What’s the ‘Pass line’ in Craps?
On the physical layout of a craps table, the pass line is a long, narrow bar that extends along the sides and front of the table. In a bricks-and-mortar casino, the pass line is readily accessible by all players at a table, who can place chips upon it without assistance from the craps dealer.
The pass line is significant because the pass line bet is, far and away, the most popular bet placed on any craps table. According to one estimate, nine out of ten craps players favour the pass line bet. The pass line bet is, essentially, relatively simple. A player placing a pass line bet is betting with the dice or, in other words, betting that the person throwing the dice, known as the ‘shooter’, will win.
If, on the first roll of the dice at the opening of a game, known as the ‘come-out’ roll, the shooter rolls 7 or 11, the pass line bet – which always pays even money – wins. If, on the come-out roll, the shooter rolls 2, 3 or 12, he or she is said to have ‘crapped out’ and the pass line bet loses. If the shooter rolls any other total on the come-out roll, he or she establishes, or sets, a ‘point’ and the pass line bet enters a second phase. Once a point has been established, pass line bettors require the shooter to roll that same point total again, before rolling a 7, to double their money. If, on the other hand, the shooter rolls a 7 before rolling the point total for a second time, the pass line bet loses.