Craps Out – rolling a craps on the come out roll includes loss of pass line bets. Craps – The name of the game as well as a roll of 2, 3 or 12. Dealer - the two casino employees on the sides of the Boxman who handle placing the bets and payouts. Don’t Come – Betting that the shooter will roll a 7 before he rolls his point. Shit is a more onerous theological problem than is evil. Since God gave man freedom, we can, if need be, accept the idea that He is not responsible for man's crimes. The responsibility for shit, however, rests entirely with Him, the creator of man.” ― Milan Kundera, The Unbearable Lightness of Being.

1. Each five-die stick is serialized and stamped with the Axis Power Craps logo. Designed with precision dice shooter practice in mind, these dice are only sold in two-stick sets containing one stick of red dice and one stick of green dice.
2. Stickman A casino employee at the craps table, responsible for passing the dice to the shooter and announcing the outcome of rolls. Toke A tip to the dealer. Up Pops the Devil A slang term for a roll of seven. Winner on Dark Side A slang term for a roll of three. Working Bets Bets that are in play for the next roll.

Craps Glossary

Green means good

Red means bad

Yellow means be cautious

Black means neutral

• 2 ways. A two way bet is a bet for the player and a bet for the crew. It can be of equal or unequal amounts. Dealers need tips from the players and casinos allow bets under the table minimum to be bet for your dealer
• 3 way. A bet of three units on either a group of 3 numbers as in a three way craps bet or a 3 unit bet on a number that has 3 different combinations of the dice that can add up to that number as in a three way seven, or a three way six with one unit bet on each combination. These are one roll bets with a high house advantage and should be avoided.
• any craps.A one roll one unit bet on 2, 3, 12, showing on the next roll. It pays 7 to 1.
• Any seven.A one roll bet that seven will show on the next roll. It pays 4 to 1.
• Apron. The outer perimeter of the craps layout, behind the pass line. Free odds bets go on the apron.
• Bar 12 or 2. A push for bets on the don’t pass line and the don’t come.
• Behind. Term used to describe the act of establishing a don’t come point. When a don’t come point is established the cheques go into the box 'behind' that box number.
• Bet. A wager. What the dealer says to acknowledge a wager from a player.
• Big 6 or Big 8.A self service bet in the corner of the lay out that wins when that number shows. It pays 1 to 1 and always works.
• Big red.A term for the number seven. A one roll beton any seven.
• Black. A term used for $100 casino cheques, usually black in color.
• Bowl. The plastic bowl where the stickman keeps the dice. If a thrown die lands in the bowl, no roll is called.
• Bank. The stacks of chips that the casino has on the table during play.
• Buffalo.This is a 5 unit bet which is a slang term and has different meanings in different gaming jurisdictions. This bet is a bet on all of the hardways and the eleven. The bet can be made as a hop bet or an all day bet (all day is the normal hardway bet not the one roll hop bet). This bet can be all the hardways and a big red.
• Boxman. The boxman is the person that is in control of the craps game. His duties are counting the cash and gaming cheques, settle any disputes, and generally supervise the dealers and play in general. He sits on a stool in between the dealers.
• Box number. The numbers 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, are the box numbers or point numbers. All other numbers are called naturals since they create a winning or losing roll on come out rolls.
• Buy bet.A bet on any box number that is paid at correct odds using a 5% charge or vig on the amount of the bet to collect the house advantage. Buy bets are paid when the box number shows before the seven as the place bets are.
• C and E. This is a two unit one roll bet, wagering one unit on C or any craps and one unit on E or eleven.
• Change only. Change only is called by a dealer or player when the player puts cash on the lay out, signifying that there is no action on the cash and it will be converted to gaming cheques.
• Cheques. Chips.
• Cocked die or dice. Cocked die describes a situation where on or both dice are laying partly on the lay out and leaning against a stack of cheques, the rubber pyramids or some other obstruction. Procedure requires the boxman or stickman to call the face of the die that would be on top if the obstruction were moved and the die were allowed to rest solely on the layout.
• Color up. This can describe two situations. The first is when a player exchanges smaller denomination cheques for larger ones before leaving the table. The other is when a dealer intentionally begins to pay the player in higher value cheques, either to keep the size of the players stake from having too many small cheques, (customer service) or to run the player out of small cheques to entice them to bet or tip in larger denomination cheques (hustling)
