Is Any Craps Good
by Larry Edell
Stephanie, a writer friend of mine, writes what I'm sure are very interesting calculus textbooks. She also seems to know an awful lot about complicated numbers, but in a very weird sort of way. Steph has always wanted to try playing craps, since it is obviously the best casino game in the entire world, and very math oriented as well. She had that chance when we were both in Las Vegas for the Consumer Electronics Show. We met for lunch and ambled off to the craps tables. I bought in for $100 and loaned Steph two red chips. She assured me that she had read TWO entire books on craps, so she knew how to play. I believed her. I always did.
"New shooter coming out!" said the friendly dealer. I quickly made a pass line bet and threw the dealer a dollar any.
"Hey, what's with this any bet?" she asked.
"Any craps. If I make this bet, it will protect my pass-line bet from the shooter's rolling craps on the come-out."
"Oh, right, any craps is a 2, 3 or 12?" she asked as she eyed the table, probably wondering which number was calling out to her. The shooter rolled a 6 point.
"Yes, but it's a one roll bet, so I just lost $1."
She looked at me like I should have known better than to lose the very first bet I made.
"But isn't there a 2, 3 and 12 in the middle also?"
"Yes, that's called a three way craps bet, and it's a one roll bet also. The difference is that Any Craps pays seven to one, while the 2 & 12 pay thirty to one, and the 3 pays fifteen to one."
"WOW, those wagers pay lots more! Why didn't you bet on that three way bet, rather than on your any craps?"
"What makes you think it's better?"
"Well, it pays more, anyone can see that!"
"Okay, remember that craps is a math game?"
She nodded. Steph was about to kick into gear, I just knew it. I pointed at the proposition bets. "Let's look at what is happening here. If you bet on the 2, 3 and 12 you bet $3, so in 36 sample rolls, you've invested $3 times 36 or $108, right?"
She grinned. "Yes. And I know what's coming. The 2 and 12 roll twice, and the 3 rolls three times. At thirty to one, the 2 and 12 pay $30 each for a total of $60. At fifteen to one the 3 pays $30 ($15 x 2). So, in thirty-six rolls, we made $30 plus $60 or a total of $90, but we spent $108, so we're down $18."
I was amazed. "Wow, you really did learn something from those books!
Want to do the any craps math also?"
"No problem. Thirty six rolls times a $1 bet is $36 spent on the any craps bet. The 2 and 12 roll once, and the 3 rolls twice, for a total of four times. Four times the $7 payoff is $28. We spent $36 so we're down only by $8."
"So which is better?"
"Your any bet, I guess. You lose only $8 on any craps compared to $18 on the 3-way."
I smiled. "And you said you didn't know how to play. You seem to understand this pretty well."
She frowned. "Now if only I knew where to put my very first bet. I know, I'll put it on the 2, since it hasn't rolled yet." She gave it to the dealer, who put it on the 2.
The very next roll, of course, was a 2. The roll after was a 6, so I won my point, but forgot to add any odds to my pass line bet. She turned to me and laughed! "WOW This is great! I won $150 and you won all of $10! You sure are a good teacher!"
"You're getting to know this game a little TOO well," I said, smiling, but didn't you forget that I loaned you $10?
"Oh, eh? $10? $150? Let's see now, $150 minus $10 .. anybody have a calculator?"
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Larry Edell is the Editor of The Crapshooter Newsletter and author
of two craps books and numerous articles about the game of craps. I have
been a subscriber to his newsletter since 1995. In 1996 I met Larry at a
Gaming Convention and was impressed with his passion and knowledge of the
game. Larry's monthly articles appear here as a regular feature. YOU
can get a FREE issue of The Crapshooter, the only newsletter devoted solely
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