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Street Craps, also referred to as 'Ghetto Craps', or 'Shooting Dice', is a version of casino Craps that is played amongst friends and acquaintances without the benefit of a real Craps table. Street Craps, usually considered illegal, got its name from how it was often played in the mid- to late 1900's - on the city streets, sidewalks and back alleys.There a few key aspects that set Street Craps apart from traditional casino Craps. First is the obvious lack of a Banker. There is generally no one there with the specific job of handling the money, watching bets and making sure everyone is properly paid. The second major difference is the lack of a Craps table, which makes it acutely more difficult to place complicated bets.
Street Craps generally consists of two betting options - Pass and Don't Pass. Before play begins, the Shooter will place a wager on Pass or Don't Pass. Starting on the Shooter's left and going clockwise, each bettor will be asked if they want to cover the bet, or a portion of it. Usually, the bettors will only cover a portion each. A bettor may decline to cover a bet at all if he wishes.
If the Shooter's bet it not completely covered, he can either increase the odds, giving the bettors a chance to make more money if they cover the bet, or the Shooter can withdraw the remaining, uncovered portion of the bet.
Once the Shooter's bet is covered, the bettors now have the option of wagering against each other. Any bettor who chose not to bet against the Shooter will likely place a bet against another player who did. With all bets placed, the Shooter may now toss the dice, using the same Come Out, Pass and Don't Pass rules as in a real casino.
The Shooters first roll is the Come Out roll. If the Come Out roll is a 7 or 11, all Pass bets are won. If the Come Out roll is Craps - 2, 3 or 12 - all Don't Pass bets are won. If the Come Out roll is any other number - 4, 5, 6, 8, 9 or 10, the rolled number becomes the Point.
With a Point established, all Pass bets turn into Come bets, wagering that the Point will come again before the Shooter '7s Out' (rolls a 7). In the same token, all Don't Pass Bets are now Don't Come bets, wagering that a 7 will be rolled before that Point comes again.
Street Craps vs. Cee-Lo
Street Craps is often confused with the game of Cee-Lo, which is an entirely different game. In fact, the only common denominators in Street Craps and Cee-Lo are the presence of betting, and dice. However, there are 3 dice used by each player, and all are rolling against each other. The confusion between these two games probably came with the general term of 'Shooting Dice', which can refer to either game, Cee-Lo or Street Craps.