• Come bet.Come bets are exactly like pass line bets, but are made after the come out roll and establish another point number for the player. Come bets win on rolls of 7 or 11, lose on rolls of 2, 3, 12. When a come bet is established and moved to a box number the player can take free odds just like a pass line bet and that number must repeat before the 7 shows to win.
• Come out roll. A come out roll is the first roll starting a new game. On a come out roll the pass line wins with a 7 or 11, and loses with a craps roll. A shooter will continue to make come out roll until a box number has rolled establishing a point for that game.
• Comp.Complimentary food, rooms or other perks given to the player by the casino.
• Crap. The numbers 2, 3, 12.
• Crap out. A misnomer. A player does not crap out, they may roll a crap on the come out roll losing their pass line bet, however the hand continues if the player desires. A player will seven out, rolling a seven to end the hand.
• Crapless craps.A proprietary game offered at a few casinos where a roll of craps is not a losing roll on the come out, but establishes that number as a point. This game has a much higher house advantage than a regular craps game and should be avoided.
• Dealer. A casino employee that works one of the table games. A craps game has 4 dealers that always rotate, from a break to the stick position, and to a base dealer position.
• Dime. A ten dollar bet.
• Don’t come.The don’t come bet is exactly like the don’t pass bet, winning on a roll of 2 or 3, losing on rolls of 7 or 11, and pushes on a roll of 12 ( it pushes on a roll of 2 at some casinos ) and will establish a don’t come point for the player on the next roll of the dice. After a don’t come point has been established a player can lay free odds against that don’t come point. A don’t come bet can be removed at any time.
• Don’t pass.A don’t pass bet must be made during a come out roll, and wins with rolls of 2 or 3, loses on rolls of 7 or 11, pushes or a roll of 12 ( it pushes on a roll of 2 in some casinos ) and will establish a don’t pass point for the player on the next roll of the dice. After a don’t pass point number is established a seven must roll before the point number for a don’t pass bet to win. After a don’t pass bet is established a player can lay free odds against the don’t pass point. A don’t pass bet can be removed at any time.
• Down behind. Down behind is called by the stickman to remind a base dealer to take losing don’t come bets.
• Down with odds. A phrase used to describe the act of a dealer converting a player’s place bet to odds for their come bet that has traveled to a number. The place bet comes 'down' after it is paid and is converted to a free odds bet for the come bet.
• Field.The field is a large area on the lay out and offers the player a self service, one roll bet by placing their chips within the field section. The field bet pays even money on rolls of 3, 4, 9, 10, and 11. The field bet pays two times the bet on rolls of 2 and 12, and sometimes pays triple on a roll of 12 at some casinos. The rules of payment are shown on each layout.
• Fill. The act of replenishing the table’s bank.
• Hand in. A tip given directly to the dealers, not wagered for them.
• Hardway.Hardway bets are offered on all even box numbers. It is a wager that the pair, 22, 33, 44, 55, will roll before the number will roll 'easy '(or as a dice combination that is not a pair) and before the seven rolls. Hardway bets on the 6 and 8 pay 9 to 1 and they pay 7 to 1 on bets for the 4 and 10. Hardway bets are controlled by the stickman in the prop section of the lay out and are the last bets paid after the winning roll.
• Hi – Low.A two unit one roll bet on 12 (high) and 2 (low).
• High – Low – Yo. A three unit one roll bet on the 2 – 11- 12.
• Hook. A player’s position in the corner of the table midway between the stickman and the base dealer.
• Hop bet. Hop bets are a one roll bet and can be made on any dice combination for the next roll. They must be made on specific combinations announced by the player at the time of the bet. The player will say 'five, four hops for a dollar ', meaning that they are betting the nine will be the next roll showing the 5 and 4. In this instance a roll of nine showing 6 and 3 would be a losing roll for the hop 5, 4 bet. These bets pay 15 to one, on combinations that are not pairs and 30 to one if the hop bet is wagered on a pair showing. Not all casinos allow this bet. Hop bets are a high house advantage bet and should be avoided.
• Horn bet.The horn bet is a 4 unit one roll bet that either the 2, 3, 11, 12 will show on the next roll. The player will have one un it bet on each of these numbers. The horn pays 15 to one if the 3 or 11 rolls and 30 to 1 if the 2 or 12 rolls. Horn bets are controlled and booked by the stickman and are the combination of 4 of the worst bets on the table allowing a player to commit bankroll suicide by combining 4 bad bets into one easy to make bad bet.
• Horn high.Players will often make this 5 unit bet on the horn calling the number that is high and receiving an extra unit wagered on that stated number. The player will say horn high eleven, horn high ace deuce, horn high eleven, or horn high twelve.
• Inside. The numbers 5, 6, 8, 9.
• Juice. Slang for vig.
