Any skill involved in the game of craps is based on a player's ability to decide which bets to wager on. One of the more popular bets is the craps place bet; in this bet, a player wages that a point number will be rolled before 7 is.

Point Numbers and Place Bets

Each symmetric pair of point numbers (4 and 10, 5 and 9, 6 and 8) should be considered individually. There are three craps place bets options. The first is where a player wagers on the payoffs given; these don't correspond to the mathematically correct odds and create a house edge. In the second option, the casino offers the player the correct odds, but charges 5% commission. The third option is that the player doesn't bet.

Betting on 4 and 10

Most online casinos offer a payoff of 9 to 5 on the craps place bets of 4 and 10. The correct odds are 2 to 1, making the house edge 6.7%. If you bet on these, consider the second option, but 5% is still too much to pay. Consider avoiding these altogether.

Betting on 5 and 9

7 to 5 is the common payoff for craps place bets on 5 and 9. The correct odds are 3 to 2, leading to a high house edge of 4%. Obviously, that house edge is better than the second option's 5%. If you want to place a bet on 5 or 9, do so with the house odds, but in general, most people should avoid this wager.

Betting on 6 and 8

Craps place bets on 6 and 8 are paid off 7 to 6; the correct odds are 6 to 5. The house edge is 1.5%. The house edge, in this case, is small enough that you should always wager directly on place bets of 6 or 8.

Craps place bets are popular bets that could result in some significant winnings for those players who decide to take a risk on them. Overall, they greatly increase your odds of winning over the long game.