The Dark Side: Don't Pass, Don't Come and Lay Bets
Playing the dark side means betting that the 7 comes before the point: the Don't Pass, the Don't Come and lay bets. Here's how each one works, what lay odds pay, the house edge of each bet, and a free table where you can practice them.
Practice Don't Pass with lay odds freePlay money and real casino odds. The table can bet it for you each roll while you watch how it plays.
Don't Pass with lay odds
- Bet Don't Pass on the come-out. A 2 or 3 wins it, a 7 or 11 loses it, and a 12 is a push (the "bar 12"). Any other number becomes the point.
- Lay odds once the point is set: an extra bet that the 7 comes first, paid at true odds.
- A 7 before the point wins the Don't Pass and the lay odds. The point first loses both.
Lay odds pay less than they risk, because the 7 is more likely than any point. On our table the lay is capped so it can win as much as a right bettor's 3-4-5x odds, which on a $5 Don't Pass means laying $30 on any point:
| Point | Lay odds pay | Lay on $5 | Lay win |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4 or 10 | 1 to 2 | $30 | $15 |
| 5 or 9 | 2 to 3 | $30 | $20 |
| 6 or 8 | 5 to 6 | $30 | $25 |
Don't Pass and two Don't Comes
The dark side's version of the 3-Point Molly. After the Don't Pass has a point, bet the Don't Come: it's decided like a new Don't Pass, and if the roll is a point number it moves behind that number. Lay odds behind it, and do the same once more so three numbers are covered. A 7 wins all of them together; each loses when its own number rolls.
Try Don't Pass and two Don't Comes
Laying the 4 and 10
A lay bet is a bet that the 7 comes before a chosen number, made without a Don't Pass. Laying the 4 and 10 pays 1 to 2, so $40 laid wins $20, less a 5% commission. On our table the commission is taken from a win, $1 on a $20 win, and lay bets are working on the come-out roll.
What every roll pays with $40 laid against each of the 4 and 10, played on our game's own engine:
| Roll | How often | Result | What happens |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 1 of 36 | $0 | Nothing is decided |
| 3 | 2 of 36 | $0 | Nothing is decided |
| 4 | 3 of 36 | −$40 | Lay 4 loses $40 |
| 5 | 4 of 36 | $0 | Nothing is decided |
| 6 | 5 of 36 | $0 | Nothing is decided |
| 7 | 6 of 36 | +$38 | Lay 4 wins $19 · Lay 10 wins $19 |
| 8 | 5 of 36 | $0 | Nothing is decided |
| 9 | 4 of 36 | $0 | Nothing is decided |
| 10 | 3 of 36 | −$40 | Lay 10 loses $40 |
| 11 | 2 of 36 | $0 | Nothing is decided |
| 12 | 1 of 36 | $0 | Nothing is decided |
| Ways out of 36 | 6 pay something, 6 lose, 24 decide nothing | ||
The Doey-Don't and the hedge
- The Doey-Don't is the same amount on the Pass Line and the Don't Pass at once. Most rolls they cancel out; on a come-out 12 the Pass Line loses and the Don't Pass pushes. Players use it to take odds on one side, or to stay at the table with little moving.
- The hedge is a Don't Pass with the 6 and 8 placed after the point: the place bets are paid while the numbers roll, and the Don't Pass is paid when the 7 comes.
The house edge of each bet
| Bet | House edge |
|---|---|
| Don't Pass, Don't Come | 1.36% |
| Lay odds (any point) | 0% |
| Lay 4 or 10, commission on a win | 1.67% |
With full lay odds, the Don't Pass and its odds together keep about 0.27% of the money bet. The 1.36% counts the bar-12 pushes; left out, it's 1.40%. How we check the odds.
In crapless craps, and on a bubble machine
Crapless craps has no Don't Pass or Don't Come, and our crapless table has no lay bets either, so the dark side is played on the Classic table. Bubble craps machines that run regular craps have the Don't bets on their layout; check the paytable for how the machine treats a come-out 12.
How to practice it here
- Tap the button below, or at the table tap the round ♟ button at the top right and pick Don't Pass with lay odds.
- Roll. The table bets the Don't Pass on each come-out and lays full odds once the point is set.
- The strip under the table shows the rolls, the shooters and the strategy's running total, kept apart from any bets of your own.
- Tap Turn off any time and carry on by hand; the bets stay on the table as yours.
Questions
What is the dark side in craps?
Betting that the 7 comes before the point: the Don't Pass, the Don't Come and lay bets. Players on the dark side are also called wrong-way or Don't bettors.
How does Don't Pass work?
On the come-out a 2 or 3 wins it, a 7 or 11 loses it and a 12 pushes. Any other number becomes the point, and then the Don't Pass wins if a 7 rolls before the point and loses if the point rolls first.
What are lay odds in craps?
An extra bet behind a Don't Pass or Don't Come that the 7 comes before the point, paid at true odds: 1 to 2 on the 4 and 10, 2 to 3 on the 5 and 9, and 5 to 6 on the 6 and 8. They have no house edge.
What does laying the 4 and 10 mean?
Betting that a 7 rolls before a 4, and before a 10, without a Don't Pass. Each lay pays 1 to 2 less a 5% commission: $40 laid wins $20, less $1 on our table, where the commission comes from the win.
What is a Doey-Don't in craps?
The same bet on the Pass Line and the Don't Pass at once. They cancel each other out except on a come-out 12, when the Pass Line loses and the Don't Pass pushes.
Can you bet Don't Pass in crapless craps?
No. Crapless craps has no Don't Pass or Don't Come, and our crapless table has no lay bets either, so the dark side is played on the Classic table.
More craps strategies
- Craps strategies: every strategy explained, each with a free table to practice it.
- The 3-Point Molly: a Pass Line and two Come bets, all with odds.
- The Martingale: and the other betting progressions.
- Crapless craps strategy: what changes when every number is a point.
- Play Bubble Craps free
Play money only. No real wagering. No strategy changes the house edge; every roll is independent. About Mini Velvet · Contact