Five Craps Tips
by Jordan Walters

I've been playing Craps for many years, and I still get excited when I see a dice table -- online or brick and mortar. Today, I will lay out five great Craps tips for beginners and seasoned players alike.

Craps Tip One: Bankroll
Never walk up to a Craps table without an idea of how much you're willing to gamble. You should also have an idea about how much you want to win. And no, "a lot" isn't a good answer. Be realistic, set goals and follow them.

Craps Tip Two: Props
The center of the layout holds the prop bets. These are moneymaking wagers for the house. In a perfect world, you should never make a prop bet. But where's the fun in that? I'll admit that I make some prop bets semi-often for excitement. Just make sure you don't go overboard. Realize that you'll lose more than you'll win and bet accordingly.

Craps Tip Three: Scope out the table
This tip applies for anyone playing in a brick and mortar joint. When you first walk up to the Craps table, look at the people playing. Pay attention to who has many chips, who has a few chips and how they are wagering. Often, I've walked up to a table to see "don't players" loaded to the roof with chips. I jump right in and join them. Don't try to buck the trends.

Craps Tip Four: Turn $10 into $225
One of my favorite things to do is play the 4 and/or 10 for a big payday. To do this tip, place $10 on the 4 and/or 10. When it hits, press to $25. When it hits again, press to $75. Finally, when it hits for the 3rd time, take down $225 and have a drink. That's all there is to it. I've taken it one step further, and I've taken down $675 for $10 many times. While you may frequently leave money on the table, it's nice when you hit. If you want to go more conservative, play for two hits only, which will yield $75 for your original $10 wager.

Craps Tip Five: Know the probabilities
It happens to even the most seasoned of dice players -- they forget about the probabilities and play on pure emotion. Remember, dice don't "heat up" or "cool down." One person (or one round on the computer) could throw many numbers in a row and then the next 10 people (or computer rounds) could eat it.

A 7 has a 16.6% probability of being thrown on any roll. Expecting someone to throw more than a few numbers before the dreaded 7 comes out is foolish. Hope for the best, but keep the probabilities in the back of your mind.