Betting Odds
by Jerry "Jet" Whittaker
the Gambling Wiz
Betting odds will differ with every casino game, but they all have a direct relationship to the payouts. For example, when you bet on red vs. black on a roulette table, the betting odds are two to one, or a fifty percent chance of getting the bet correct. Thus the payout is also two to one, meaning you will get two dollars for every one you bet if you are correct.
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Betting Odds in casinos are always slightly skewed though, and this is how a casino makes money. In the above example, your chances of winning is actually slightly less than fifty percent because there is a chance that zero or double zero could hit, which is neither red nor black. So in actuality the betting odds are always slightly below the payouts.
Betting Odds in Craps
The worst thing that anyone can do at a craps table is to bet big on the pass line and not put any money on the betting odds behind it. The reason for this is that you are actually hurting your payout if you win. You can only win two to one if you bet in the pass line, but you can win much better odds, up to three to one, when placing your bet behind the minimum pass line bet.
Since the pass line bet and the odds behind it are basically the same bet, but with different odds, you would be foolish to take the lower of the two. You always want to maximize your possible payouts. This will give you the best chances of winning big.
