Craps

Date: 5/24/96 at 14:41:15
From: Anonymous
Subject: Craps

Dear Dr. Math,

Currently, I am a high school student who is studying the 
probability and outcome of the game craps. I would be grateful if you 
could send me any information that you have pertaining to this game. 
 
Thank you for your time. Mike D.

Date: 5/24/96 at 18:43:35
From: Doctor Sarah
Subject: Re: Craps

Hi there -

Here's some information about craps from the Web (but see the 
corrections below, sent in by an experienced reader):

HOW TO PLAY CRAPS - Victor H. Rover 


  http://www.iaw.com/casino/cyber/craps.html   
_____________________________________________________________________

Date: Thu, 20 Aug 1998 01:35:55 -0400 (EDT)
From: Tina/splinter
Subject: Craps answers

A bit of history... I dealt Dice for years and am now at the 
supervisory level. At the site listed above, Romer is correct,
you can join the game at any time during a shooter's "hand." 
His mistake is in saying that you can not make a passline bet
with odds if the point is already established, and in failing to
say that you may not make a don't pass bet when a point has been 
established.
_____________________________________________________________________

There's also a rec.gambling.craps newsgroup that has a Frequently 
Asked Questions about Crabs Web page at 

  http://www.conjelco.com/faq/craps.html   

Here's a question from it about odds:

Q: C3 What are "Odds"? 
A: C3 (Matt Wilding, Ken Elliott III) 

Casinos allow a player to place "odds" on pass, don't pass, come, and
don't come bets after a "point" has been established. If the bet on
which odds are placed wins, the odds bet is paid fairly. This means
the odds on pass and come bets are paid 2-1 for the 4 and 10, 3-2 for
the 5 and 9, and 6-5 for the 6 and 8. The odds for don't pass and
don't come bets are paid 1-2 for the 4 and 10, 2-3 for the 5 and 9,
and 5-6 for the 6 and 8 (this is called "laying" odds). 

The player should make odds bets that can be paid exactly, or the
dealer will pay off by rounding down. Odds on the pass line and
come bets should be a multiple 5 if the point is 6 or 8 and a multiple
of 2 if it's a 5 or 9. (Don't betters can figure this out themselves.) 

Casinos advertise the maximum odds bets they allow as the
maximum amount "times" the original bet the odds bet may be (for
don't pass and don't come bets, it's the maximum amount "times" the
expected win). You can increase your odds bet over this advertised
maximum only enough to allow you to make an odds bet that can be
paid exactly. 

A player can modify his odds bets at any time. 
_______________________________________________

If you'd like more information on odds, the questions asked and 
answered at   http://www.conjelco.com/faq/craps.html     are:

What special terminology is used at the Craps table? 
How is Craps played? 
What are "Odds?" 
What is the house advantage on 10x odds? 
What are "Come" and "Don't Come" bets? 
What are all those other bets? 
What are the odds for all these bets? 

I recommend you investigate them for yourself - there's a lot of 
information available at this site.

-Doctor Sarah,  The Math Forum
 Check out our web site!  http://mathforum.org/dr.math/