• Lammer. A plastic disc used by the dealers to designate, different bet situations. The lamer is placed on the players bet to designate, on, off, buy and lay.
• Lay bet.A bet against any box number that is paid at correct odds, in return for a 5% charge or vig paid on the amount of the winning pay off. Lay bets win when the seven shows before the box number that has been layed.
• Lay out. The surface with graphics on which the game is played.
• Lay odds. The act of betting on a favorite, where the wager is larger than the win.
• Line bet.A bet on the pass line.
• Little Joe. Slang term for the number four.
• Marker. A draft for funds, either from a credit line or funds on deposit made at the table.
• Midnight. The number twelve.
• Money plays. Announced by the base dealer acknowledging cash in action on the lay out.
• Nickel. Slang for a $5 chip.
• No bet. Announced by the dealer indicating that the bet offered by the player is not accepted, either because it was bet too late, perhaps when the dice were out, was not understood, or was not of correct value.
• Off. Bets are not in action, indicated by a lamer being placed on the bet showing 'off'. Called by the dealer responding to a player request to remove their bets from action, indicating that in fact whatever bet the player called of is no longer in action or at risk.
• Off an on. Stated by the dealer indicating the player’s come bet was won by another of their established come bets repeating, meaning that the established come bet was won when there was another bet in the come box. The established bet wins, comes off, and the new bet is back on the number. None of the bets are actually moved, the winnings are set beside the come bet that remains in the come box, and off and on is announced.
• On. Bets are in action, indicated by a lammer placed on the bet, showing 'on'.
• Outside numbers. The outside numbers are 4, 5, 9, and 10.
• Parlay.The act of taking the winnings from a bet and adding the winnings to that bet and letting it all ride.
• Pass line.The most common bet in craps. The bets wins when the 7 or 11 show on the come out roll, loses when the 2, 3, 12, shows on the come out roll. When a box number is thrown it must be repeated before the seven for the pass line bet to win.
• Past posting. The illegal act of placing, or adding to a bet that has already won.
• Pips. The spots on the dice.
• Pit. The enclosed area of table games.
• Place bet. A bet on a box number that goes directly to a number of the players choosing, with out having to be established through the pass line or come. Place bets do not pay correct odds, but pay place bet odds. Those odds are 9 to 5 on the 4 and 10, 7 to 5 on the 5 and 9, and 7 to 6 on the 6 and 8. The casino takes a higher percentage of these wagers for the privilege of placing the number directly.
• Point. Point numbers can be any of the box numbers. The point is the box number that has been established by the come out throw. The point number is indicated by the puck being placed on it by the dealer with the puck showing the 'on' side as it sits in that numbers box on the layout
• Press. The act of increasing a bet. A player will tell the dealer to press indicating they want to increase the bet usually by a factor of 2. A press can be made in any increments that the player chooses. They just need to instruct the dealer how much they want to 'press' their bet.
• Proposition bet.Bets that are in the center of the craps layout. These include hop and hardway bets.
• Purple. Slang for $500 cheques.
• Put bet.A put bet is a come bet that some casinos allow players to 'put' directly to a box number with odds without having to go through the come. Put bets have quite a bit higher house advantage because there is no opportunity to win the flat portion of the bet since they are never in the come.
• Quarter. Slang for a $25 cheque.
• Seven out. The stickman’s call on the losing roll of seven that ends a shooters turn with the dice.
• Skinny Dugan. Slang for the number seven. This and other terms for the number seven are used so that 'seven' is never said on a live Game.
• Snake eyes. Slang for the roll of 2.
• Square pair. Slang for the hard eight. Ozzie and Harriet.
• Stacks. Called working stacks. The stacks of chips that the dealers have in front of them to pay bets.
• Stickman. The dealer in the front of the table that calls the number and controls the dice.
• Toke.A tip.
• True odds. The correct odds of an event happening, as per the dice probabilities chart.
• Vig or vigorish. Juice. The tax that the casinos collect on some true odds bets to ensure that they make a profit. The vig is their margin.
• Whip. Slang for the stick. A dealer that is on the whip is working at the stickman position.
• Working. Working bets have action and are at risk. Bets that are not working are off. The stickman says 'hardways work unless called off' to warn players that their bets work if they don’t call them off during the come out cycle.
• Whirl / world bet.A 5 unit one roll bet on 2, 3, 11, 12, and any seven. A very convenient way to make the 5 worst bets on a craps lay out with one single bet.
• Yo. Stickmans call for a roll of eleven. Since eleven sounds like seven the stick calls yo to avoid confusion.

