1. How To Run A Blackjack Table
2. Craps Table Build

Unless you’re an advanced player with the ability to influence the dice, the only way to change that certainty, and give yourself a real opportunity to beat the casino in the long run, is to alter your strategy to fit the current trends on the table. To win at craps, you need to maximize your ‘DO’ bets when the table is ‘warm’. A craps table cover are sold for $20-$30, so it is not out of sight. Craps is undoubtedly the most fascinating and complex of the dice games, and many would say it’s probably the most fun. Craps is undoubtedly the most fascinating and complex of the dice games, and many would say it’s probably the most fun.

The coronavirus has forced casinos to change how they operate. Now, gambling establishments enforce social distancing policies and require players to wear masks.

Even with these restrictions, though, most casinos have found a way to reopen and start running again. They’re featuring many of the same games that they offered before COVID-19 started wreaking havoc.

But one game that has struggled to get back to normalcy is craps. In fact, it’s not even available in certain gambling jurisdictions. The longer the coronavirus permeates, the longer craps will be sidelined in the same jurisdictions.

Will COVID-19 be the end of this classic casino game? I’ll answer this question by taking a closer look at craps along with if it can survive the pandemic.

Craps Is One of the Most Social Casino Games

Craps was a lightly played game up until World War II. It exploded after American WWII vets returned home in the mid-1940s.

Many of these soldiers passed the time during the war by playing street craps. They quickly saw a familiar game when they entered casinos after World War II ended.

The same gamblers packed real money craps tables and drew casual gamblers who wanted to see what the fuss was about. Eventually, craps became popular in its own right among WWII veterans and other players.

Ever since, craps has remained one of the most-social games in the casino. It attracts crowds of gamblers, who huddle around the table and often make the same types of bets.

Going further, the average player typically places a pass line or come bet during each round. Both of these wagers win when the shooter wins.

This like-mindedness leads to many gamblers cheering together after the shooter is victorious. Meanwhile, they console each other when the shooter loses.

Craps isn’t the only casino game that features a social element. However, it definitely stands out from the crowd due to its volume of players who celebrate wins together.

Social Distancing Is Ruining Craps

Fears regarding the coronavirus still persist throughout much of the world. Everybody from shoppers to restaurant diners are worried about contracting the virus in public.

The gambling crowd is no difference in this matter. Some gamblers also worry that they could pick up COVID-19 from being in close proximity to others.

Casinos, meanwhile, don’t want their customers spreading the virus either. Therefore, they enact social distancing measures to keep players around 6 feet away from each other at all times.

Many casinos also question the practice of allowing players to share dice. Once a shooter gets done tossing, they pass dice to the next player and so on.

These days, though, casino table games aren’t quite as populated. Craps games and most casinos only feature 25% to 50% of the crowd that they once did.

Part of this is due to some gamblers worrying about contracting COVID-19. They avoid table games or even casinos in general over these fears. An even larger issue is that casinos either choose to or are required to thin out crowds.

This policy may be okay for the slot machines that are found all over casinos. After all, slots players are used to being isolated anyways. But these measures certainly aren’t doing craps any favors.

Some Casinos Don’t Even Offer Craps Right Now

An even bigger issue for craps right now is that some casinos aren’t offering it. Massachusetts serves as a perfect example for a jurisdiction that’s no longer featuring this game.

The Massachusetts Gaming Commission (MGC) has allowed the state’s casinos to reopen. However, it has nixed both craps and roulette over COVID features.

MGC’s Bruce Bland stated:

“In light of some of the increase in COVID things at this time, we didn’t really feel it was appropriate to add new games (i.e. roulette and craps). So we’re going to continue reviewing this and keeping an eye on the COVID numbers and consider that at a later date.”

Online Craps Just Isn’t the Same

Some states/countries that regulate internet gaming offer online craps in place of the live version. Therefore, you may have some outlet to enjoy this game if you truly love it.

Chances are, though, you don’t like craps for the gameplay alone. Instead, you may enjoy it due to the aforementioned social aspects.

Internet casinos just can’t bring the same type of atmosphere. In the end, they’re merely offering a virtual version with no other players.

You can get around this downside with many other table games by playing at live dealer sites. Live dealer casinos stream land-based gambling action from a studio to your smartphone.

However, this isn’t the same case with craps. No live casino offers this game because it just doesn’t translate well to a live-dealer format.

Long story short, online craps does allow you to make the same types of bets and roll the virtual dice. But it doesn’t come anywhere close to offering what the land-based version does.

What to Expect From Craps Moving Forward

Craps isn’t going to completely die just because of COVID-19. However, it’s definitely been hit harder than most casino games.

It relies heavily on its social nature for success. The fact that casinos are forcing players to social distance is definitely hurting this game.

Nobody really knows when the number of COVID-19 infections and deaths will go down sharply. Therefore, the status quo may continue in casinos for quite some time.

Every day that COVID-19 persist, craps loses some of its luster. Meanwhile, other table games, like blackjack, Caribbean stud, and roulette, are running like normal.

One day, casinos will get back to business as usual. Craps tables will finally be able to run normally once this happens. Again, though, the problem is that nobody knows when this will come to fruition.

In the meantime, gamblers just have to take what they get in land-based casinos. Currently, this means plenty of slot machines and table games with extra space in between players.

Conclusion

Craps has been available in some form or another for centuries. However, it now faces a very real threat from the coronavirus.

COVID-19 has forced casinos to operate much differently. They require players to social distance from each other on slot machines and tables.

Craps just isn’t built for the social distancing era. It’s a social game that sees players crowd the table and cheer wildly.

Some gambling jurisdictions haven chosen not to allow craps. They don’t like how this game encourages crowds and requires gamblers to pass dice to each other.

