8,
9, or 10. A 5% vig. is charged when placing the lay bet.
Any 7 An "any 7" bet is a bet that the next roll of the dice
will be 7.
Any 11 An "any 11" bet is a bet that the next roll of the
dice will be 11.
Any Craps An "any craps" bet is a bet that the next roll of
the dice will be 2, 3, or 12.
Horn A horn bet is a bet that the next roll of the dice will
be either 2, 3, 11, or 12.
Hardway A hardway bet is a bet that the shooter will roll
either a 4, 6, 8, or 10 as doubles (2+2, 3+3, 4+4, or 5+5)
before rolling a 7. Rolling a number by doubles is said to
be rolling the number "the hard way."
The Good from the Bad Bets
The variety of different bets that entice players at the
craps table can be confusing. However, the way to come out a
craps winner is to stick to bets with low house advantages.
These bets have a maximum casino advantage of 1.4%, and are
therefore "good bets:"
pass line
don't pass line
come
don't come
odds
place win 6 or 8
As the chart below reveals, the casino advantage varies for
all the different types of bets. Your best bet is taking
odds on your pass line, don't pass line, come, and don't
come bets.
The Bet The Payoff Odds Casino Advantage
|
The Bet |
The Payoff Odds |
|
Pass Line |
1 to 1 |
|
Don't Pass Line |
1 to 1 |
|
Come |
1 to 1 |
|
Don't Come |
1 to 1 |
|
Pass Line, Come Odds |
2 to 1 on 4 or 10
3 to 2 on 5 or 9
6 to 5 on 6 or 8 |
|
Don't Pass Line, Don't Come Odds
|
1 to 2 on 4 or 10
2 to 3 on 5 or 9
5 to 6 on 6 or 8 |
|
Field |
1 to 1 on 3,4,9,10, or 11
2 to 1 on 2 or 12 |
|
Big 6, Big 8 |
1 to 1 |
|
Place Win |
9 to 5 on 4 or 10
7 to 5 on 5 or 9
7 to 6 on 6 or 8 |
|
Place Lose |
5 to 11 on 4 or 10
5 to 8 on 5 or 9
4 to 5 on 6 or 8 |
|
Buy
(A 5% vig. is charged to place a buy
bet.) |
2 to 1 on 4 or 10
3 to 2 on 5 or 9
6 to 5 on 6 or 8 |
|
Lay
(A 5% commission is charged on
winnings.) |
1 to 2 on 4 or 10
2 to 3 on 5 or 9
5 to 6 on 6 or 8 |
|
Any 7 |
4 to 1 |
|
Any 11 |
15 to 1 |
|
Any Craps |
7 to 1 |
|
Horn |
30 to 1 on 2 or 12
15 to 1 on 3 or 11 |
|
Hardway |
7 to 1 on 4 or 10
9 to 1 on 6 or 8 |
Basic Beginner
Strategies
Start on the Pass Line
A good beginner strategy is to start with a minimum pass
line bet, backed by single odds.
If the bets win, place a new pass line bet with double odds.
Keep the amount of your original pass line bet (flat bet)
the same, but increase the odds bet.
If those bets win, go for triple odds.
Don't increase your minimum flat bet on the pass line until
you are winning. Then only increase it by 50% of your
previous wager. If you lose, go back to the minimum flat
bet.
Add a Come Bet
When you are comfortable playing the pass line, you can add
a minimum come bet with single odds. If you win, double and
then triple your come odds.
Don't increase your minimum come bet (flat bet) until you
are winning. Then only increase it by 50% of your previous
wager. If you lose, go back to the minimum bet.
Don't Pass Line and Don't Come Bets
When you have gained experience by placing pass line and
come bets, you can try don't pass line and don't come bets
with odds.
Use the same betting strategy: wager the minimum bet with
steadily increasing odds. After a win, you can increase your
next flat bet by 50%. After a loss, you can wager a minimum
flat bet.
Taking Odds vs. Laying Odds
You "take" odds on a pass line or come bet, but "lay" odds
on a don't pass line or don't come bet. Laying odds on don't
bets means that you have to wager more to win less since
don't betters have an advantage once the point has been
established.
Place Win on 6 or 8
Although the house advantage is relatively low on this bet,
you should really only consider it when you are winning your
pass line (or don't pass line) and come (or don't come) bets
with odds, and the number 6 or 8 is not already covered by
your bets.
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Video Poker
Video Poker is a simplified poker game played on a
machine. The first thing you must remember about Video
Poker is that you are NOT playing against other players,
as in traditional poker. You are playing against the
machine. This means that all you have to do is get a
particular hand or better to win money. You don't need
to outsmart anyone. Even so, it's important to know what
you're doing. It's worth taking the time to learn the
rules - most video poker machines offer returns of over
95% and some even offer returns over 100%!
A poker hand consists of 5 cards. The Ace is considered
the highest card, followed by Kings, Queens, Jacks, etc.
The lowest card is a two. The object of the game is to
get the best hand possible. You wager a certain number
of coins/credits, usually between 1 and 5. The machine
then deals you five cards. You can keep or discard as
many cards as you like. To keep a card, click the "hold"
button underneath or on the card. Click on deal/draw to
replace the cards you chose not to keep. The cards not
being held are replaced with new cards. If your new set
of cards contains a winning hand, you get paid.
