Understanding the Craps Field Bet

Wednesday, July 21, 2010

by BetUSCasino.com

One of the most appealing bets to online craps novices is the field bet.  The field bet is an even money wager placed on one roll of the dice where a combination of 2, 3, 4, 9, 10, 11, and 12 will all give you a win.  Because of the fact that you’re given 7 out of the 11 possible dice numbers, a field bet sounds pretty good.  But if you think this means a field bet can be profitable in the long run, then you’d better keep reading.

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Dice Probabilities

As mentioned before, you are given seven different numbers to win a field bet.  But there’s a big problem with this: you are given the seven numbers with the lowest probability of being rolled.  Out of the 36 possible combinations that can be rolled with the dice, a 2, 3, 4, 9, 10, 11, or 12 will only come up 16 times.  The other 20 times will reveal a combination of 5, 6, 7, or 8. 

Taking this a step further, the field bet looks even worse when you factor in that the house only pays even money on this wager.  So considering that you’re given a 16 out of 36 chance of hitting this bet and it only pays even money, the house holds a 5% advantage on you.  Sure this won’t rank up there with the baccarat tie bet or online blackjack insurance in terms of poor odds, but it’s one of the worst online craps bets you will find.

Field Bet System

A lot of online craps enthusiasts say you should employ a betting system when using the field bet.  Most of these systems revolve around adding a unit to your bets after a winning wager, or taking a unit away after a losing bet.  But in the end, no amount of wagering tricks are going to negate the 5% advantage that the house has on you with the field bet.