More On Buy Bets and Craps Etiquette

By Jerry 'Stickman'

Hi Stickman.

I just returned from a week in LV (went to G2E) and just now read your article which I get via Casino City Times.

I spent the better part of a day hunting for a decent craps game.

I normally play in MS where the vig on Buy bets is collected only upon a win. LV was a culture shock in that regard. I won't play where the pirates do that. Bad enough they all collect the Lay upfront. MGM said they'd only charge me on a win but couldn't play there as they scent the air and that raised holy hell with my sinuses.

In my long and ardous trek I inquired about the policy on Buy bets at many casinos. None would refuse me a Buy on the 5/9 and most would give me a 'free' automatic buy on the 4/10. Usually up to $100.

After that, I'd have to pay first. I even had a suit at Bally's try and tell me the Buy was worthless on the 5/9 when we discussed their policy.

That dude was seriously math-challenged and he was like you and I in that we are all a bit long in the tooth.

I am going to take issue with you including the 5/9 with the 6/8.

It is never wise to ever Buy the 6/8 but it is wise to Buy the 5/9 at $30 plus assuming proper increments.

Quit a while ago you wrote an article on craps etiquette and there was one thing not covered and it has always been in the back of mind to ask you about it so I am.

Shooter whips the dice down the table and it careens into my stack of chips on the DP. A few get disloged. Do I restack (touch them) or do I wait and hope the dealer sees it and tidies up? I'd do it immediately but don't wish to be accused of adding chips to what should be a guaranteed winner (at that point in time). And I suppose a Pass Line bettor would not want to be accused of removing a chip or two from their stack which probably would be a potential loser.

Thanks for any reply directly or in a future newsletter.

Arnie.

Arnie,

I am glad that you took my advice about looking for the best buy bets. Casinos in Mississippi and Tunica in particular have some of the most favorable player rules in craps.

Most Las Vegas casinos do not allow a buy of the 5 or 9 – and those that do make you pay the vig up front. In that case you are better off forgetting about the 5 and 9 and simply place the 6/8 or buy the 4/10. If you really want to get on the 5 and 9, come betting is the way to go as it only has a 1.4% house edge.

All of the casinos that I play in Las Vegas have automatic buys of the 4 and 10 with vig taken on wins only when buying for $20 or more. I have gone up to the table limit and the vig is only on a win. I have never heard of the $100 threshold that you mention.

Regarding buying the 6/8 and 5/9, in the article I agree with you. One is never better off buying the 6 and 8. When I stated that it is not worth buying the 5, 6, 8, and 9 I was talking about buying the number with a 5% vig and paying it up front. I used an example of buying these number for $20. Later in the article I mentioned the effects of being able to 'push the house' by buying for $25, $30, $35 or $39 and paying just $1 for the vig. I also mention that buying the 5 and 9 with the vig taken on wins only is more advantageous than placing them. I am sorry for any confusion I caused.

To your question about restacking dislodged chips – I would wait for the dealer to restack them. If he (or she) seems oblivious to the situation, I would try calling their attention to it. However, if the dice are being pushed to the shooter and my chips had not been restacked, I would quickly restack them myself. Generally you will not have any problems with the dealers if you place a small bet for them every so often.

Now I am going to take exception to a comment of yours – the one where you implied being math challenged and old go hand in hand. I hope you are not be calling me math challenged – or OLD! I am just kidding of course; however, I don’t feel any older than I did when I was in my 20s and 30s. Age is a state of mind – and many suits (especially at Harrah’s properties it seems) are just not interested in doing anything that might favor the player a little. It is sad but true.

Arnie, you seem to be making all the right moves in order to get the most from your gambling bankroll. If you are really serious about getting the edge at craps you should consider buying the Golden Touch Dice Control Revolution book, or the Beat Craps By Controlling The Dice DVD. You may even want to consider registering for and attending a Golden Touch dice control class held in various locations throughout the year.

May all your wins be swift and large and all your losses be slow and tiny.

Jerry 'Stickman'

Jerry 'Stickman' is an expert in craps, blackjack, video poker and advantage slot machine play. He is a regular contributor to top gaming magazines. The 'Stickman' is also a certified instructor for Golden Touch Craps and Golden Touch Blackjack. His current book 'Specific Slots Machines That Give the Players the Edge!'provides mathematically proven advantages over the house on some slots! For more information visit www.goldentouchcraps.com or www.goldentouchblackjack.com or call 1-886-738-3423. You can contact Jerry 'Stickman' at stickman@goldentouchcraps.com.

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