The Play

Although it looks complicated, the play at the craps table is really quite simple. The play starts with the "come out roll". You can easily discern when the come out roll occurs. First, look at the black and white "puck" each dealer manipulates on either side of the layout. When the black side is up, the come out roll will occur on the next roll of the dice. In addition the stickman will verbally call the come out roll, usually by saying "dice are moving, coming out" as he passes the dice to the shooter. The shooter is just that, the player whose turn it is to roll the dice. The dice move arount the layout in a clockwise fashion from player to player. A player may decline to shoot, thereby passing the dice to the next player. A player must have a pass line or don't pass bet on the table when it is his turn to shoot to be eligible to shoot the dice. The "come out" roll is made immediately after a "seven out" roll, after a "point" is made, or after a previous "come out" roll resulted in a 2, 3, 7, 11, or 12.

The purpose of the come out roll is to establish either a "point" number or an immediate outcome. Beginners don't have to worry about following the play that closely, just look at the black and white "puck" each dealer manipulates on either side of the layout. When the black side is up, the come out roll is next. In addition the stickman will verbally call the come out roll, usually by saying "dice are moving, coming out" as he passes the dice to the shooter. If there is a new shooter "coming out", the stickman may add "new shooter, coming out".

Once the "point" number is established (4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10) the shooter continues to roll until he rolls the point number again or a 7 (seven out). If the point is rolled (made) before the 7, the pass line bettors win. If the 7 is rolled before the point is made, the pass line bettors lose and the don't pass bettors win. If the point is made the shooter remains the same and the come out roll procedure is repeated. If the shooter rolls a 7 (seven out), the bets are reconciled and the dice pass to a new shooter. There are dozens of other bets avaliable but, in essense, that is the game of craps.