Part 4 of your craps strategy will look at the most important bet you can place at a craps table. Just as correct blackjack strategies do help you lower the house edge the Free Odds bet at the craps table will lower the house edge considerably and if you can place this bet at a double odds craps table or even a 100x craps table you can lower the house edge at the craps table to almost zero.
There will be nothing on the craps layout to indicate where or how this bet can be made. Personally I find this unacceptable but it will not change and we are left with the casino craps layout that you see in most American casinos. A free odds bet can be made by any line bettor be it pass or don’t pass. You can also make these bets as a come or don’t come bettor and I will get more into that later. The only qualification to make this craps bet is that the bet must be made in addition to a line bet.
A free odds bet is made at the craps table as follows. Lets assume a pass line bettor has made a $10 bet before the come out roll and a point number has been established.
The bettor may make an additional bet behind the original bet or behind the pass line at free odds. The reason these craps bets are called free odds is because the casino will pay you the correct odds on these wagers. As an example the odds of a 4 or 10 being thrown before a 7 is thrown is 2-1. The casino will pay you those odds. In working then the player has a $10 pass bet and the point is established at 4, he then makes a $10 free odds bet. The 4 repeats before a 7 and the bettor is paid $10 for his line bet (even money) and $20 for his free odds bet (2-1) plus his stake returned. If a 7 is thrown he loses both bets.
If the point is 5 or 9 the pay off rom the casino is 3-2. If the point is 6 or 8 the correct casino pay off is 6-5. Since the house has no advantage on these bets you should make them, they do reduce the house odds on your pass line bet.
At a single odds table you may bet an amount equal to your pass line bet. The bet is just placed on the table behind your pass line bet. If the point is 5 or 9 as casinos do not pay off in fractions if your line bet is $10 your free odds bet may be $12 to ensure the casino can pay you off in whole numbers.