Hands are listed below, from best (highest scoring), to
worst (no score):
· Royal Flush - 2000 points
A Ten, Jack, Queen, King and Ace, all of the same suit.
· Straight Flush - 250 points
All five cards are consecutive and are the same suit.
e.g. Three of Clubs, Four of Clubs, Five of Clubs, Six
of Clubs and Seven of Clubs.
· Four of a Kind - 125 points
Four cards of the same value
e.g. 4 Queens
· Full House - 40 points
A three of a kind and a pair at the same time.
e.g. three aces and two fives
· Flush - 25 points
All cards in your hand are the same suit. (They
don't have to be in any order.)
e.g. Ace of Hearts, Three of Hearts, Six of Hearts, Jack
of Hearts, Eight of Hearts
· Straight - 20 points
All five cards are consecutive.
e.g. Three of Clubs, Four of Spades, Five of Clubs, Six
of Diamonds, and Seven of Hearts.
· Three of a Kind - 15 points
Three cards of the same value.
e.g. three Jacks
· Two Pair - 10 points
Two pairs of cards.
In other words, two cards in your hand are the same
value, and two other cards in your hand are also the
same value. e.g. two 3's and two seven's
· Pair - 5 points
Two cards in your hand are the same value. In some
versions, they must be Jacks or better!
e.g. two Kings
· None of the Above - 0 points
Each turn "costs" 5 points, so if you get a pair, no
points actually end up added to your total score. If you
don't get anything, you actually lose five points! This
is how handheld and Vegas video poker games generally
work.
Three common versions of Video Pokers in online casinos
are 'Jacks or Better', 'Deuces Wild' and 'Jacks Wild':
Jacks or Better
This is the most popular version of Video Poker.
Basically, you need to get a pair of jacks or better in
order to get paid (hence the name). Let's assume you bet
five coins. If you get a pair of Jacks or better, you
get five coins back. The machine might call you a
"winner," but don't be fooled. You deposited five coins
to begin with, and you just got your original five coins
back, so you haven't won anything at this point. In
order to really win, you must get a two pair or higher.
The amount of coins you win depends on how high your
hand is. A typical payout schedule is shown below.
|
Hand |
250 - 800, or
*Progressive Jackpot |
|
Royal Flush |
250 - 800, or
*Progressive Jackpot |
|
Straight Flush |
2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 |
|
Four of a Kind |
25 |
|
Full House |
6-9 |
|
Flush |
5-6 |
|
Straight |
4 |
|
Two Pair |
2 |
|
Pair of Jacks or
Better |
1 |
|
Three of a Kind |
3 |
*There are
two types of machines. One will pay you a straight
number of coins for the Royal Flush, and the other will
pay you a Progressive Jackpot. A Progressive Jackpot
simply means that a percentage of each coin dropped in
the machine goes into a jackpot, which is paid out to
the next recipient of a Royal Flush.
Deuces Wild
In the 'Deuces Wild' version of Video Poker, all deuces
are treated as wild cards. This means that whenever you
get a 2, you can use that card as any card you like. You
can therefore change its face value and/or suit to work
with the hand you have. With Deuces Wild, you have a far
better chance of getting good hands. The casino
compensates for this by offering a tighter payout
schedule. You only get paid with a three of a kind or
better.
Below is a typical payout schedule for Deuces Wild:
|
Hand |
Payout per coin |
|
Royal Flush w/Deuces |
varies |
|
Four Deuces |
200 |
|
Royal Flush w/Deuces |
25 |
|
Five of a Kind |
15 |
|
Straight Flush |
9 |
|
Four of a Kind |
5 |
|
Full House |
3 |
Jokers
Wild
Jokers Wild is five card draw poker with the addition of
one joker. This means you are playing with a 53 card
deck instead of 52. The joker is a wild card, and can be
played as any card you want.
The existence of a wild card increases your chances of
getting a good hand, so the payout schedule is adjusted
accordingly. You need a two pair or better to get paid.
Below is a table showing typical payouts in Las Vegas:
|
Hand |
Payout per coin |
|
Royal Flush |
varies |
|
Five of a Kind |
100 |
|
Royal Flush w/Joker |
50 |
|
Straight Flush |
50 |
|
Four of a Kind |
20 |
|
Full House |
8 |
|
Flush |
7 |
|
Straight |
5 |
|
Three of a Kind |
2 |
|
Two Pair |
1 |
|
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The key to
being a successful online casino player lies in the
word "control".
When you have control over
your gambling, your visit to an online casino can be
an entertaining and hopefully profitable experience.
However, in order to keep gambling fun, you should
always remember the following:
Only gamble with money you can
afford to lose.
Set your limit for winnings
and for losses before you begin to gamble and stop
once you reach that limit.
Never chase your losses.
By adhering to tried and
tested playing strategies and sharpening your
skills, you can prolong your entertainment, and
improve your odds at the online casino.
If you realize you have a
problem, don't be afraid to contact organizations
that can help you. After all, you've already taken
the first step. Gamblers Anonymous provides problem
gamblers with a support system to help them through
the difficult times and can put you in touch with a
support group in your area. Contact them on:
www.gamblersanonymous.org
Attitude is everything.
Maintain self-control, and whether you win or lose
at the online casino, you will always be a winner!
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