The Place Bet
| Updated: Place Bets: Are They Good or Bad for Craps Players?
Craps is a potentially rewarding game, but only if you understand the available bets. Some wagers on the craps layout carry exceptionally high house edges and are best avoided. Others carry little to no house advantage and offer players much better value. The Place bet is unique because it offers both some of the best and some of the poorest odds in craps. It all depends on which numbers the bet covers.
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Place bets can be trickier to understand than other craps wagers, especially for inexperienced players. The good news is that we cover these multi-roll bets extensively in the following article, where you can learn how they work. We have included detailed information about the payouts, odds of winning, and house edges for this category of craps wagers. The article also features strategy tips to help you make better-informed decisions when placing these bets.
How Place Bets Work
One of the first things to remember about Place bets is that players can make them on any of the point numbers. These numbers are 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, and 10. Another important detail is that, like most other bets available on the craps layout, Place bets involve betting against the 7. In other words, only the 7 and the specific point number you are backing will determine whether your bet wins or loses.
Three outcomes are possible when making a Place bet. If the shooter rolls a 7 before the selected point number, your Place bet loses. Conversely, the bet wins if the selected point number appears before a 7. If the shooter rolls another number, the bet remains unresolved, and the shooter continues rolling until either a 7 or the selected point number appears.
Craps players can bet on Place numbers at any stage after the come-out roll without being required to bet on the Pass Line or make Come bets. Suppose you want to bet that Place number 9 will appear before the 7. To do this, you must position your chips in the Come box and tell the dealer that you wish to “place the 9”. The dealer will then move your chips to the betting box containing the number 9. Your chips will be placed in a specific area of the betting layout based on your position at the craps table, making it clear that the wager belongs to you. After you have backed a Place number, the Place bet starts to resemble the Come bet.
To continue with our example, you will win if the shooter rolls a 9 before a 7. If a 7 appears before Place number 9, you will lose the bet. All other numbers are neutral and have no effect on the outcome of your Place bet.
Another distinctive feature of Place bets is that players can make or take them down at any point. Place bets are also known as “standing” bets because they remain active until they are settled or removed by the player.
Many casinos treat Place bets as off during the come-out roll. If a player wants a Place bet to remain active, they simply need to tell the dealer, who will position a button labeled “ON” on top of the chip stack. After the come-out roll, the button is removed, and the Place bet remains active until the player takes it down or the bet is resolved. Craps novices should remember that “turning off” and “taking down” a Place bet do not mean the same thing. If you take down your bet, your chips are removed from the corresponding betting box on the layout. If you turn it off, however, the bet remains in place but is inactive during the next dice roll.
If you wish to make Place bets on 5, 6, 8, and 9 and say that you want to wager twenty dollars inside, the dealer will know that you want to place your bets on those numbers. Conversely, if you intend to make Place bets on 4, 9, and 10 and say twenty dollars outside, the dealer will know that you want to back those numbers. If this terminology seems too complicated, you can simply tell the dealer to place the four, nine, and ten.
The Place Bet Payout and Odds
One reason Place bets are popular is that some of them, particularly those on 6 and 8, come with a relatively low house edge. This makes certain Place bets some of the better wagers available at the craps table. However, players should remember that the payouts and house edges vary depending on the selected Place number.
Let’s return to our example involving Place number 9. There are four ways to win because there are four possible dice combinations for the number 9. On the other hand, there are six ways to lose by rolling a 7 before a 9. The true odds of 9 appearing before a 7 are 3:2, but the payout is lower at 7:5. The house edge for Place bets on number 9 is 4%, which many experienced craps players consider too high. The same applies to Place bets on number 5. The true odds are again 3:2, and the house edge is 4%, but the payout is only 7:5. Therefore, if you wager $10 and win, your profit will be $14 instead of the $15 indicated by the true odds.
Making a Place bet on 6 or 8 is considered one of the better options in craps because these wagers carry a low house advantage. Suppose you wager $30 on 8 and win. Your profit will be $35. The payout at true odds would be $36, resulting in a house edge of 1.52%.
Players should memorize the payout for each winning number and the multiples in which they must wager. Craps players should remember that these multiples are determined by the Place bet payouts. Consider 5 and 9, for example, which pay 7:5. This means you will win $7 for every $5 wagered, so the appropriate betting multiple for 5 and 9 is $5.
Playing the Place Bet
Now that we have explained some of the most important aspects of Place bets, let’s consider another scenario that may help novice players. While the new shooter prepares, you decide to bet $5 on 9. Suppose the point number for the game is 10. Once you indicate that you want to make the bet, the dealer moves your chips to the 9 box. As previously stated, the position of your chips within the box depends on your position at the craps table.
Suppose the shooter rolls an 11 after you make your Place bet. Since this is a neutral number for Place bets, the round continues. You then decide to make Place bets on the other inside numbers: 5, 6, and 8. Suppose the shooter rolls a 6. This means your bet on 6 wins and pays out. You decide to leave the bet on 6 in place. The next number rolled is 12, and the game continues because 12 does not affect the outcome of your Place bets.
When your Place bet wins, you can let it ride or collect your payout. If you let it ride, the bet will win each time your selected Place number appears before a 7 and lose whenever a 7 appears first. You may also increase or decrease your Place bet at any point.
What to Do while Making a Place Bet
One of the most important things to remember when playing craps, especially at a land-based casino, is that you should not place your chips on the layout before getting the dealer’s attention. This is particularly important for non-self-service wagers such as Place bets.
You cannot disrupt the chip layout at an online craps table, but the situation is different at a brick-and-mortar casino. When playing at a land-based casino, you should never toss or throw your chips onto the table layout. Instead, position them in the Come box and tell the dealer which number you want to back with your Place bet.
If you win a Place bet and say nothing, the dealer may assume that you want to let it ride. It is therefore a good idea to tell the dealer whether you want to increase, decrease, or remove your Place bet.
Place Bet Strategy
Suppose you make a $6 Place bet on each of the numbers 6 and 8. If the table is cold, you are advised to leave your Place bets active until the first hit occurs. After a hit, you can either remove your Place bets from the table or turn them off for the next roll. For example, if the shooter rolls four, nine, and six after you place $6 on both 6 and 8, you would remove or turn off your Place bets after the six appears.
If the table is choppy, players are advised to leave their Place bets active for the first six rolls or until the first hit occurs. If the first hit occurs within the first three rolls, you are advised to leave your bets active and start counting again. If six rolls pass without a hit, it may be better to take down your Place bets.
If the table is hot, you are advised to leave your Place bets active throughout the roll. When a Place bet wins, you may choose to press it. In addition, you can make another Place bet when the shooter makes their point. You can continue in the same manner until one of your Place bets is on the established point number. You can then take down that Place bet or move it to another number.