How To Bet In Craps For Higher Wins

Craps presents so many possibilities that players are continually exploring combinations seeing if they can find a magic formula for profit. One player asked me recently if he could combine place bets with hard ways for some giant-sized wins.

“I’m just curious about your thoughts about betting 6 and 8 the hard way while simultaneously betting for 6 to 8 to come out the easy way,” he wrote via email. “Is there any money to be made betting both the easy and hard way at the same time?”

Place bets on 6 or 8 and the hardways all are multiroll bets. If you place the 6, you win if the shooter rolls a 6 before the next 7, and lose if a 7 comes first. Same deal with placing 8: You win if the shooter rolls and 8 before the next 7. Winning bets pay at 7-6 odds. The true odds against winning the bet are 6-5, and that leads to a 1.52 percent house edge.

The hardways add a wrinkle. Winners must show the same number on each die. So 6 rolled the hard way is 3-3. You win if the hard 6 shows up before either a 7 or a 6 rolled any other way. Odds against winning the bet are 10-1. Winners are paid only 9-1, and that leads to a house edge of 9.09 percent.

The house edge on the hardways is much higher than on the place bets. The overall edge on the combination will be higher than on the place bets, but lower than on the hardways. If you bet equal amounts on place 6 and hard 6, the house edge would be 5.30 percent – the average of 1.52 percent and 9.09 percent.

But you don’t have to bet in equal amounts, and when the bets are different sizes, the house edge will be a weighted average. Let’s say you always place the 6 for $6, to take advantage of that 7-6 payoff, bet only $1 on the hard 6. The house edge on the combo is 2.60 percent — higher than the edge on the place bet, but lower than the edge on the hard way.

The bottom line: The house edge is lowest if you stick to the place bet and skip the hard way.


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