Why most craps players don’t bet the Don’t

Most players bet the Pass Line and the Come, and they avoid the Don’t Pass and Don’tCome, even though the Don’t side offers slightly better odds. Here’s why.

For a refresher on Don’t bets, see our list of craps bets.

Most players do not understand the Don’t

You can’t bet what you don’t understand. You can learn more about the Don’t betsin our articles about types of craps bets.

Don’t bettors seem out of place

Most craps players are betting the Pass and Come and rooting for their points tobe made instead of a seven. Don’t bettors not only miss out on this camaraderie,but their goals are in direct opposition to the rest of the table, almost makingthem seem like an enemy.

Don’t bettors might not get to roll the dice

A Don’t bettor might already feel out of place by betting contrary to the rest ofthe table, and rolling the dice when in that position could make the Don’t bettorfeel even more out of place when (s)he’s in the spotlight. So many Don’t bettorstherefore decline to roll the dice. But by doing so they miss out on one of themain experiences of playing craps in the first place.

The table layout discourages Don’t bets

While the Pass Line and Come bets are clearly and brightly marked, the Don’t Passand Don’t Come are not so obvious.

Laying odds on the Don’t side requires a bigger bankroll

Making the Free Odds bet on the Don’t side means you have to lay odds rather thantake them, meaning you have to bet more in order to win less, instead of bettingless in order to win more. Although the house edge winds up being the same, it stilltakes more capital to play the Odds on the Don’t side. (See our article on Free Odds bets for more on this.)

It’s harder to use a system on the Don’t side

On the Pass side you can raise or lower your Free Odds bet easily as dictated bywhatever system you’re using. But on the Don’t side, the amount you put on the FreeOdds is the amount you’re laying in order to win a lesser amount, so it gets complicated.