But the coronavirus will eventually die down. When this happens, craps can return to normal in casinos.

If you want to learn to play craps, you should start by learning how the craps table works.

It might seem intimidating at first, but it’s less complicated than you think.

And smarts craps players ignore most of the table, anyway.

This post explains in detail for beginners what they need to know about placing bets on the craps table.

The Basics of the Craps Table

In casinos, craps is played at a table, usually one covered in green felt. The bets available are labeled on the felt. The table is also the playing surface for the game – you roll the dice on the same table where you place your bets.

Most of the best US casinos use a long table for craps – it’s 12 feet long, but it’s kind of rectangular. You’ll find smaller craps tables sometimes, but most casinos use the 12 feet long table because it accommodates more players – up to 16 people can play craps comfortably at a 12 feet long table.

The rail around the table is padded because a lot of people get tired of standing and want something to lean on. Craps isn’t like blackjack; you don’t sit on a stool at the craps table.

Each player has a rack where he can put his chips while he plays. That’s located next to the padded railing.

The green felt is considered the bed of the craps table, and it has (almost) all the bets available stenciled on it.

Also, the craps table isn’t really a flat table – it’s more like a big, rectangular bowl. This prevents the dice from rolling onto the ground. The walls inside the table are padded with rubber pyramids, which serve to further randomize the rolls of the dice.

If you’re the shooter, you’re required to roll the dice all the way to the pyramids on the other side of the table.

How the Bets Are Laid Out on a Craps Table

If you’ve never played before, you’ll think craps is too complicated because of all the different bets available on the layout.

But it’s easier than you think.

You can think of the table as having a side section and a center section. (Really, there are 2 side sections – one on either end of the craps table. They’re identical, though.)

You’ll see blocks with numbers and words in them in each section. Those are the bets you can place.

You should avoid the bets in the center section, which are the bets that the stickman will encourage you to make. I’ll explain the center section later, but for now, I want to focus on the section where you’ll be making the most bets if you’re a smart player.

The self-service bets – the bets you’re allowed to place for yourself – include the following bets:

1. Pass
2. Don’t Pass
3. Come
4. Don’t Come
5. Field
6. Big 6
7. Big 8

These are the most basic bets in craps, and they have the lowest house edge – although Big 6 and Big 8 are the worst in this batch. (On some tables, those aren’t even in the self-service area at all.)

When one of these bets wins, the dealer puts your winnings on the table next to your bet. If you leave that money on the table, it goes back into action.

The other area in the side section is the dealer’s area. Here, you need to get the dealer to place your bet for you. This area includes the point boxes:

• 4
• 5
• Six
• 8
• Nine
• 10

You’ll notice that I spelled out 6 and 9. That’s how they’ll appear on the table so that players don’t get confused about which is which.

When a shooter sets a point, the dealer puts a puck in the appropriate box to signify the point for that game. These spots serve a 2nd purpose, too – you can ask the dealer to place Buy, Lay, and Place bets for you in those spots.

Come and Don’t Come are still self-service bets, but the odds bet for those must be handled by the dealer. The dealer uses the chips you bet on Come or Don’t Come to mark the number in those numbered boxes, and they put the odds bet next to the appropriate number, too.

The Center Section Is for Prop Bets, Which You Should NEVER Make

You’ll notice that the stickman, who’s running the center section of the craps table, acts like a carnival barker or one of those loud pitchmen you sometimes run into at a flea market. That’s because his job is to sell the worst bets on the craps table to the players.

The reason these are the worst bets on the table is because the house edge for ALL these bets is insanely high.

The house edge is a statistically expected loss that you’ll see over the long run with a specific kind of bet.

How To Run A Blackjack Table

The pass line bet has a house edge of 1.41%, which is relatively low for a casino game. In fact, it’s one of the best bets in the casino.

But the house edge on the bets in the center of the table is 9% or higher.

Nonetheless, here you can place bets in this section if you want to.

To do so, you toss your chips to the center of the table to the stickman and announce what bet you want to place. Try to use some skill and deftness when you do this – you don’t want to knock someone else’s chips over, for example.

When you win one of these proposition bets, the chips are paid directly to you rather than just being placed on the table next to your original bet.

Examples of Proposition Bets and Their House Edge

The hard way bets are bets on totals like 4, 6, 8, or 10.

But they only pay off if the shooter rolls that total “the hard way.”

This means that a total of 4 must be a pair of deuces, a 6 must be a roll with of both 3s, an 8 must consist of a couple of 4s, and a 10 must be made up of 5s.

The payout for a hard 6 or hard 8 is 9 to 1, and the payout for a hard 4 or 10 is 7 to 1.

The house edge for the hard 6 or hard 8 bet is 9.09%.

The house edge for the hard 4 or hard 10 bet is 11.11%.

I often suggest that many gambling writers make too much of a fuss about the house edge on casino games, but this is one instance where it’s a big deal.

You’re looking at a statistical advantage for the casino that’s 10 times as great on one bet over the other bet.

You should pay attention to that, for sure.

Just skip the proposition bets.

You’ll have just as much fun at the craps table, you’ll probably stay in action longer, and you’ll have a better chance of going home from the craps table a winner.

How to Get Used to the Craps Layout

Craps Table Build

The best way to get used to the game of craps is to play at an online casino, like those recommended on this site. All the casinos listed here offer free-to-play versions of their casino games. You play for “play-money” chips.

The big advantage of doing this is that you’re not risking any real money when you’re playing these free craps games.

It’s much better to learn without risking money if you can.

Conclusion

You need to know how the craps table and its layout work if you want to stand a chance at winning when shooting dice.

The best way to do that is to practice on a free game after reading through this quick tutorial.

The most important advice I offer in this post, though, is to stay away from those bets in the middle of the table. The house edge is just too high on those.